African American History and the Atlantic Slave Trade

Term	Contextual note	Time/Region	References
abolitionist/s	Reductive when used as a label for Black activists who continued to campaign for Civil Rights in the USA long after the Civil War. Their work extended beyond slavery both in the antebellum period and beyond. Should be applied with caution to white individuals who supported the parliamentary procedure to abolish the slave trade. Many of these so-called “abolitionists” did not favour the immediate cessation of slavery, with some promoting its gradual abolition to protect their own financial interests for example.	1700-, USA, UK	Dr Gabrielle Foreman et al. Writing about “Slavery”? This might help Dr Stephen Mullen (University of Glasgow) Matthew Lee (University of Aberdeen) Eric Williams, Capitalism and Slavery Seymour Dresher, Econocide
African/s	Discriminatory when incorrectly applied and homogenising when used in lieu of a person’s (ethnic/national/religious/linguistic) preferred identity. Respect the self-identification of second- and third- (and so forth) generation African diasporic communities. Terms such as “Black”, “African American”, “African-Barbadian”, “African-Brazilian” may be preferred.	1800-, USA, Caribbean, Latin America	Dr. Gabrielle Foreman (Pennstate University) Dr Stephen Mullen (University of Glasgow) PCUSA Terminology Crosswalk
African American/s  African-American/s Black American/s	Popularised by Jesse Jackson in the 1980s, although its usage dates back to 1782. Generally speaking, it is the preferred term for the Black diaspora living in the USA today. It tends to refer to those Black Americans whose families were brought to the United States via the Atlantic Slave Trade. The term “Black Americans” is inclusive of later immigrants from Africa to the USA. In the context of the Atlantic Slave Trade, the term “African American” can be reductive when used to simplify the identity of, for example, an enslaved Black person who was born in West Africa and subsequently captured and moved to North and/or South America. When applicable, be specific about a person’s multiple identities (these may be transnational, multiracial, migratory, multilingual, etc.)	1782-, USA	Dr Gabrielle Foreman et al. Writing about “Slavery”? This might help Fred Shapiro, The Origin of “African American”
Afro- (prefix) Afro-Caribbean/s Afro-Barbadian/s Afro-Indian/s Afro-American/s Afro-Cuban/s Afro-Bolivian/s Afro-Colombian/s Afro-Latin American/s	Prefix coined by Americans in the late 1960s. It has now fallen out of favour on the grounds that the term “Afro” is associated with a hairstyle rather than a continent. Generally, the prefix “African-” is now preferred, although there are exceptions i.e. many people self-identify as “Afro-Caribbean”.	1965-, USA, Caribbean, Latin America	The Guardian UK, Style guide Chris Elliott,  We wouldn’t write ‘Afro-Caribbean’ today Police Service of Northern Ireland, The Appropriate Language Guide Show Racism the Red Card – Terminology
Afro-American/s Afro American/s	See above. Afro-American is outdated, African American or Black American is now preferred.	USA, 1960-
Afro engineering Afro-engineering African engineering nigger engineering ghetto rigging nig rigging jury rigging	A derogatory colloquial phrase that has been used to imply that African American workmanship is “second-rate” or “shoddy”. It is used to describe the act of fixing or manufacturing something using improper tools and methods. *Reminder it is is advised not read the N-word aloud if you do not self-identify as Black, even in quotation*	1900-, USA	Urban dictionary – Afro Engineering Wikipedia – List of ethnic slurs
American slavery slavery in America American flavery	Biased when used to refer to North America or the USA only. “America” should be used in reference to the entire landmass, including both North and South America. Be specific when you are referring only to “North American slavery” or “US slavery”.	1600-, North America, USA, Latin America	Dictionary.com,  Aunt Jemima Wikipedia – List of ethnic slurs
Aunt Jemima	A derogatory caricature of Black women born of the minstrel show and “Mammy” stereotype. The term has been colloquially as a slur towards Black women perceived to be “kissing up” to white people. Until 2021, it was the name of a syrup and pancake mix brand in the USA. Also see “Mammy”.	1800-, USA	Dr Gabrielle Foreman et al. Writing about “Slavery”? This might help
black/s the blacks	Derogatory when used to imply that people with African heritage are monolithic. The term is also offensive when incorrectly applied to other non-African people of colour.  The term “the blacks” is still used in the USA today, but generally considered dehumanising in the UK where “Black people” is preferred. It is now common practice to capitalise “Black” when referencing the African diaspora, such as African Americans and Black Britons. Some scholars refute the capitalisation of “black”, however. As a rule, never de-capitalise “Black” when a person of African heritage has chosen to capitalise the term. It is less common to see the term capitalised when referring to indigenous communities across the African continent, but this may be subject to change.	USA, UK	Baquet, Dean, and Phil Corbett. ‘Uppercasing “Black.”’ New York Times Company, June 30, 2020. Nicholas Whitaker. “Case Sensitive: Why We Shouldn’t Capitalize ‘Black’”. The Drift. September 2021.
