The history of women, children, and the enslaved individuals of the Portuguese empire in Asia.

What is it about?

Women and children are frequently left aside in the grand narratives of modernity. This special issue aims at recovering not only their stories, but also the many different dynamics that governed the existence of women and children, enslaved or not, in the Asian portion of the early modern Portuguese empire.

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Why is it important?

A widely unexplored field, research on women, children, and enslaved individuals in early modern Asia is growing. New articles and monographs have been appearing in the last two decades, although the Portuguese colonial enterprise is yet to follow this pattern. This special issue introduces four groundbreaking articles that explore not only the lives of people often overshadowed by the histories of Portuguese men, but also the many different ways according to which their existence was regulated in colonial societies.