Hello Diana,

You'll want to look at the Oxford English Dictionary for the complete
picture, but it's my understanding that the term "wench" was originally
used in England to refer to a wide range of women - not always
pejoratively, but more commonly applied to working-class or servant
women.  In the U.S. the term came to be applied almost exclusively to
African-American female slaves and servants.

Hope this helps.

Anna Berkes

Research Librarian
Jefferson Library
Thomas Jefferson Foundation, Inc.
P.O. Box 316
Charlottesville, VA 22902
Phone: 434.984.7544 | Fax: 434.984.7546
http://www.monticello.org/library/index.html
 

-----Original Message-----
From: Discussion of research and writing about Virginia history
[mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Diana Bennett
Sent: Wednesday, September 13, 2006 8:07 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: [VA-HIST] Wenches

Recently I saw a Slave Sale announcement. It mentioned "wenches". What
is a "wench"?

Diana Bennett

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