R  o  m  a  n  y            

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HISTORY

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The History of the
Romany People

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.

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. 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. 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.