Madagascar had become an important transoceanic trading hub connecting ports of the Indian Ocean in the early centuries following human settlement.

The written history of Madagascar began with the Arabs, who established trading posts along the northwest coast by at least the tenth century and introduced Islam, the Arabic script (used to transcribe the Malagasy language in a form of writing known as sorabe), Arab astrology, and other cultural elements.

The ship of Diogo Dias, during an expedition along the Cape of Good Hope (Diogo may have originally called it the Cape of Storms) with Pedro Álvares Cabral and his brother, had become separated from the main fleet during the crossing of the Cape (his brother's ship was lost during that crossing).

Having struck a route too far east, Dias was the first European to sight the island of Madagascar and is often credited with naming the island of São Lourenço, on account of it being found on St. Lawrence's day: August 10, 1500.

The island is not unknown; its existence and Arabic name, "Island of the Moon", had already been reported by Pêro da Covilhã back in 1490.

Madagascar becomes a source of slaves, not only for the neighboring islands of Mauritius and Rodrigues, but also for more distant points, including the Western Hemisphere.

Madagascar's social and political structure facilitates the slave trade.

Within several small coastal kingdoms, stratified societies of nobles, commoners, and slaves give allegiance to a single king or queen.

For example, the Sakalava ethnic group dominated the western and northern portions of Madagascar in two separate kingdoms.

Menabe, on the barren western grasslands, has its first capital at Toliara; ...