blackamoor/sblack moor/s	"Blackamoor" is an archaic, offensive term for a person of African heritage or other dark-skinned people. It is also a type of figure/visual trope in European decorative art, viewed by some as culturally insensitive and racist. Blackamoor pieces are still produced in Venice today. Such images of Black people were often associated with luxury goods produced on plantations such as tea, coffee and chocolate, appearing on printed adverts (Blackamoor heads) or on furniture, jewellery, and sculpture. In Early Modern England, the terms “blackamoor” and “black moor” were general terms for Black people.	Europe, Early Modern	Wikipedia - Blackamoor (decorative arts), accessed 25 January, 2024. V&A - Trade Card, accessed 25 January, 2024. Collins Dictionary, “Blackamoor”, accessed 25 January, 2024.
blackface black face black-face	A type of performance costume designed to demean African American people. The phenomenon became popular in the USA after the Civil War, although it can be dated back to centuries-old European theatrical productions. Thomas Dartmouth Rice is considered the “father of Minstrelsy''. His infamous “blackface” characters include “Jim Crow”, “The Jazz SInger”, “Mammy”, and “Zip Coon”. The origins of the practice of white performers playing Black roles in European theatre predate in the 18th century, however.	1800-, USA, UK	Alexis Clark,  How the history of blackface is rooted in racism CBBC Newsround,  What is blackface?
blacky blackie/s bleckie/s	Contemptuous term used to refer to a Black person.	1800-, USA, UK	The Free Dictionary, ‘Blacky’
boy/s	Derogatory term for a Black man, rooted in the history of enslavement.	1700-, USA, UK, South Africa	Stephen Bright, Term ‘boy’ is proof of racial animus
bluegum/s bluegum nigger bluegum terror	Racial slur used to describe African Americans perceived as being lazy/unwilling to work, or those with particularly dark skin. The phrase dates back to the 1890s when a rumour emerged that Black people’s bites were poisonous. *Reminder: it is advised not read the N-word aloud if you do not self-identify as Black, even in quotation* Bluegum is also a name for a Eucalyptus globulus tree.	1890-, USA	Wikipedia – List of ethnic slurs Urban Dictionary, bluegums Green’s Dictionary of Slang,  blue gum
bootlip/s, boot lip/s, boot-lip/s, thick lip/s	Racial slur for African Americans perceived to have large mouths/lips.	USA	Wikipedia – List of ethnic slurs Urban dictionary, boot lip
born a slave born a flave	Implies there is something natural or hereditary about slavery. “Born into enslavement” or “born with ‘slave’ status” might be a preferable way of phrasing this. Also see “slave”.	1500-, USA, Latin America	Dr Gabrielle Foreman et al. Writing about “Slavery”? This might help
bounty bar/s coconut/s choc ice/s oreo/s	Modern racial slang used to describe a Black (or any non-white) person who is perceived to be behaving like a white person (“black on the outside, white on the inside”).	2000-, USA, UK	People Management,  Black employee ‘compared to a Bounty bar’ will have race discrimination claim heard The Guardian,  Is choc ice the new N-word? Wikipedia – List of ethnic slurs
buck/s	Derogatory term for both African Americans and Native Americans.	USA	Owl apps, List of ethnic slurs by ethnicity
burrhead/s, burr-head/s burr head/s	Derogatory term for African Americans, referring to Afro-textured hair.	USA	Wikipedia – List of ethnic slurs
bush negro/s bish-negro/s bosh neger bushman/men bushwoman/women	Pejorative Dutch term for Africans (and their descendants) who escaped from enslavement in Suriname and the Guyanas and settled in inaccessible interior/mountain areas. Also see “maroon”.	Dutch Empire, South America	Tropenmuseum, Words Matter
concubine/s slave concubine/s flave concubine/s enslaved concubine/s slave mistress/es enslaved mistress/es mistress/es	Euphemism used to disguise histories of sexual violence and exploitation against enslaved women. Sexual coercion and violence should be explicitly identified.		Diana Ramey Berry, ‘Jefferson and Hemings: how negotiation under slavery was possible’ Ana Lucia Araujo, ‘The problem of using the term “mistress” to refer to enslaved women’ and ‘Jefferson was not a benevolent slave owner and doesn’t need any apologists’
