Figure 1.--This drawing shows a nomadic Roma family traveling in Moldavia (1837). The artist was Auguste Raffet. We can see a rustic cart are piled high with tackle and canvases disheveled women and half dressed children slowly advanced dragged by two oxn through a vast plain. In the background we see a second Gypsy cart. The head of this family and his two servants are on horseback.

Gypsy people are believed to have origunated in northern Europe. The region now making up Romania has a substantial Gypsey or Roma population. In fact Romania had and continues to have the largest Gypsy population in Europe. The modern term for Gypsey is Roma, a derivation showing the Romanian origins of many European gypsies. Gypsies were able to move within the Byzantine Empire and it is during this period that the first Gypsies reached the Balkans. Gypsies reached Wallachia (1385) and Moldavia (1370) even before the Ottoman Turks. The first Gypsies secured letters of protection from the King of Hungary. This provided legal status. Gradually the situation for Gypsies deteriorted. Cultural differences soon gave rise to disputes between Gypsies and local residents. Gypsies in Romania as in other countries gradually adopted Christianity as well as took on Romanian names, and learned Romanian. They have not lost the Rom language and use it when speaking among themselves. They also maintain their Rom music and customs in often tight-knit communities. As a result, a substantial Rom population did not integrate within Romanian society. The Rom arrived in Romania during the medieval feudal era. As a result they became slaves or serfs to the landowners (boyars) with few rights. Romania attempted to remain neutral after the outbreak of World War II (1939). Soviet seizure of northeastern Romania (1940), forced the Romanians to seek protection from the NAZIs. The Germans forced the country into the Axis (1941). Romanian participated in the Batbarossa invasion of the Soviet Union as a German ally. The Romnian Army was committed in the Ukraine. Romanian Gypsyes were targeted during World War II, but not to the same extent as the Jews. There was never any anti-Gypsey laws passed. The major Romanian action targeting the Gypsies was ordered by Marshal Ion Antonescu on his own initiative. He personally ordered the deportation of Gypsies to the Romanian-occupied Ukranine (1942). This was a Romanian operation and not carried out under German pressure. The Romanians who killed Jews in occupied territories appeared to be also willing to carry out Gypsey killing operations. Most Gypsies lived in Eastern Europe. After World War II, this mean that most European Gypsies came under the control of Communist regimes. The largest populations were in Romania, Bulgaria, Hungary, and Slovakia. Romania had the highest concentration of Gypsies. Communist authorities fully establishged ciontrol over the country (1948). From that point, Gypsies simply disappeared in official public documents. The primary Communist approach to Gypsies was forced assimilation. Gypsies in each Communist country were forced to speak required to speak the country's national language outside the home. They had to settle towns and work in new industrial jobs. The Romanian Government for the first three decadeds did not adopt policies specuficallt targetting Gypsies. But other policies such as requirements that people have settled addresses and formal jobs affected Gypsies more than other group because of their itinerate life styles and self employment. The Romanian authorities finally decided to address the social situation of the Gypsies and took policy actions specically targetting Gypies (late-1970s). It was, however, a secret decision. The forced assimilation essentially destroyed the Gypsy culture without replacing it with a new culture. Thr Gypsies did not truly integrate well into the national culture and were reviled by the local population to an extent that did nor exist before Communism. There were many forms of state sabctioned decrimination. The Gypsy population became prone to sexual, alcohol, and drug abuse as well as criminal behavior. A special problem was the number iof infants and todlers left at Government orphanages. The poorly funded Romanian orphnages. This was not the case before Communism. Gypsys before Communism raised almost all of their children. And the Romnian opphnages became notorious hell holes for the ungortunte children entrusted to their care. The fall of Communism meant the obligation and work assignments disappeared (1989). The lack of education an rampany bias meant that high unemployment and dependence on welfare became part of Gypsey life. People in Romania and other Eastern European counries had troublke adjusting to the economic changes. Many turned on the Gypsies as scapegoats. It is an old story in human behavior. State-sanctioned persecution continued, perhaps increasing. Many Gypsies resist further assimilation. They often live in segregated neigborhoods, essentially modern ghettos. Others live in small, remote, self-contained villages. Often located a long walk up a dirt road and isolated from the mainstream sociuety. Polygamy can be found in Gypsey communities. Both boys and girls commonly marry earlier and start having children at a very early age. Most Gypsy children enter school along ith other children. Tragicsally a high percentage of Gypsey children leave school early and drop out.

