Dependency and Slavery Studies

The BCDSS library is a growing interdisciplinary collection of publications on various aspects of slavery and other forms of social dependencies across all times, regions and cultures. Above that, it also accumulates publications on related topics, i.e. labor, gender, inequality, identity, colonialism, racism, religion, etc.

The collection is located at the Bonn University and State Library (ULB) and can be found under the shelfmarks BEY. It includes printed books and e-books, which can be searched and accessed via the Bonnus database

The library of the former Mainz Academy project Forschungen zur antiken Sklaverei ('Research on Ancient Slavery') is now available as a reference library. Please visit our website for further information (collection, opening hours, etc.). 

The BCDSS has different publication series. In addition, you can access lists of publications by BCDSS researchers that were published in other series, journals or edited volumes.

You can also access BCDSS members’ reviews of books and edited volumes related to the topic of strong asymmetrical dependencies, as well as our Cluster Magazine DEPENDENT. Please visit the BCDSS Publications website. 

The BCDSS offers a number of publication series, each with a distinct format and each engaging with slavery and other forms of strong asymmetrical dependencies.

All publications are free for download via Gold Open Access or as PDF files.

DBIS contains both freely accessible databases and those that require a license, all arranged systematically in order. You can use the quick-access function to focus your search on a specific database, while the subject overview gives you a general idea of which databases will be relevant for which subjects.

The integrated traffic light system tells you whether the database in question is free to access, licensed to the University of Bonn or not available.

The Bonn Center for Dependency and Slavery Studies at the University of Bonn aims to overcome the binary opposition of "slavery versus freedom". It is a research cluster within the framework of the Excellence Strategy of the federal and state  governments.

Our Cluster of Excellence is a joint project of researchers from many different backgrounds, including anthropology, archaeology, Asian and Islamic Studies, comparative religious studies, German medieval literature, history, and theology.

We propose "asymmetrical  dependency" as a new key concept that covers all forms of bondage across time and space.