colored/s colored person/people	Not to be confused with the use of “Coloured” in South Africa, the term “colored” was historically used in the USA as a legal category for African American people. The term is now considered derogatory. However it continues to be used in some official organisation titles such as “The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People”.	USA	Owl apps, List of ethnic slurs by ethnicity
coon/s Zip Coon coon song raccoon	A racist caricature derived from the minstrel character of “Zip Coon”, which is likely an abbreviation of raccoon. The “coon” was portrayed as lazy, chronically idle, inarticulate, and a buffoon. The “coon song” was a genre of popular music in the period c.1880-1920, with the earliest song being dated back to 1848. A singer of these kinds of songs was known as a “coon shouter”. Also see “minstrelsy” and “blackface”.	1848-, USA, UK	Owl apps, List of ethnic slurs by ethnicity Wikipedia – List of ethnic slurs
creole/s creole-born creole born	Enslaved people were sometimes listed in inventories as “creole born”. This was a way of marking the distinction between second- and third- generation enslaved people and those who were trafficked from Africa to the Caribbean or Americas.		Dr Stephen Mullen
dandy/ies blackface dandy
ditsoon/s (Italian) tizzun (Neapolitan)	Italian pejorative for a dark-skin person, especially an African American. Literal meaning is “burnt”.		Urban Dictionary, Ditsoon
drapetomia	A pseudo-scientific mental illness hypothesised by American physician Samula A. Cartwright in 1851. Cartwright described it as a medical condition that led Africans to flee captivity.	1851-	Wikipedia, Drapetomania Ferris State University, Drapetomania
eggplant mulignan (Sicilian)	A derogatory term for African Americans. It appears in the 1979 film The Jerk, the 1993 film True Romance, and The Sopranos.		Owl apps, List of ethnic slurs by ethnicity Urban Dictionary, Mulignan
golliwog/s, golliwogg/s, golly/gollies	A doll created by New York-born Florence Upton, first appearing in her 1895 book The Adventures of Two Dutch Dolls. The “golliwog” is a racist caricature of African American people. Typically male with jet black skin, large white-rimmed eyes, red or white clown lips, and black frizzy hair, dressed in jacket, trousers, bow tie, and stand-up collar. Sometimes drawn with paws instead of hands. The “golliwog” was especially popular in the United Kingdom, but lesser-known in the United States. The “golliwog” fell into disfavour in the UK following anti-golliwog campaigns in the 1960s. The term has been used as a jibe against people of colour.	1895-, UK, USA	Ferris State University, The Golliwog Caricature
groid	Derogatory term for African Americans derived from the word “negroid”.	USA	Wikipedia – List of ethnic slurs
indentured labour/ers indentured labor/ers white slave/s white flave/s Scottish slave/s Irish slave/s coolie/s	“Indentured labour” or “forced labour” should not be confused with enslavement. Some indentured labourers (including white Scottish indentured labourers) worked on British overseas plantations alongside enslaved African labourers. Although they have been labelled as “white slaves”, their contracts were temporary and they retained certain rights as people and as workers and were not incorporated into the system of chattel slavery in which Black people were denied the status of human beings. Chattel slavery was hereditary, perpetual, racialised, and it denied Black people any legal personhood. Indentured labour was non-transmissible.	UK, Scotland, Ireland, USA, Caribbean	Dr Stephen Mullen, The myth of Scottish slaves Dr Stephen Mullen
jigaboo jiggabo jigarooni jijiboo zigabo jig jigg jigger	Pejorative for African Americans, derived from the Bantu word meaning “meek” or “servile” (i.e. slave)	USA	Urban dictionary, jigaboo Wikipedia – List of ethnic slurs
Jim Crow crow	In the 1830s and 1840s, white entertainer Thomas Dartmouth Rice performed a song and dance act in “blackface”, supposedly based on an African American slave. The character, known as “Jim Crow”, portrayed African American men in a derogatory way. The act was incredibly popular, with one of the most popular songs being “Jumping Jim Crow”. The term “Jim Crow” became popularised as a derogatory term for African Americans, so much so that it was referenced in the “Jim Crow Law”. Also see “minstrelsy”. According to Classic Warbirds, the RAF’s codeword Jim Crow “Originated during 1940 when the threat of invasion was high, it would see the coast patrolled with the intention of attacking any enemy aircraft crossing the coast of Britain”. The term does not appear to be discriminatory in this context, although its origin is unclear.	1830-, USA, UK	David Pilgrim – Ferris State University – The Origins of Jim Crow National Geographic – Who was Jim Crow? Classic Warbirds – Royal Airforce Codewords During the Second World War
