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Human Mobility in Roman Italy, II: The Slave Population*

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  08 March 2010

Walter Scheidel
Walter Scheidel
Affiliation:
Stanford University, scheidel@stanford.edu
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Extract

In this paper, I seek to delineate the build-up of the Italian slave population. My parametric model revolves around two variables: the probable number of slaves in Roman Italy, and the demographic structure of the servile population. I critique existing estimates of slave totals and propose a new ‘bottom-up’ approach; discuss the probable sex ratio, mortality regime and family structure of the Italian slaves; and advance a new estimate of the overall volume of slave transfers. I argue that the total number of slaves in Roman Italy did not exceed one-and-a-half million, and that this population had been created by the influx of between two and four million slaves during the last two centuries B.C.

Keywords

SLAVESROMAN ITALYROMAN SOCIAL HISTORYDEMOGRAPHYROMAN AGRICULTUREMORTALITY RATES
Type
Articles
Information
The Journal of Roman Studies , Volume 95 , November 2005 , pp. 64 - 79
Copyright
Copyright © Walter Scheidel 2005. Exclusive Licence to Publish: The Society for the Promotion of Roman Studies

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References

* Thanks are due to Nathan Rosenstein and three anonymous referees for valuable comments and criticism. I first presented key elements of my argument in May 2000 at a workshop on ancient slavery at Stanford University, and benefited from William Harris's response at a later session of the same forum.