ROMAN SOCIETY AND CULTURE
Introduction
The topic of this short work is to describe the ethnic group of Roma, their culture and history, as I think that
in the future the Roma problem will be even more actual than it is today. We can see it even in how it is
politically handled in European states, as they started to expel from their countries the illegal Roma. Why is
there such a problem with Roma? The reason is that despite efforts to settle them, the Roma remain
nomadic. Their camps lack basic sanitation and electricity. They tend to marry soon after reaching puberty
and many are uneducated. With little need in the modern era for their traditional skills as entertainers and
tradesmen, begging is one of their chief sources of income and crime is rife within their communities. The
idea that the Roma cannot be helped because they don’t want to help themselves passes as conventional
wisdom in many of the countries where they live. I would like to introduce in this work their customs and
history, as I think that the solution as to how to handle them is to know their customs, mentality and in this
way to try to find solutions for the future.
Roma society and culture
Roma are an independent group of people who have their own diverse ways of life. We find them
everywhere. They also have their own language, Romany, which is probably derived from North Indian
languages, but some words come from many other languages, including Greek and Turkish. Some Roma
can adapt to the life of the country where they live in, but the majority maintained their specific habits.
Some Roma live in houses, but many are nomads and their homes pull cars or vans. Some countries have
reserved for them a special place. Whether they live a nomadic way of life or not, they like to live their life
independently of others. They prefer short-term employment in seasonal work such as fruit picking or
harvesting. Some of them work as musicians, dancers. Since the Roma live a different way of life, some
people treat them with suspicion and try to get them to change the way of life so as to qualify for a better
society. Roma have been mis-treated for centuries.
History
Recorded history of the Roma prior to their first documented appearances in Europe in the early 15th
century is non-existent, there has been much debate as to their origins and early migration. Based on
linguistic evidence (the similarity of the Romany language to Hindi, Panjabi, and related languages of
Northern India) and anthropological evidence (body habitus and ABO blood group distributions closely
approximating those of the warrior classes of northern India), there is consensus that the modern day Roma
originated in North Western India. There is also a general consensus regarding the approximate timing of
their emigration, or at least the bulk of it if you believe in more than one wave of emigration - in the 11th
century. The route(s) and even the number(s) of emigrations is less well agreed upon, although this too is
becoming clearer. Some allude to at least several waves of emigration from northern India. There is a
persistent belief that several migrations took place between the 10th and 13th centuries, with the first
potential migration identified going back to the 5th century. Often quoted and perpetuated is the story of
the receiving by Persian monarch, Behram Gour, of 12,000 musicians (called Zott, arabicized from Jatt ancestors of the modern Persian Luris or Lulis) from an Indian king. This story is reported in both Pott's
introduction quoting Firdousi, and confirmed by Arabian historian Hamsa of Isfahan. This story is
attractive to many because even to this day the Roma are perhaps best known for their music and dance.
Others point to a major wave of emigration taking place at the time of Muslim invasions of Northern India
in the early 800's. Since that time, their history is one of attempts at banishment, forced assimilation,
persecution, deportation, slavery, and attempted extermination. As recently as the 1930's and 1940's the
Nazis of the Third Reich imprisoned and murdered in the order of 500,000 Roma.
There are a set of rules for Roma life. Though different Romani ethnic groups have different sets of rules,
some rules are common for all groups. Those common rules are considered to be the Roma Code, and rules
that differ are called "customs". There exist as many customs as many Roma groups. There are many
Roma groups, but only one Law. (Romen isy but, a Zakono yekh in Ruska Roma's and Kaldarash dialects)
Rules of Roma Code describe relationships inside the Roma community and set limits for customs, behavior
and other aspects of life. The Roma Code is not written; the Roma people keep it alive in oral tradition.
Marriage and controversies
Bride kidnapping is a traditional Roma practice. Girls as young as twelve years old may be kidnapped for
marriage to teenage boys. This practice has been reported in Ireland, England, the Czech Republic, the
Netherlands, Bulgaria, and Slovakia. Kidnapping has been seen as a way to avoid a bride price or a way for
a girl to marry a boy she wants but that her parents do not want. The tradition's normalization of kidnapping
puts young women at higher risk of becoming victims of human trafficking. It is important to note,
however, that the practices of bride kidnapping and child marriage are not universally accepted throughout
Roma culture. Some Roma women and men seek to eliminate such customs. Roma customs often establish
that the groom’s family must pay a bride price to the bride's parents. Roma social behavior is strictly
regulated by purity laws ("marime" or "marhime") still respected by most Roma and among Sinti groups by
the elder generations. This regulation affects many aspects of life and is applied to actions, people, and
things.
