Lecture | Economic and Social History Brown Bag Seminar
Life-course and intergenerational mobility among enslaved people in plantation hierarchies in 18th and 19th-century Suriname
- Enid Holweg
- Date
- Tuesday 12 May 2026
- Time
- Serie
- CMGI Brown Bag Seminars 2025-2026
- Address
-
Johan Huizinga
Doelensteeg 16
2311 VL Leiden - Room
- 2.60
This thesis examines how the occupational roles and social positions of enslaved individuals on plantations in 18th and 19th century Suriname changed over the course of their lifetimes, and to what extent access to skilled or higher-status positions was concentrated within particular families and transmitted across generations. By linking enslaved individuals and their kin across multiple archival sources, this study traces changes in the occupation, monetary valuation, and hierarchical ranking assigned to enslaved people over time. Through a life-course and intergenerational approach, the thesis reveals patterns of social stratification within plantation slavery and investigates the role of kinship networks in shaping access to skill, status, and opportunity.