Names of the Romani people
Encyclopedia
Self-designation also varies: In Central and Eastern Europe
Central and Eastern Europe
Central and Eastern Europe is a term describing former communist states in Europe, after the collapse of the Iron Curtain in 1989/90. In scholarly literature the abbreviations CEE or CEEC are often used for this concept...
, Roma is common. The Romani of England call themselves (in Angloromani) Romanichal, those of Scandinavia
Scandinavia
Scandinavia is a cultural, historical and ethno-linguistic region in northern Europe that includes the three kingdoms of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, characterized by their common ethno-cultural heritage and language. Modern Norway and Sweden proper are situated on the Scandinavian Peninsula,...
(in Scandoromani) Romanisæl.
In German-speaking Europe
German-speaking Europe
The German language is spoken in a number of countries and territories in West, Central and Eastern Europe...
, the self-designation is Sinti
Sinti
Sinti or Sinta or Sinte is the name of a Romani or Gypsy population in Europe. Traditionally nomadic, today only a small percentage of the group remains unsettled...
, in France Manush, while the groups of Spain
Caló (Spanish Romani)
Caló is a language spoken by the Spanish and Portuguese Romani. It is a mixed language based on Romance grammar, with an adstratum of Romani lexical items through language shift by the Romani community. It is often used as an argot, a secret language for discreet communication amongst Iberian...
, Wales
Kale (Welsh Romanies)
The Kale are a group of Romani people who reside in Wales. Many claim to be descendant of Abram Wood, who was the first Romani to reside permanently and exclusively in Wales in the early 18th century, though Romanies have appeared in Wales since the 15th century...
and Finland
Finnish Kale
The Finnish Kale "blacks") or the Finnish romanis are a group of the Romani people that live primarily in Finland and Sweden.Their main languages are Finnish and Finnish Romani. They are mostly Christian.-History:...
use Kalo/Kale (from kalo meaning "black").
There are numerous subgroups and clans with their own self-designations, such as the Kalderash
Kalderash
The Kalderash are a subgroup of the Romani people, from the Roma meta-group. They were traditionally smiths and metal workers and speak a number of Romani dialects grouped together under the term Kalderash Romani, a sub-group of Vlax Romani.-Etymology:The name Kalderash The Kalderash (also spelled...
, Machvaya
Machvaya
The Machvaya are a group of Roma originating from Serbia . They are not an offshoot of the Kalderash Romani migration coupled with the war in the Balkans has meant there are an increased number of Machvaya living in other countries, specifically where there are an increased number of Serbs...
, Boyash
Boyash
Boyash refers to a Romani ethnic group living in Romania, southern Hungary, northeastern Croatia, western Vojvodina, Slovakia, the Balkans, but also in the Americas and Australia. They are part of Romani branch of Roma...
, Lovari, Modyar, Xoraxai, Lăutari
Lautari
The Romanian word Lăutar denotes a class of traditional musicians. Most often, and by tradition, Lăutari are members of a professional clan of Romani musicians , also called Ţigani lăutari. The term is derived from Lăută the name of a string instrument...
, etc.
Romani usage
In the Romani languageRomani language
Romani or Romany, Gypsy or Gipsy is any of several languages of the Romani people. They are Indic, sometimes classified in the "Central" or "Northwestern" zone, and sometimes treated as a branch of their own....
, rom is a masculine noun, meaning "man, husband", with the plural romá. Romani is the feminine adjective, while romano is the masculine adjective. Some Romanies use Romá as an ethnic name, while others (such as the Sinti
Sinti
Sinti or Sinta or Sinte is the name of a Romani or Gypsy population in Europe. Traditionally nomadic, today only a small percentage of the group remains unsettled...
, or the Romanichal) do not use this term as a self-ascription for the entire ethnic group.
English usage
In the English languageEnglish language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
(according to OED), Rom is a noun (with the plural Romá or Roms) and an adjective, while Romani (Romany) is also a noun (with the plural Romanies or Romanis) and an adjective. Both Rom and Romani have been in use in English since the 19th century as an alternative for Gypsy. Romani was initially spelled Rommany, then Romany, while today the Romani spelling is the most popular spelling.
