Slavery in Suriname. A Reconstruction of Life Courses, 1830–1863

Coen W. van Galen, Rick J. Mourits, Matthias Rosenbaum-Feldbrügge, Maartje A.B., Jasmijn Janssen, Björn Quanjer, Thunnis van Oort, Jan Kok

Research output: Contribution to journal/periodicalArticleScientificpeer-review

3 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

The slavenregisters or slave registers of Suriname offer a unique perspective on the social and demographic history of a people in bondage. Thanks to a citizen science project, the archival sources were transcribed in 2017 by hundreds of volunteers. The transcriptions were used to create a longitudinal database of more than 90,000 enslaved persons. This paper describes the sources, data entry, and cleaning to create a standardized database as well as the matching needed to construct life courses. We discuss the best practices we have learned along the way. Finally, it offers prospects for research and expansion of the database to other population sources and areas.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1830-1863
Number of pages34
JournalHistorical Life Course Studies
Volume13
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2023

Keywords

  • Citizen science
  • Life courses
  • Record linkage
  • Slavery
  • Suriname

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Slavery in Suriname. A Reconstruction of Life Courses, 1830–1863'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this