jungle bunny Bunnies junglebunny	Derogatory term for Black people, used in the USA and UK.	USA, UK	Wikipedia – List of ethnic slurs Urban dictionary,  jungle bunny
Ku Klux Klan Klu Klux Klan KKK The Klan Klansman/men	“Ku Klux Klan” is the official name of one of the oldest and most infamous American white supremacist terrorist hate groups, responsible for the lynching of many African Americans and other minority groups. Materials relating to Ku Klux Klan activity are likely to contain material that incites racial hatred and may require content advisory warnings. The Klan existed in three eras: 1865-1871; 1915-1944; 1950-now. Avoid protecting the anonymity of members of this incredibly dangerous hate group. Also see “lynching”.	1865-	Southern Poverty Law Center, Ku Klux Klan Britannica,  Ku Klux Klan
lynching/s lynch lynched	The term “lynching” refers to a mob-killing of an alleged offender that subverts the judicial process. Lynching was a specific form of terrorism used by white Americans against African Americans (and other ethnic minorities – including Mexicans, Chinese, Native Americans, and Italian Americans) in the period c.1830-1960, reaching its height in the 1890s-1920s. A typical lynching would involve (dubious) criminal accusations against an African American, an arrest by members of the public, and the assembly of a “lynch mob” intent on subverting the normal constitutional judicial process. Victims would be seized and subjected to every imaginable manner of physical torment, with the torture usually ending with being hung from a tree and set on fire. More often than not, victims would be dismembered and mob members would take pieces of their flesh and bone home as “souvenirs”. Lynchings were public events and photographs of the corpses of the victims were widely circulated as postcards. Many of these images can be found in historical archives and should be labelled with appropriate content warnings. Also see Ku Klux Klan.	1830-1960	The Guardian, How white Americans used lynchings to terrorize and control black people Wikipedia, Lynching in the United States
Mammy Mammie	Racial caricature of a female servant of African descent who works as a nanny for a white family, generally good-natured, nurturing, often overweight and loud. The “Mammy” stereotype was used as proof that African American women were content, even happy, about being enslaved. Also see “Aunt Jemima”.		Wikipedia, Mammy stereotype Ferris State University, The Mammy Caricature
miscegenation Interracial sex	Harmful when this terminology has historically been used to obscure sexual violence, rape, assault, and coercion under slavery. Sexual violence, sexual assault, rape, coercion under slavery. Stemming from anxieties about the amalgamation of Black and white communities in the United States of America, the term “miscegenation” was coined in 1864 to denote what white people perceived as the undesirable phenomenon of the “interbreeding of races”.		David G. Croly, et al., Miscegenation; the theory of the blending of the races, applied to the American white man and negro (New York: H. Dexter, Hamilton & Co., 1864). Peggy Pascoe, What Comes Naturally: Miscegenation Law and the Making of Race in America (Oxford University Press, 2010)
minstrelsy minstrel/s minstrel show/s black minstrel black and white minstrel	Minstrelsy was a racist form of entertainment popular in the USA in the early 19th century. Performers depicted negative stereotypes of African American people, often performed by white people in “blackface”. Minstrel shows first emerged in the early 1830s in the North Eastern states, but they had gained nation-wide popularity by 1848. As the Civil Rights movement progressed, minstrelsy lost popularity. The BBC’s Black and White Minstrel Show aired in the UK from 1958 until 1978. Also see “blackface” and “Jim Crow”. Minstrelsy also appears in the Irish song “Minstrel Boy” written by Thomas Moore (1779-1852). Moore came to be nicknamed “The Minstrel Boy”. The song is anti-slavery in sentiment. Also referenced in HMS Minstrel (British Royal Navy ships).	1830-, USA, UK	Wikipedia, Minstrel show History of the BBC, The Black and White Minstrel Show
