Which of the following statements about West African slavery in the centuries leading up to the arrival of Europeans in that region is most accurate?

A) Slaves could not own property of their own.
B) West African slavery resembled slavery as practiced in the Muslim world.
C) Slavery was a permanent status which could not be transcended either by a slave or a slave's children.
D) Slavery was an aberration that was almost unknown in most West African societies.

West African slavery before the arrival of Europeans shared similarities with slavery in the Muslim world, including aspects like the integration of slaves into households, the possibility for slaves to earn their freedom, and the use of slaves in various roles beyond mere labor. Unlike the chattel slavery that developed in the Americas, where slaves and their offspring were considered property in perpetuity, both West African and Islamic forms of slavery allowed for more fluid social mobility and integration.