Ottoman Empire

Gypsies arrived in Europe from the Ottoman Empire which came into existance at about the same time that Gypsies began arriving in Europe. We know that the Gypsies reached Bzantine Empire before the foundation of he Ottoman Empire. This may have been the bulk of the Gypsy population, but we are not sure. The great bulk of the Gypsy moved into Europe through Anatolia. The Ottoman Empire was founded and gained control of much of Anatolia (14th century). This was the same time that Gypsy's began to appear in the Christian Balkans which would soon be occupied by the Ottomans. Turkey today has a substantial Gypsy population, comparable to that of Romania. The modern Turkish Gypsy population, however, is a small fraction of that of the Gypsy population, most of whom migrated through what is now modern Turkey into the Balkans. That leads to the assumption that Gypsy preferred Christian Europe to the Ottoman Empire. Of course the Ottomans at he time were in the process of conquering the Christian Balkans. Within the Ottoman Empire there were both Christian and Muslim Gypsies. Muslim Gyspes were only slightly favored by Ottoman authorities--slightly lower taxes. [Marushiakova, Popov, and Kenrick] The primary Ottoman concern with the Gupies was to discourage Muslim Gypsey contact with Chistian gysies. Ottoman authorities also sought to discorage the itinerate nature of Gypsy life, but with only limited sucess. They did not consider it a major problem. We are not entirely sure why Ottoman Gypsy's migranted from Anatolia into the Balkans. Much of it may have taken place after the Ottoman conquest, but this we are not sure about. One source reports that many Gypsis arrived with the Ottoman armies that invaded the Balkans. We have not found a lot of details on this, they could have been soldiers, musicians, and/or artisans/craftsmen needed by an army. [Marushiakova, Popov, and Kenrick]

Romanian Gypsy Population

Romania has the largest Gypsy population in Europe. The pattern of Gypsy population in Europe is strongly related to geogrphy. It is related to geogaphy, countries like Bulgaria Serbia, Monenegro, Greece, Hungary, ans Slovakia. These countries are the countries closest to Anatolia and most were countries at times part of the Ottoman Empire. Romania, however, was on the outer fringe of Ottoman power, this varied by province with Ealsachia the Romanian province most affected by the Ottomans. It is thus not entirely clear to us why it is Romania that has such a large Gypsy population. One might have guessed that Bulgaria or Greece would have had larger Gypsy populations as they were the closest to Anatolia. A fctor here cold be that Romania was a larger country. Readers have offered some ideas. One reader suggests, "I don't know if this is the main reason, but in Romania Gypsies were enslaved from the early times of their arrival till the mid 19th century. As slaves of the boyars or the monasteries, they couldn't leave the fields of their owners. They became more sedentary than other Gypsy communities." What we do not know yet is how their treatment Romania compared to other neighboring countries like Bulgria, Greece, Serbia, and Hungary. Another suugestion is that is has to do with the Phanariotes. These were Greek fmilies in Constntinople who had gret influnce with the Ottoman sultanate. A blogger tells us, "In the times of the Phanariotes' ruled Wallachia and Moldova, they achieved great territories good for agriculture, but without population on it. In order to make agriculture Phanariotes have brought gypsies from Ottoman Empire, the work the land with the free people from local communities and with the gypsy slave. These gypsies was not only ordinary people, they were craftsmen: smiths, musicians, carpenters, brickmakers, bricklayers, grooms, horses' carers, carters, ... In the beginning, they were concentrated in special places near the houses of the landlords, part of them were slaves and just a few were free people. They act as a tribe, they work under surveillance and supervision from the 'Bulibasha', their head, and under 'Stabor' (the gathering of elders) laws, but also under the master-mans command. The gypsies use to sell their own children as the slave, in this way they produce more children than a normal couple, more, they also steal children from other communities, therefore you can see blond or red gypsies. In time the Gypsies were assimilated in the local communities, or they flee away. Anyway the times of Phanariotes come to an end by assimilation or they return to Greece, and also the slavery times end. Even as free people they live under tribes stile, with 'Stabor', 'Bulibasha', and a 'King'." [Lucian]