Sometimes, rom and romani are spelled with a double r, i.e., rrom and rromani, particularly in Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
in order to distinguish from the Romanian endonym (români). This is well established in Romani itself, since it represents a phoneme (/ʀ/ also written as ř and rh) which in some Romani dialects has remained different from the one written with a single r.
Although Romá is used as a designation for the branch of the Romani people with historic concentrations in Eastern Europe and the Balkans, it is increasingly encountered during recent decades as a generic term for the Romani people as a whole.
Because all Romanies use the word Romani as an adjective, the term began to be used as a noun for the entire ethnic group.
Today, the term Romani is used by most organizations—including the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
, the Council of Europe
Council of Europe
The Council of Europe is an international organisation promoting co-operation between all countries of Europe in the areas of legal standards, human rights, democratic development, the rule of law and cultural co-operation...
, and the US Library of Congress.
However, some organizations use the term Romá to refer to Romani people around the world.
Etymology
The demonyms of the Romani people, Lom and DomDom people
The Dom of the Middle East are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group. Some authors relate them to the Domba people of India.- Culture :...
share the same origin, reflecting Sanskrit
Sanskrit
Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
"a man of low caste, living by singing and music"
The world wide used name for Gypsies to identify themselves was term “Htom”, which in Romani language means a man. Sound ht does not exist in graphic system therefore for the sake of easy writing this sound is spelled as sound R. Therefore instead of using Htom because of impossibility to write ht the words Rom, Dom and Lom was used to describe proto-Romani people that split in 6th century. Several tribes moved forward into Western Europe and were called Rom, while the ones that remained in Persia, Syria, Lebanon and India were called Dom. Dom is to be spelled as the english Rom or Drom with a mute D.
Gypsy or Gifti
The English term Gypsy (or Gipsy) originates from the Greek word (Aigyptioi, whence Modern GreekModern Greek
Modern Greek refers to the varieties of the Greek language spoken in the modern era. The beginning of the "modern" period of the language is often symbolically assigned to the fall of the Byzantine Empire in 1453, even though that date marks no clear linguistic boundary and many characteristic...
gifti), in the erroneous belief that the Romanies originated in Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
, and were exiled as punishment for allegedly harboring the infant Jesus
Child Jesus
The Child Jesus represents Jesus from his Nativity to age 12. At 13 he was considered to be adult, in accordance with the Jewish custom of his time, and that of most Christian cultures until recent centuries.The Child Jesus is frequently depicted in art, from around the third or fourth century...
. This exonym is sometimes written with a capital letter, to show that it designates an ethnic group
Ethnic group
An ethnic group is a group of people whose members identify with each other, through a common heritage, often consisting of a common language, a common culture and/or an ideology that stresses common ancestry or endogamy...
. The Spanish term gitano and the French term gitan have the same origin.
During the 16th and 17th centuries the name was written in various ways: Egipcian, Egypcian, 'gypcian. The word gypsy comes from the spellings which had lost the initial capital E, and this is one reason why it is often spelled with the initial g in lowercase. As time elapsed, the notion of 'the Gypsy' altered to include other associated stereotypes such as nomadism and exoticism
Exoticism
Exoticism is a trend in art and design, influenced by some ethnic groups or civilizations since the late 19th-century. In music exoticism is a genre in which the rhythms, melodies, or instrumentation are designed to evoke the atmosphere of far-off lands or ancient times Exoticism (from 'exotic')...
. John Matthews in The World Atlas of Divination refer to gypsies as "Wise Women."
Colloquially, gypsy may refer to any person perceived as fitting the Gypsy stereotypes .
As described in Victor Hugo
Victor Hugo
Victor-Marie Hugo was a Frenchpoet, playwright, novelist, essayist, visual artist, statesman, human rights activist and exponent of the Romantic movement in France....
's novel The Hunchback of Notre Dame
The Hunchback of Notre Dame
The Hunchback of Notre-Dame is a novel by Victor Hugo published in 1831. The French title refers to the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, on which the story is centered.-Background:...
, the medieval French referred to the Romanies as egyptiens. The term has come to bear pejorative connotations (as is the term "gyp" meaning "to cheat", a reference to the suspicion the Romanies engendered). However, use of the word "Gypsy" in English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
is so pervasive that many Romani organizations use it in their own organizational names.
In North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
, the word "Gypsy" is commonly used as a reference to lifestyle or fashion, and not to the Romani ethnicity.
