Who were/are the Romani people?
Posted: Sun Jul 19, 2015 4:01 pm
In the recent years DNA testing has revealed hugely significant amounts of information about the many peoples of the world. This is no less true of the Romani. Just the fact that a person can know his/her ethnic ancestry from a DNA test is astounding in itself.
Before my mother’s and my autosomal DNA testing, I knew nothing of my ancestry but had always wondered. After our testing I found myself with a wealth of information. We both received reports from DNA Consultants explaining the results and I began applying those clues to our family history.
However, after reading the two Elizabeth Hirschman - Donald Yates books, When Scotland was Jewish and Jews and Muslims in British Colonial America, I possessed an even fuller picture.
It is probable my two Shetland Islands great-grandmothers were not aware of their Romani ancestry. Grandmothers FEA married into families with Jewish surnames who, as well, most likely knew nothing of their ancestry.
There are millions of Romanies around the world who do know their ethnic origins, however. Even today, many, perhaps most, who are aware of the experiences of their ancestors and perhaps of their own, believe themselves to be “outsiders.” Some non-Romani have extraordinarily false and demeaning beliefs about the Romani people.
Romanies have endured unimaginable mistreatment including slavery and death. Thousands died in Hitler’s holocaust in WWII along with Jews and other minorities. Over the centuries it has been overwhelmingly difficult for Romanies to find their place in the world.
This article by Julie Cantrell gives us a brief, current overview - http://aliveeastbay.com/archives/gypsies-who-are-they-and-where-did-they-come-from/. This is my favorite quote:
“...Romani scholar and advocate, Ian Hancock, Ph.D., is professor of linguistics at the University of Texas, Austin who states; ‘Gypsies were fictional, Romanies are actual people…’”
Dr. Hancock and others have been and are continuing to provide extensive information for those seriously interested in the Romanies and their history.
I found another fine quote within a second article by Julie Cantrell - https://juliecantrell.wordpress.com/2012/01/20/about-the-roma-a-note-regarding-the-term-gypsy/:
“...If there’s anything I have learned while trying to identify what it means to be a Rom, it’s that there seems to be no one answer. Perhaps that’s the overall message that we all need to hear…that Romani people are just like any other group of people – they are each individuals with different ideas, opinions, talents, skills, and ambitions. And, just as any minority group, they should not be lumped into one stereotypical category...”
Before my mother’s and my autosomal DNA testing, I knew nothing of my ancestry but had always wondered. After our testing I found myself with a wealth of information. We both received reports from DNA Consultants explaining the results and I began applying those clues to our family history.
However, after reading the two Elizabeth Hirschman - Donald Yates books, When Scotland was Jewish and Jews and Muslims in British Colonial America, I possessed an even fuller picture.
It is probable my two Shetland Islands great-grandmothers were not aware of their Romani ancestry. Grandmothers FEA married into families with Jewish surnames who, as well, most likely knew nothing of their ancestry.
There are millions of Romanies around the world who do know their ethnic origins, however. Even today, many, perhaps most, who are aware of the experiences of their ancestors and perhaps of their own, believe themselves to be “outsiders.” Some non-Romani have extraordinarily false and demeaning beliefs about the Romani people.
Romanies have endured unimaginable mistreatment including slavery and death. Thousands died in Hitler’s holocaust in WWII along with Jews and other minorities. Over the centuries it has been overwhelmingly difficult for Romanies to find their place in the world.
This article by Julie Cantrell gives us a brief, current overview - http://aliveeastbay.com/archives/gypsies-who-are-they-and-where-did-they-come-from/. This is my favorite quote:
“...Romani scholar and advocate, Ian Hancock, Ph.D., is professor of linguistics at the University of Texas, Austin who states; ‘Gypsies were fictional, Romanies are actual people…’”
Dr. Hancock and others have been and are continuing to provide extensive information for those seriously interested in the Romanies and their history.
I found another fine quote within a second article by Julie Cantrell - https://juliecantrell.wordpress.com/2012/01/20/about-the-roma-a-note-regarding-the-term-gypsy/:
“...If there’s anything I have learned while trying to identify what it means to be a Rom, it’s that there seems to be no one answer. Perhaps that’s the overall message that we all need to hear…that Romani people are just like any other group of people – they are each individuals with different ideas, opinions, talents, skills, and ambitions. And, just as any minority group, they should not be lumped into one stereotypical category...”