Final answer:
Both chattel slavery and debt bondage were prevalent in various historical contexts. Chattel slavery involved owning persons as property, while debt slavery involved individuals working to repay debts. Their popularity varied regionally and temporally.
Step-by-step explanation:
When comparing debt slavery and chattel slavery in historical contexts, it is essential to recognize that both forms were widely practiced and had profound impacts on societies. Chattel slavery is associated with the ownership of one person by another, treated as property, and had no personal rights. This form was particularly prevalent in the pre-Civil War United States. On the other hand, debt bondage, a form of debt slavery, involved individuals pledging themselves as servants to repay the cost of necessities or debts. While chattel slavery is often the more commonly recognized form due to its historical presence in the Americas, debt slavery also has an extensive history and was widespread in regions like South America, Japan, and even the ancient Sumerian civilization.
Both forms were used as methods to exploit and control labor and maintain social and economic hierarchies. While they operated under different mechanisms, their underlying purpose was to provide a steady and often inexpensive labor force for various forms of production over the centuries. Therefore, it is difficult to state which form of slavery was more 'popular' as their prevalence varied based on geographical, temporal, and cultural contexts.