During the period of the Ottoman rule, life at the Aegean was up against pirate's raids. Seamen, merchants travellers, island men and people living at coastal villages of the greek peninsula were kept prisoners by the organized piracy networks to end up in the slave trades of north Africa and big cities of the Ottoman Empire. The invaders attacked on the festive days when most of the inhabitants were gathered in a central area dressed in precious jewellery and ornaments. All captives shared an aspiration: their family paying the ransom to buy them back from the pirates. Whenever the family could not cover the amount, their hopes relied on the community. However, in periods of piracy outburst, the expenses became intolerable even for the prosperous communities. Under the circumstances, funds with the purpose of buying the prisoners back were established, whereas special taxes like "sklaviatika" or "tourkoteli" were imposed at the ports .
Piracy marked the life of the island communities. Popular stories recited the unexpected salvation of poor inhabitants by saints. Songs and morns spread the tortures of the islanders and the deeds of the pirates which often became mythical personages. Proverbs and expressions evinced piracy in everyday speech. Since it could not be effectively confronted, the islanders learned to live with it. Certain islands of Cyclades and regions in the coast of Mani and Euboea lived basically from the pirate's raids. Serifos and Ios were islands where pirate boats anchored in the winter months; so prostitution offered the women and their families every possibility to supplement their income. Sometimes even religion could not halt them from the easy money. There are testimonies of monks' participation in piracy in north Aegean.