Odalisque
An odalisque is usually a female submissive or consensual slave whose role focuses on sexual service, beauty, sensuality, and pleasing a Master.
In some modern Master/slave relationships, an odalisque may be treated as a type of pleasure slave. Her role may include sexual service, training, exercise, grooming, obedience, or other forms of self-improvement.
In some modern M/s systems, an odalisque is treated as a specialized type of pleasure slave, with formal rules, rituals, training, or a “Code d’Odalisque.” These practices are not universal, however, and appear to come from particular authors or communities.
Origins of the Term Odalisque
The word odalisque is much older than its use in BDSM. It came into English in the late 1600s through the French odalisque, which came from the Turkish odalık. The Turkish word referred to a female servant or chamber attendant connected with a household or harem.
Over time, Europeans gave the word a much more sexual meaning. In Western use, an odalisque came to mean a woman in a harem or a concubine. The term became associated with paintings of reclining women in luxurious harem settings, but that image was largely a Western fantasy rather than an accurate description of the original role.
The BDSM meaning appears to have grown out of this later Western image of the odalisque as an elegant, sexually available or highly trained female slave. It also appears to be connected to the "Code d’Odalisque," a detailed set of rules for a consensual Master/slave relationship that first emerged in a book called "Code d’Odalisque: A New Style of Non-Violent Sex Slave Role Play," by M & V Rose. Online BDSM discussions from the late 2000s and 2010s describe it as a small subculture emphasizing consensual female sexual submission, formal protocols, and erotic service rather than pain or humiliation.
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