The term Gypsy (also 'gypsy' and less frequently 'gipsy'), is a common word sometimes used to indicate Romani people, Tinker
Tinker
A tinker was originally an itinerant tinsmith, who mended household utensils. The term "tinker" became used in British society to refer to marginalized persons...
s or Travellers. It may or may not be considered to carry pejorative connotations by those so described.
Use in English law
Gypsy has several developing and overlapping meanings under English LawEnglish law
English law is the legal system of England and Wales, and is the basis of common law legal systems used in most Commonwealth countries and the United States except Louisiana...
. Under the Caravan Sites and Control of Development Act 1960
Caravan Sites and Control of Development Act 1960
The Caravan Sites and Control of Development Act 1960 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that regulated caravan sites.-Act:The Act was based on a 1959 report by Sir Arton Wilson on problems of people living in caravans, which found that the principal problem was the unclear and...
, 'gipsies' are defined as "persons of nomadic habit of life, whatever their race or origin, but does not include members of an organised group of travelling showmen, or persons engaged in travelling circuses, travelling together as such." This definition includes such groups as New Age Travellers
New age travellers
New Age Travellers are groups of people who often espouse New Age or hippie beliefs and travel between music festivals and fairs in order to live in a community with others who hold similar beliefs. Their transport and homes consist of vans, lorries, buses, narrowboats and caravans converted into...
, as well as Irish Travellers and Romany.
Gypsies of Romany origins have been a recognised ethnic group for the purposes of Race Relations Act 1976
Race Relations Act 1976
The Race Relations Act 1976 was established by the Parliament of the United Kingdom to prevent discrimination on the grounds of race.Items that are covered include discrimination on the grounds of race, colour, nationality, ethnic and national origin in the fields of employment, the provision of...
since Commission for Racial Equality v Dutton 1989 and Irish Travellers in England and Wales since O'Leary v Allied Domecq 2000 (having already gained recognition in Northern Ireland in 1997).
Tsigani, cigány
In much of continental EuropeContinental Europe
Continental Europe, also referred to as mainland Europe or simply the Continent, is the continent of Europe, explicitly excluding European islands....
, Romanies are known by names cognate to the Greek
Greek language
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
:
| Slavic | Germanic | Romance | Other |
|---|---|---|---|
| ˈtsiɡaːɲ |
The name originates with Byzantine Greek (atsinganoi, Latin adsincani) or (athinganoi, literally "untouchables"), a term applied to the sect of the Melchisedechians
Melchisedechians
The Melchisedechians, also known as Athingani were a 9th-century sect of Monarchians located in Phrygia, founded by Theodotus the banker....
.
The Adsincani appear in an 11th-century text preserved in Mt Athos, The Life of Saint George the Athonite (written in the Georgian language), as "a Samaritan people, descendants of Simon the Magician, named Adsincani, who were renowned sorcerers and villains". In the text, emperor Constantine Monomachos employs the Adsincani to exterminate wild animals, who were destroying the game in the imperial park of Philopation.
Other
- ArmenianArmenian languageThe Armenian language is an Indo-European language spoken by the Armenian people. It is the official language of the Republic of Armenia as well as in the region of Nagorno-Karabakh. The language is also widely spoken by Armenian communities in the Armenian diaspora...
: գնչու gnchu - Arabic Arabic languageArabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...
: غجر ghájar
Bohémiens
Because many Romanies living in France had come via BohemiaBohemia
Bohemia is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western two-thirds of the traditional Czech Lands. It is located in the contemporary Czech Republic with its capital in Prague...
, they were also referred to as Bohémiens. This would later be adapted to describe the impoverished artistic lifestyle of Bohemianism
Bohemianism
Bohemianism is the practice of an unconventional lifestyle, often in the company of like-minded people, with few permanent ties, involving musical, artistic or literary pursuits...
.
See also
- Origin of the Romani people
- Romani people by country
- Gypsy
- Dom peopleDom peopleThe Dom of the Middle East are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group. Some authors relate them to the Domba people of India.- Culture :...
- Lom people
- ZottZottZott is the Arabic term for gypsies.The Zott were musicians who migrated in great numbers from India to Sassanid Persia under Behram Gour....
- LyuliLyuliLyuli are a subgroup of the Dom people living in Central Asia, primarily Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan.Lyuli speak a Lyuli dialect of the Domari language....