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In the early historical development, why did Slavs and slaves mean the same thing in English?
Why do Slavs and slaves mean the same thing in English? Slavs and slaves are synonyms in English, and they share the same Slavic language. Why is this? There is a painful history here.

Slavs are an ancient ethnic group in Europe. They have lived in a vast area from the Volga River basin to the Elbe River for a long time. At the beginning of AD, Roman writers called this people Venetians. Slavs are divided into three groups: Eastern Slavs living in Eastern Europe, including Russians, Ukrainians and Belarusians, established Kiev, Russia and Russia; Western Slavs living in Central Europe, including Poles, Czechs and Ruziz, established countries such as Greater Moravia, Poland and Czech Republic. Southern Slavs living in Southeast Europe, including Bulgarians, Serbs, Croats, Montenegrins and Macedonians, established Bulgaria and Serbia. Since the founding of the People's Republic of China at the beginning of the 10 century, the German feudal class has been frantically expanding to the areas where East and West Slavs live together along the Elbe River for hundreds of years, which has brought heavy disasters to the West Slavs.

As soon as Henry I, the founder of the Saxon dynasty, ascended the throne, he launched a war of aggression against the Western Slavs in the East. Henry invaded the Ruzi and Richter areas of Moravia on the east bank of the Elbe River, and as a result, he occupied the famous Slavic city of Branny Fort on the Hafir River. The following year, Henry and the Duke of Bavaria invaded Prague today and forced the local Slavs to pay tribute.

In 950, Emperor Otto I invaded Bohemia again and appointed the Duke of Bavaria to rule the area. German colonists established many monasteries, garrisons and immigrant areas there, practiced colonial rule and imposed heavy taxes on Slavs. Otto I has also established some parishes, using Christianity as a ruling tool. Since then, a large number of Slavs have been slaughtered or sold as slaves and sold by Jewish businessmen to all parts of Western Europe. Verdun is a famous center of slave trade. Therefore, in the 10 century, the word Slavs became synonymous with slaves, while the original word slaves specifically referred to serfs.

Around AD 1000, the Western Slavs took advantage of the failure of the German emperor to invade Italy, launched an uprising, wiped out the German colonists, recaptured Brandenburg and Hafelburg, and regained their independence 100 years ago. From the12nd century, German feudal lords expanded eastward on a large scale, occupying the area from the east of the Elbe River to the east of the Baltic Sea. The West Slavs along the Elbe River gradually became Germanic, losing their original culture and language.

This is why Slavs and slaves mean the same thing in English.