Overview

The “Slavs,” an ancient people of east-central Europe, were conquered and sold into bondage so frequently during the Middle Ages that their name eventually became synonymous with the state of servitude. “Sclavus,” their original title, came into MEng. as sclave, with the meaning “one bound to servility” attached as early as the ninth century. Evidently, by that time it already made no difference to which race these “slaves” belonged.

By means of slavery, whether the ownershi…