Medieval Era/Early Modern Era

The region now making up Romania has a substantial Gypsey or Roma population. In fact Romania had and coninues to have the largest Gypsy population in Europe. The modern term for Gypsey is Roma, a derivation showing the Romanian origins of many European gypsies. Gypsies were able to move within the Byzantine Empire and it is during this period that the first Gypsies reached the Balkans. Gypsies reached Wallachia (1385) and Moldavia (1370) even before the Ottoman Turks. The first Gypsies secured letters of protection from the King of Hungary. This provided legal status. Gradually the situation for Gypsies deteriorted. Cultural differences soon gave rise to disputes between Gypsies and local residents. Gypsies in Romania as in other countries gradually adopted Christianity as well as took on Romanian names, and learned Romanian. They have not lost the Rom language and use it when speaking among themselves. They also maintain their Rom music and customs in often tight-knit communities. As a result, a substantial Rom population did not integrate within Romanian society. The Rom arrived in Romania during the medieval feudal era. As a result they became slaves or serfs to the landowners (boyars) with few rights. An estimated 250,000 Roma were enslaved in the various regions which now make up Romania. This was part of the same process that created medueval serfs. It needs to be noted that serfdom in Eastern and Western Europe had differet chrinologies. The institution appeared first in Western Euripe and in Eastern Europe only became important while it was declining in the West. The Gypsies were required to work in Orthodox monasteries and for both landowners and local princes. Romanian Gypsies until their liberation (1856) were slaves/serfs. We see the term slave being used. They had a staus similar to that of serfs. They were not allowed to leave the property or fiefdom of their owners, meaning boyars and the Orthodox monasteries. One estimate suggests that there were some 102,000 Romani lived in the Danubian Principalities (1850). This was about 3 percent of the population (90,000 or 4 percebt in Wallachia and 12,000 or 1 percent in Moldavia). [Ungewitter] After their 1856 liberation, many Roms left Wallachia and Moldavia. This contributed to itinerate life style they became identuified with.

Independent Romania

Romanian Gypsies until their liberation (1856) were slaves/serfs. We see the term slave being used. They had a staus similar to that of serfs. They were not allowed to leave the property or fiefdom of their owners, meaning boyars and the Orthodox monasteries. One estimate suggests that there were some 102,000 Romani lived in the Danubian Principalities (1850). This was about 3 percent of the population (90,000 or 4 percebt in Wallachia and 12,000 or 1 percent in Moldavia). [Ungewitter] After their 1856 liberation, many Roms left Wallachia and Moldavia. This contributed to itinerate life style they became identuified with. Another assessment estimated the Rom population at about 200,000 people (1886). This was about 3 percent of the country's population. [Meyers Konversationslexikon] A Rpmanian Census reoportd about 211,000 'others' of whom anout half were Romani meaning about 2 percent pf the population. One problem with assessing the Romani in Romania is the boudaries of the country fluctuated signicantly. Bessarabia was annexed by the Tsarist Russian Empire during the Napoleanic Wars (1812). The Roms were liberated as part of Tsar Aklexander II's emancipation of the serfs (1861). Many migrated to other regions of the Tsarist Empire. [Nistor] Importanht Rom communities remained in Soroca, Otaci and the surroundings of Cetatea Albă, Chișinău, and Bălți. Romania entered World War I and was defeated by the Germans, suffering substantial territorial losses. The Germans were outraged when the World War I Versailles Peace Treaty assigned territiry to other countries or orivuided for referendums, but had not problem with dismenbering other countries themselves. When the Western Allies defeated Germany on the Wesern Front, the loss lsnds were restiored to Romania as well as other lands. Romania as a result of World War I was a union with Transylvania, Banat, Bukovina and Bessarabia, This increased the increased the number of ethnic Romani in Romania. The 1930 census reported about 243,00 Rom or 1.5 percent of the population were registered as Gypsies (ţigani). The territory lost in 1940 as a result of Soviet seizure of Bukovina and Bessarabia and the German assignment of Transylvania to Hungary reduced the number of Gypsies. A substantial number lived in Southern Dobruja (awarded to Bulgaria) and Northern Transylvania (awarded to Hungary).