mosshead/s	Derogatory term for African Americans	USA
negro/s negroe/s	A term historically used by Europeans to describe Black people from Africa. It came to be used to describe enslaved people and became associated with the racial sciences of the 18th and 19th centuries. The word is now widely regarded as derogatory.		PCUSA, Terminology Crosswalk Tropenmuseum, Words Matter
Negro spiritual/s	Can be replaced with “spirituals”.		Wikipedia – Spirituals
nigger/s n*gger nigga/s niglet/s nigra/s niggra/s negra/s nigrah/s nigruh/s niggur/s nigre/s (Caribbean) nigor/s nig/s niggah/s nigguh/s niggerboy/s N word n-word	*Reminder: it is advised not read the N-word aloud if you do not self-identify as Black, even in quotation* Today, Black people have reclaimed the highly offensive N-word (although some contest its continued usage). It is frowned upon for non-Black people to say this term aloud. The n-word, deriving from the Spanish and Portuguese words for “black”, was used to dehumanise enslaved Africans after the 17th century. Historically in the UK, the term was also used as an “affectionate” name. For example, it was used “playfully” by Charles Darwin and his wife in letters to each other. It was also the name given to a black Labrador which was the mascot of the Dambusters (RA 617 Squadron) during World War II. The term was also once used to refer to a kind of timber and as a verb to refer to a method of burning timber.	1600-	Cherry Wilson (BBC), N-word: The troubled history of the racial slur Faculty of English, University of Cambridge, Racial Slurs and Racially Charged Language
nig nog/s nig-nog nog-nog nignog	Derogatory slang for Black people, deriving from “nigger”	UK, USA, Black history	Owl apps, List of ethnic slurs by ethnicity Wikipedia – List of ethnic slurs
nitty gritty nitty-gritty	Nowadays it is used colloquially to mean “the basic facts of a situation”, however, it has been speculated that this term has its roots in the slave trade. Evidence for this is inconclusive. Usage of this term has been banned in the UK police force and Sky Sports, nevertheless, and has continued to be the subject of media debate in 2021.		Scotsman – Nitty-gritty meaning Dr Stephen Mullen
person/people of color persons/peoples of color person/people of colour persons/peoples of colour BME BAME BIPOC	“People of colour” is generally accepted as a term that collectively refers to all people who identify as having non-white heritage. The term is homogenising, however, when used as a blanket term. It is inappropriate to use the term “people of colour” when specifically referencing African Americans or other Black communities as this often erases the marginalisation that they have experienced in comparison to other non-white groups. For example, an institution may boast that a certain percentage of their employees are “people of colour” or from “BME” backgrounds to appear inclusive, hiding the fact that none (or a marginal number) of them are Black.	1990-, UK, USA	Dr Gabrielle Foreman et al. Writing about “Slavery”? This might help
picanniny/ies piccaninny/ies picaninny/ies picanniny/ies pickaninny/ies pickinniny/ies child coon/s inky kid/s smoky kid/s smokey kid/s black lamb/s snowball/s chubbie ebony/ies chubby ebony/ies alligator bait gator bait	“Picanninny” is a pidgin word for small children that was used in the West Indies. However, it became a racial slur in the USA with the development of the “picanninny” caricature from the 1850s through to the 20th century. The first famous “picanniny” caricature was Topsy, a poorly dressed, disreputable slave girl who appears in Uncle Tom’s Cabin. “Picanninies” were portrayed in ragged clothes or nude with bulging eyes, red lips, unkempt hair, and wide mouths to accommodate huge slices of watermelon. They were frequently shown being chased by alligators, as their white enslavers supposedly used them as bait to catch the animals. They appeared on-stage and in books as well as on postcards,  and other ephemera. One of the most controversial “picanniny” images is that created by Scottish author Helen Bannerman in her book The Little Black Sambo (see “sambo”).	1850-, USA, UK	David Pilgrim, Ferris State University – The Picaninny Caricature