Relations with other people
Because of their nomadic lifestyle and differences in language and culture, Roma and their more settled
neighbours have held each other in distrust. The popular image of Roma as tramps and thieves unfit for
work contributed to their widespread persecution.
This belief is often cited as the etymological source of the term gyp, meaning to "cheat", as in "I got gypped
by a con man." The German name Zigeuner is often thought through popular etymology to derive either
from Ziehende Gauner, which means 'travelling thieves', or from the Hungarian Cigány from their word
"szegény" meaning "poor". The validity of these derivations, however, is disputed. During the
Enlightenment, Spain briefly and unsuccessfully tried to assimilate the Roma into the mainstream
population by forcing them to abandon their language and way of life; even the word gitano was made
illegal. Persecution of Roma reached a peak during World War II in the Porajmos.
There are still tensions between the Roma and the majority population around them. Common complaints
are that Roma steal and live off social welfare and residents often reject Roma encampments. In the UK,
travelers (referring to both Irish Travelers and Roma) became a 2005 general election issue, with the leader
of the Conservative Party promising to review the Human Rights Act 1998. This law, which absorbs the
European Convention on Human Rights into UK primary legislation, is seen by some to permit the granting
of retrospective planning permission for Roma communities. Severe population pressures and the paucity
of Greenfield sites have led to travelers purchasing land and setting up residential settlements almost
overnight, thus subverting the planning restrictions imposed on other members of the community. Travelers
argued in response that thousands of retrospective planning permissions are granted in Britain in cases
involving non-Roma applicants each year and that statistics showed that 90% of planning applications by
Roma and travelers were initially refused by local councils, compared with a national average of 20% for
other applicants, disproving claims of preferential treatment favoring Gypsies. They also argued that the
root of the problem was that many traditional stopping-places had been barricaded off and that legislation
passed by the previous Conservative government had effectively criminalized their communities by
removing local authorities’ responsibility to provide sites, thus leaving the travelers with no option but to
purchase unregistered new sites themselves. Law enforcement agencies in the United States hold regular
conferences on the Roma and similar nomadic groups. In Denmark, there was much controversy when the
city of Helsingr decided to put all Roma students in special classes in its public schools. The classes were
later abandoned after it was determined that they were discriminatory and the Roma were put back in
regular classes.
Roma in Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe, Roma often live in depressed squatter communities with very high unemployment, while
only some are fully integrated in the society. However, in some cases - notably the Kalderash clan in
Romania, who work as traditional coppersmiths - they have prospered. Although some Roma still embrace
a nomadic lifestyle, most migration is actually forced, as most communities do not accept Roma
settlements. Many countries that were formerly part of the Eastern bloc and former Yugoslavia have
substantial populations of Roma. The level of integration of Roma into society remains limited. In these
countries, they usually remain on the margins of society, living in isolated, ghettolike settlements. Only a
small fraction of Roma children graduate from secondary schools, though numerous official efforts have
been made, past and present, to compel their attendance. Roma frequently feel rejected by the state and the
main population, creating another obstacle to their integration.
According to an article in The Guardian (January 8, 2003), in the Czech Republic, 75% of Roma children
are educated in schools for people with learning difficulties and 70% are unemployed (compared with a
national rate of 9%). In Hungary, 44% of Roma children are in special schools, while 74% of men and 83%
of women are unemployed. In Slovakia, Roma children are 28 times more likely to be sent to a special
school than non-Roma; Roma unemployment stands at 80%. In some countries, dependence on social
security systems is part of the problem. For some Roma families, it may be preferable to live on social
security compared to low-paid jobs. That creates many new problems: anger against Roma, conditions that
produce crime, and extreme sensitivity to changes in social security. A good example of the latter is
Slovakia, where reduction of social security (a family is paid allowances only for the first three children) led
to civil disorder in several Roma villages.
In 2004, Lívia Járóka and Viktória Mohácsi of Hungary became the two current Roma Members of the
European Parliament. The first Roma MEP was Juan de Dios Ramirez-Heredia of Spain.
Conclusion
The intention of this work is to approach the topic of the Roma, to point out their customs and history. We
have in Europe about 8 million Roma, with problems that are still not resolved. It is unclear when and how
Europe will be able to face up to its oldest integration challenge. What is clear is that in order to measure up
to its self-proclaimed standards of human rights, it must keep trying to find a way. In Europe‘s ultimate
success or failure will lie hope or yet more despair for other marginalised groups in the world.
Susan P.
The above is an adaptation of a work written by a Slovak student of International Relations in Bratislava
University and a friend of the Presentation Sisters. Used with permission.