The Origins of Slaves and Their Names in Ptolemaic Egypt: A Case Study of the Zenon Archive

Document Type : Original Article

Author

Ain Shams University

Abstract

The paper centres on two primary inquiries concerning enslaved individuals in Ptolemaic Egypt, utilising the Zenon archive as a case study:
Firstly, what were the sources of enslaved individuals during the Ptolemaic period, as investigated using the Zenon archive?
Secondly, what insights can be drawn from the names of enslaved individuals documented within the archive?
The paper will employ a mixed-methods approach for an analysis of the documents related to slavery in the Zenon archive. Both quantitative and qualitative methods will be utilised to answer the research questions. The quantitative analysis will involve the compilation and analysis of data related to the origins of enslaved individuals, such as their geographic origins and the ways through which they were enslaved. Meanwhile, quantitative and qualitative will involve a detailed examination of the names of enslaved individuals documented within the archive.
 
تَطْرَحُ هذه الورقةُ البحثيةُ تساؤليْن رئيسيْن بخصوصِ العَبِيدِ في مصر البطلميَّة وذلك باتخاذ أرشيف زِينُون كدراسة حالة: أولًا، من أين جُلب العَبِيدُ المذكورون بالأرشيف؟ وثانيًا، أيُّ نتائج من الممكن أن يُتَوَصَّلُ إليها بدراسة أسماءِ هؤلاءِ العَبِيدِ؟
تستخدم الورقةُ نهجًا مختلطًا يجمعُ بين النهجين الكميّ والنوعيّ في معالجة أسئلة البحث؛ حيث وُظِّف الأول من خلال جمع كل ما يُشير إلى أصول العبيد في أرشيف زينون والطرق التي اتُبعت في استعبادهم، في حين وُظِّف كلا المنهجيْن في جمع وفحص أسماء العبيد في الأرشيف وتحليلها

Keywords


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