plantation/s plantation owner/s plantations labourer/s plantation laborer/s	When used to describe plantations that relied on enslaved labour, the term “plantation” has been criticised on the grounds of being euphemistic, especially in the context of describing someone as a “planter” or “plantation owner”. This phrasing obscures  the presence of enslaved African labourers on European and American plantations in the Americas and Caribbeans since the seventeenth century until the abolition of slavery. “Enslaved labour plantation” or “slave labour plantation” may be a suitable alternative when describing this phenomenon. There are various types of plantations (i.e. tea plantations in India, indentured labour plantations, forced labour plantations), so it is important to distinguish those that relied on enslaved labour from those that did not (see “indentured labour”).	17th century-, pre-1865, UK	Dr Gabrielle Foreman et al. Writing about “Slavery”? This might help
porch monkey/s	A derogatory term for African Americans referring to the perceived lazy behaviour of groups of African Americans hanging out on front porches or the steps of urban apartment complexes in USA cities, especially the Southern States.	20th century-, USA	Urban dictionary,  porch monkey Wikipedia – List of ethnic slurs
runaway/s run away/s runaway slave/s run away slave/s	This term is deemed derogatory because it replicates the language of enslavers who advertised for the recapture of “runaway slaves”. This term implies that “running away” was criminal (or a sign of madness, see “drapetomia”) and denies African Americans agency in their own self-liberation. Terms such as “fugitives from slavery”, “self-liberated”, or “self-emancipated” are often preferred. Also see “maroon”.	18th century, 19th century, UK, USA	Michael Todd Landis – These are words scholars should no longer use to describe slavery and the civil war Dr Gabrielle Foreman et al. Writing about “Slavery”? This might help
sambo/s samboe/s zambo/s (Spanish)	"Sambo" (also spelled "Samboe") derives from the Spanish racial classification "Zambo" or "Sambu", which was used in colonial South America to distinguish people of mixed Black and Indigenous ancestry, specifically those with one "mulatto" parent. In the English language, "Sambo" was most commonly used to denigrate people with African heritage, particularly African Americans, although it was also used in a derogatory way towards other non-white people, such as mixed-race people, Native Americans, or South Asians. In her children's book the Little Black Sambo, the term is used by Helen Bannerman to describe an Indian (South Asian) boy. Yet, the book gained popularity in the USA where subsequent editions were illustrated with racist “picaninny” caricatures of an African American child, thus highlighting the term's multiple racialised meanings.	USA, UK, Latin America, 1700s	Shirley Ann Tate – Decolonising Sambo
shine/s	A derogatory term for African Americans, derived from shoeshiner, a lowly job many Black people had to take in the 20th century.	20th century, USA	Urban dictionary, shine Wikipedia – List of ethnic slurs
slave/s Chattel chattel slave/s flave/s slave labour/ers slave labor/ers slave ship/s flave ship/s slaving vessel/s slave vessel/s slavers slave stick/s slave caravan/s	Referring to a person as a “slave” is contested because it normalises the category “slave” as an inherent identity of a person, thus ignoring that this identity was created by someone else through violent force. The term “enslaved person” better references the violent and involuntary nature of slavery and acknowledges that Africans offered resistance to enslavement. The term must also be carefully applied to a person who was enslaved for only a period of their life. Multiple systems of slavery have existed across time and space, and it should not be assumed that “slave” means African. What was unique about the chattel slavery that developed in the Atlantic was that it was hereditary, perpetual, racialised, and it denied people any legal personhood. Also see “African” for discussion on the labelling on second- and third- generation enslaved people in the Caribbean and Americas. “Slaving ship” might be the preferred term to reference vessels that transported enslaved people from Africa to the Americas and Caribbean. Term like “slave stick” and “slave caravan” refer to historical phenomena but might better be described using alternative terminology i.e. stick that was attached around an enslaved person’s neck.	16th century, 17th century, 18th century, 19th century	Ligali, Terminology Archives for Black Lives in Philadelphia, Anti-Racist Description Resources Dr Gabrielle Foreman et al. Writing about “Slavery”? This might help
