ive been more curious about the history of the black sea region lately, not just the genoans but also the cumans, petchenegs/patzinaks, crimean goths (who apparently still existed as late as the 1600s) circassians, laz, and especially the crimean tatars and related hordes (nogais/nogays, kazan tatars, ect) ive been currently trying to ascertain if the crimean tatars, who where originally a part of the golden horde, had their origins in mongolia or if they where descended from the kipchaks/cumans/petchenegs/khazars...apparently most of the girays liked to claim descent from chinggis khan, weather or not they actually had any mongol blood at all.......of course thats probably information for a whole other thread
so far the best source of info i have found on the genoan slave trade has been "Purity lost: transgressing boundaries in the Eastern Mediterranean, 1000-1400" By Steven Epstein.
anyways hopefully this sparks some conversation or even debate!