World War II (1939-45)

Romania attempted to remain neutral after the outbreak of World War II (1939). Soviet seizure of northeastern Romania (1940), forced the Romanians to seek protection from the NAZIs. The Germans forced the country into the Axis (1941). Romanian participated in the Batbarossa invasion of the Soviet Union as a German ally. The Romnian Army was committed in the Ukraine. Romanian Gypsyes were targeted during World War II, but not to the same extent as the Jews. There was never any anti-Gypsey laws passed. The major Romanian action targeting the Gypsies was ordered by Marshal Ion Antonescu on his own initiative. He personally ordered the deportation of Gypsies to the Romanian-occupied Ukranine (1942). This was a Romanian operation and not carried out under German pressure. The Romanians who killed Jews in occupied territories appeared to be also willing to carry out Gypsey killing operations. The Romanians deported 25,000 Gypsies to camps in the Ukraine. The orders targeted nomadic Gypsies, but settled Gypsies and even soldiers in uniform on home leave as well as Gypsey-looking Romanians were caught up in the sweep. Plans involved depoting more, but were cancelled. Armed Gypseys in the Army may have been a factor here. There were no further deportments. The deportments were disruptive, but the termintion probably reflected the increasing awarness that the Grrmans were losing the War. The termination of the deportments,however, did not help those already deported. The camps were theoretically work camps, but the failure to provide food, clithing and shelkter suggests that little in the way of beneficial work was performed. On the other hand, the deportations created labor shortages, especially agricultural labor, in the areas from which they were deported. The SS reportedly executed 11,000 of these unfortunate people at the Trihati camp. Many also died of typhoid, starvation, and maltreatment. Only about 6,000 survived and managed to make it back to Romania.

Communist Era (1945-89)

Most Gypsies lived in Eastern Europe. After World War II, this mean that most European Gypsies came under the control of Communist regimes. The largest populations were in Romania, Bulgaria, Hungary, and Slovakia. Romania had the highest concentration of Gypsies. Communist authorities fully establishged ciontrol over the country (1948). From that point, Gypsies simply disappeared in official public documents. The primary Communist approach to Gypsies was forced assimilation. Gypsies in each Communist country were forced to speak required to speak the country's national language outside the home. They had to settle towns and work in new industrial jobs. The Romanian Government for the first three decadeds did not adopt policies specuficallt targetting Gypsies. But other policies such as requirements that people have settled addresses and formal jobs affected Gypsies more than other group because of their itinerate life styles and self employment. The Romanian authorities finally decided to address the social situation of the Gypsies and took policy actions specically targetting Gypies (late-1970s). It was, however, a secret decision. Even the demographic data the decisions were based on was kept secret. [Achim] One author explains what happened during the Communist era, "Rather than producing well-adjusted citizens, the policy eroded time-honored Roma values and shattered the cohesiveness of their traditional communities. It left the new Roma generation prone to sexual, alcohol, and drug abuse, and filled state-run orphanages with deprived Roma toddlers." [Steves and Hewitt] The weak economies developed as a result of the implementation of Marxist ideology meant that industrilization did not create the wealth that Western countries created. At the same time they signifficantly expanded the welfsre state, closing down private abd religious charioties and denying workers decent salaries so state welfare was vital. The Communist countries, however, with their weak economies could not adequtely fund the welfare system. And Gysies because of their poverty were a huge drag on the welfre system. And the forced assimilation essentially destroyed the Gypsy culture without replacing it with a new culture. Thr Gypsies did not truly integrate well into the national culture and were reviled by the local population to an extent that did nor exist before Communism. There were many forms of state sabctioned decrimination. The Gypsy population became prone to sexual, alcohol, and drug abuse as well as criminal behavior. A special problem was the number of infants and todlers left at Government orphanages. The poorly funded Romanian orphnages. This was not the case before Communism. Gypsys before Communism raised almost all of their children. And the Romnian opphnages became notorious hellholes for the ungortunte children entrusted to their care. Disturbing images reached the West of terribly deprived, scared children reached the est. One author writes, "Photos of infants with their heads shaved, chained to their cribs and lying in puddles of urine rocked the globe. Some 170,000 orphans were discovered crammed into 700 institutions. [Silver] Romanian like the Soviets believes that the new Socialist Man could be successfully raised in institutions. In Romania the perfect storm of failure was reached. The economic failure of Communism meant that many Romaniabs tyurned over their childen to the state. At he same time economic failure meant that resources were not provided to care for the children. And beaureacrats with no real attachment to the children ran the orphanages. Lrge numbrs of Roma children were raised in these orphanages. A whole generation of children were raised in thse terribly overcrowded, state-run orphanages. Children wre commonly locked up in beds and kept inside with no outdoor activity. These children grew up without care, social interaction, stimulation, or basic psychological comfort. As a result, "Romania’s institutionalised children displayed profound developmental delays and abnormal social-emotional behaviour." This of course was not only Roma childre, but the Roma population at these prphanages was out of all prortion to the their share of the population.