slavery, flavery	Recognising the enslavement of African people acknowledges the violence and oppression inherent in the system of slavery. The term “enslavement” is therefore sometimes preferred. The term maafa (“the enslavement of Mother Africa”) has also emerged as an alternative, but it is not yet widely used.	c.1500-1899	Black Cultural Archives Glossary Ligali, Terminology
slave trade	Some have argued that it is important to differentiate the Atlantic slave trade from any other trading of enslaved people (such as the Indian Ocean slave trade) and also emphasise that enslavement had as much to do with the Americas and Europe as with Africa. The term “slave” is considered dehumanising and it was not a legitimate “trade”, see entry for “transatlantic slave trade” below.	1500-
slave master/s slaver/s flaver/s master/s planter/s plantation owner/s slave-owner/s slave owner/s slave holder/s slaveholder/s sugar merchant/s merchant/s	“Slave master” obscures the racial power imbalance and euphemistically obscures the brutality of enslavement. Terms like “plantation owner” or “planter” or “merchant” are similarly euphemistic and obscure a person’s involvement in the enslavement of Africans. We can notice this problem in plaques commemorating white “planters” in the UK, for example. “Enslaver” is a suggested alternative. Also see “plantation”.	1500-	Dr Gabrielle Foreman et al. Writing about “Slavery”? This might help ‘The afterlife of slavery: language and ethics’. Wakelet compiled by LaTanya S. Autry. Ligali, Terminology Archives for Black Lives in Philadelphia, Anti-Racist Description Resources
smoked Irishman smoked Irishmen	A derogatory term for African Americans used in the 19th century.	19th century	Owl apps, List of ethnic slurs by ethnicity
sooty	A derogatory term for African Americans originating in the 1950s.	1950-	Wikipedia – List of ethnic slurs Owl apps, List of ethnic slurs by ethnicity
spook	A derogatory term for African Americans.	USA	Owl apps, List of ethnic slurs by ethnicity Wikipedia – List of ethnic slurs
tar baby tar-baby	A derogatory term for African Americans, especially African American children.	USA	Wikipedia – List of ethnic slurs Owl apps, List of ethnic slurs by ethnicity
teapot/s tea pot/s	A derogatory term for African Americans originating in the 19th century.	19th century, USA	Owl apps, List of ethnic slurs by ethnicity Wikipedia – List of ethnic slurs
toad/s	A derogatory term for African Americans.	USA	Wikipedia – List of ethnic slurs
Transatlantic slave trade	The terms “Transatlantic slave trade” or “Atlantic slave trade” are widely used, especially to distinguish this from other slave trades (i.e. the Indian Ocean slave trade). But, where possible, fuller descriptions such as the capture and enslavement of Africans by Europeans who were then forcibly transported across the Atlantic Ocean would be recommended. There is ongoing debate on this terminology led by Professor Verene Shepherd to discontinue to use of the term “slave trade” altogether. Instead she uses “the transatlantic trade in Africans” or “Europe’s transatlantic trade in Africans”. The phrase “Euro-American slave trade” is also listed as an alternative on Wikipedia, although would require some explanation and perhaps is better expanded to “Euro-American slave trade across the Atlantic”. There was no legitimate consensual transaction or “trade” that took place, at least not outside of a Eurocentric understanding of the term. An alternative term would be “trafficking”, but this has not been widely adopted. Also see “slave” and “slave trade”.		Ligali, Terminology Dr Stephen Mullen
Uncle Tom	A character in Harriet Beecher-Stowe’s 1858 novel Uncle Tom’s Cabin and derogatory term for African Americans that refers to Black men who are perceived as behaving in a subservient manner to white people. Also see “Mammy”.	1858-
uppity uppity nigger	A derogatory adjective for African Americans. Used by white people in the American South to describe African Americans who they believed “did not know their socioeconomic place”. *Reminder: it is advised not read the N-word aloud if you do not self-identify as Black, even in quotation*	USA	Scotsman, Nitty-gritty meaning The Atlantic, Yep, ‘Uppity’ is racist