This book presents an analysis of the slavery and manumission practiced in the Persian Gulf region in the first half of the 20th century. It is unique as it exposes the life stories of several hundred slaves, speaking with their own voices. A striking aspect of the majority of studies on slavery is that they provide the reader with excellent statistics and describe the mechanism of enslavement, the routes of slave trading, and the economic and social conditions of enslaved people, but slaves themselves generally remain anonymous. The premise of this book is to give voice directly to the...

This book provides a comprehensive overview of the last 100 years in the Middle East from the perspective of social history. It is apt to date the beginning of the modern Middle East to the industrialization era, while it extends its reach into the present. Taking its lead from modernization theory, this book illustrates past expectations of the present and helps to understand everyday occurrences rather than sensational events. It adopts a multi-disciplinary perspective and concentrates on the relationship between history and social theory. From a historical perspective, the categories of...