Josephine Bakhita was a Sudanese Catholic nun who lived from approximately 1869 to 1947. After being kidnapped and enslaved by traders at a young age, she was eventually purchased by an Italian official, which led to her journey to Europe. Following her liberation, she joined the Canossian sisters and spent fifty years serving the religious community in Italy. She is recognized as the first black female saint of the modern era, having been canonized in 2000.