Romani people

The Romani people , also known as the Roma (sg.: Rom) or the Romani, are an <a href="/facts/Indo-Aryan_peoples/Tjrybz3d">Indo-Aryan</a> ethnic group who traditionally lived a <a href="/facts/Nomadic/R9KGKP72">nomadic</a>, <a href="/facts/Itinerant_groups_in_Europe/rp2PocAm">itinerant</a> lifestyle. Linguistic and genetic evidence reveals that the Romani people originated in <a href="/facts/South_Asia/7gTqe3hY">South Asia</a>, likely in the regions of present-day <a href="/facts/Punjab/gyyuKVSp">Punjab</a>, <a href="/facts/Rajasthan/rC0MvrRD">Rajasthan</a> and <a href="/facts/Sindh/1cbCeMv8">Sindh</a>.
Their westward migration occurred in waves, with the first wave believed to have taken place sometime between the 5th and 11th centuries. They are believed to have first arrived in Europe sometime between the 7th and 14th centuries. Although they are <a href="/facts/Romani_diaspora/SJ2tCE8a">widely dispersed</a>, their most concentrated populations are believed to be in <a href="/facts/Bulgaria/Er5pY3YS">Bulgaria</a>, <a href="/facts/Hungary/YRedQLtI">Hungary</a>, <a href="/facts/Romania/yolzk5cN">Romania</a>, <a href="/facts/Serbia/U0LVzPdI">Serbia</a>, and <a href="/facts/Slovakia/gmJwpwM3">Slovakia</a>.
In the English language, Romani people have long been known by the <a href="/facts/Exonym/8pyd1nE9">exonym</a> Gypsies or Gipsies and this remains the most common English term for the group. Some Roma use and embrace this term while others consider it to be derogatory or an <a href="/facts/Ethnic_slur/HzlfQHpc">ethnic slur</a>.
The <a href="/facts/Romani_language/NouAKyrh">Romani language</a> is an <a href="/facts/Indo-Aryan_language/hm2N7fYp">Indo-Aryan language</a> with strong <a href="/facts/Languages_of_the_Balkans/z5dy99vv">Balkan</a> influence. It is divided into several <a href="/facts/Dialect/gJ7uQQoj">dialects</a>, which together are estimated to have over 2 million speakers. Because the language has traditionally been oral, many Roma are native speakers of the <a href="/facts/Lingua_franca/dlGrD7ra">dominant language</a> in their country of residence, or else of <a href="/facts/Mixed_language/SD2hEYD8">mixed languages</a> that combine the dominant language with a dialect of Romani in <a href="/facts/Variety_(linguistics)/QyllMQha">varieties</a> sometimes called <a href="/facts/Para-Romani/yH8RTRjx">para-Romani</a>.

Romani people open-in-new

Romani people