Post-Communist Era (1989- )

The fall of Communism meant the obligation and work assignments disappeared (1989). The lack of education an rampany bias meant that high unemployment and dependence on welfare became part of Gypsey life. People in Romania and other Eastern European counries had troublke adjusting to the economic changes. Many turned on the Gypsies as scapegoats. It is an old story in human behavior. State-sanctioned persecution continued, perhaps increasing. Many Gypsies resist further assimilation. They often live in segregated neigborhoods, essentially modern ghettos. Others live in small, remote, self-contained villages. Often located a long walk up a dirt road and isolated from the mainstream society. Many if not most live in great poverty. Polygamy can be found in Gypsey communities. Both boys and girls commonly marry earlier and start having children at a very early age. Most Gypsy children enter school along with other children. Tragically a high percentage of Gypsy children leave school early and drop out. Some Gypsys succeeded in making it into mainstream society, but commonly they do so by turning their backs on their own Gypsy heritage. Many Romanians continue to harbor very negative attitudes toward Gypsius. In researching this subject we found that many Romanians not only dislike Gypsies, but do not even like the subjct to come up. They believe that Gypsies are giving their country a bad name. Some Romanians interviewed even insisted that there are very few Gypsies in Romania and they are not a significant minority. A typical response reads, "There are a lot of Roma in Slovakia, Hungary and the Balkans but the Western media never discuss them. Media gives a distorted perception on the number of Romas existing in Romania and the false idea that their number is the largest in Europe. By example Western Media claim that there are 2–3 millions of Gypsies in Romania while two consecutive census gave less than 800 000." [Fillmon]

Sources

Achim, Viorel. "Chapter Six: The Roma in Romanian History," The Roma in Romanian History (Central European Press: Budapest, Hungary, 2018).

Fillmon, L. Personal communications (June 17, 2018).

Marushiakova, Elena, Vesselin Popov, and Donald Kenrick. Gypsies in the Ottoman Empire: A Contribution to the History of the Balkans Centre de recherches tsiganes (Hatfield, Hertfordshire, UK: University of Hertfordshire Press, 2001).

Lucian, Andriescuus. Library of Congress, personal communication (June 18, 2018).

[Queen] Mary of Romania. My Country (Hodder and Stoughton: London - New York - Toronto, 1916).

Nistor, Ior. "Istoria Basarabiei," Humanitas (Bucuresti: 1991).

Silver, Katie. "Romania’s lost generation: Inside the Iron Curtain’s orphanages," ABC-RN (June 23, 1014).

Steves, Rick and Cameron Hewitt . "Eastern Europe's 'Gypsy question'".

Ungewitter, Dr. F.H. Neueste Erdbeschreibung und Staatenkunde (Zweiter Band: Dresden, 1848).

Meyers Konversationslexikon. Autorenkollektiv, Verlag des Bibliographischen Instituts (Leipzig und Wien, Vierte Auflage, 1885-92).

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