Slavery and the social status of enslaved people in the Ottoman Empire

Slavery refers to the condition of individuals who were captured in wars, forcibly brought from different regions, or abducted from their homelands and deprived of their freedom, thus falling under the authority of another person. Throughout human history, slavery has appeared in various forms and became institutionalized particularly with the transition to sedentary life and the beginning of agricultural production. Generally reflecting the dominance of the strong over the weak, slavery persisted in many societies with different practices. The Ottoman Empire, however, approached the institution of slavery from an Islamic perspective, granting slaves the right to life and integrating them into certain spheres of social order. The scarcity of studies focusing specifically on the social status of slaves in the Ottoman Empire, or the insufficiency of existing research in this regard, has necessitated this study. It seeks to answer the following questions: What was the place of slaves in Ottoman society? How did the Ottoman Empire perceive and implement the institution of slavery compared to other societies? A comprehensive literature review was conducted, including key works, articles, and theses on the subject. Moreover, Ottoman court registers (şer'iyye sicilleri), particularly those of Galata, Üsküdar, and Diyarbakır, were examined to better contextualize the issue historically. Both local and foreign sources were consulted, and the data obtained were analyzed objectively to assess the position of slaves in Ottoman society.