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Romany
Gypsies have been part of Europe since their arrival in the
Balkans some 700 years ago. Their dark appearance and unfamiliar
customs set them apart from the peoples they encountered. The
Romani language—which is closely related to ancient
Sanskrit—gave scholars the first solid leads to their origins.
By tracing these linguistic clues, it now appears that the Romany
left northwest India/Pakistan for Persia, and then moved on into
what was the Byzantine Empire. When the Turkish Empire began
expanding, the Romany pushed even further into Europe. Historical
sources place them as far west as Paris as early as the 1400s.
These
nomadic groups were sometimes mistakenly thought to have come from
Egypt, hence the name Gypsy (English), Gitano (Spanish), or Gitan
(French). Their names for themselves (Romany/Roma) and their
language (Romani/Romanes) come from “rrom,” the word for man
or person.
In
Western Europe they were sometimes tolerated, partially for the
services they provided, such as horse trading and entertaining. But they were also often banished, deported, imprisoned, or
simply exterminated. It may even be that the Romany remained
nomadic—pursuing nomadic trades such as metal repair and
seasonal work—because they were rarely allowed to settle.
In
Eastern Europe, Romany were also exploited as a source of labor.
In parts of Romania they were enslaved as late as 1865. Group
names often reflect traditional occupations (Kalderash—coppersmiths;
Curara—sieve makers; Usari—bear trainers).
During
World War II, 80% of some Romany populations were killed in the
Nazi holocaust. Romany continue to face subtle discrimination in
the West as well as open hostility in Eastern and Central Europe.
They remain a people on the move, prompted partly by political
unrest in the Balkans and ethnic discrimination in areas like
Poland, the Czech and Slovak Republics, and Romania.
Today
the Romany have spread out—due to economic and political
pressures—into Russia, Scandinavia, Siberia, the Americas, and
Australia. Worldwide population is estimated at 40 million.
Romani,
the language of the Romany people, is actually a language
family rather than a single language. The Romany have borrowed
linguistically from the lands they have traveled through and the
peoples they have lived among. More than 20 different languages
and dialects are spoken today, some as mutually intelligible as
British English and American English, others as distinct as
English and German. Oral tradition and suspicion of outsiders
remains so strong that certain groups oppose having their language
written. Others, however, work together for a common spelling
system and literacy materials.
Basic
divisions in Romani were perhaps originally geographic, as
reflected in the names given to some language families (Balkan
from the Balkans; Vlach from an area of Romania/Moldova; Baltic
from the Baltic States). However, language groups now span
numerous national borders, and many countries house two to ten
different Romani language groups. Due to political and social
pressures, some groups have lost their own language; others are
taking pains to preserve it.
For
information on Christian resources in Romani, consult www.romanibible.org.
For
more information about Romany history and culture, consult
www.geocities.com/Paris/5121/patrin.htm.
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