Stories about the life of modern gypsies. How modern gypsies live: three stories. Love for gold

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Gypsies appeared in Russia three hundred years ago. The first camps came from Poland and almost immediately received Russian citizenship. By Senate decree of 1733, they were allowed to “live and trade horses,” and were also allowed to be assigned to any class. So, in addition to the gypsy peasants, gypsy burghers and merchants appeared, and the 19th century was marked by numerous marriages between Russian nobles and soloists of gypsy choirs.

The position of the Roma in the Russian Empire can even be called privileged. For example, any “unpatched tramp” was subject to being sent to the stage under the law on vagrancy - just not gypsies. The law, of course, was not rewritten, they simply decided that it was not written about free camps.

Until the revolution, the main occupations of Russian gypsies were barter and resale of horses, but a new government came, which considered trade an extremely suspicious activity. However, Roma activists put forward the thesis of “a people in rags.” This temporarily softened the hearts of the Bolsheviks, and it was then that the Roman Theater was organized on a wave of emotion. But the idyll did not last long. Soon executions, raids and mass deportations to Siberia began.

Despite all the suffering during the Great Patriotic War the gypsies voluntarily went to partisan detachments and fought in the ranks of the Red Army, including in the artillery, tank, and flying troops. Many of them were awarded military awards. So the front-line soldier Budulai from the famous film by Alexander Blank has many real prototypes.

About a quarter of Soviet Roma died during the genocide. The losses would have been greater if not for the help of the Slavic population. The gypsies were warned about the appearance of punitive forces and were hidden at the risk of their lives. This was explained, among other things, by the fact that the gypsies brought tangible benefits to the local peasants: some supplied the peasants with cheap handicraft products, others contracted to dig up vegetable gardens, carry firewood and peat.

After the war, no attempts were made to impose a sedentary lifestyle on the Gypsies until 1956, when a decree was issued banning vagrancy.

In the early 1990s, life for the Roma changed again. They became the first “shuttles” during perestroika. Nowadays, alas, many families are mired in the criminal business - drug trafficking. But there are still gypsy intellectuals, artists and musicians; many Roma work in manufacturing and construction.

According to official data, the number of Russian Roma is 183 thousand people. But the word “Gypsies” refers to many different ethnic groups, of which more than twenty are represented in Russia; we have described some of them.

Ruska Roma

Activities: Horse trading, fortune telling, music.
History: Came to Russia in early XVIII century. Already in the 19th century, Russian gypsies were not only nomads, but also artists, merchants and peasants. Nowadays, the majority have a good education and have various professions. Features: The largest group. The Russian-Gypsy dialect is the language of intergroup communication. Very hospitable; They easily make contact with representatives of other nationalities.

Activities: Horse exchange, blacksmithing, fortune telling, music (songs of Russian gypsies are performed).
History: Ukrainian Gypsies. They came from Romanian lands and have been living in Ukraine since the beginning of the 17th century; a significant number of them settled in Russia (Rostov, Voronezh, Samara).
Features: One of the most educated ethnic groups. Many famous gypsy artists of Russia (Slichenko, Erdenko dynasty) are servas.

Activities: Music and crafts (brick making, basket weaving).
History: They lived sedentary for several centuries and were subjected to strong assimilation. They appeared within the borders of the USSR in the middle of the 20th century after the annexation of Transcarpathia. During the Soviet years they worked in factories and agriculture. After 1990, many lost their jobs and began to leave for Russia.
Features: Speak Hungarian. By religion, Catholics and Protestants.

Occupations: Trade, blacksmithing, fortune telling.
History: Having migrated to the Crimean peninsula, they adopted Islam; many borrowings from the language of the Crimean Tatars appeared in the dialect. The famine of the 1930s forced part of the Crimeans to move to Transcaucasia, Ukraine and Russia.
Features: Considered the best dancers. Conservative. Other gypsies prefer not to have conflicts with them.

Chisinau residents

Occupations: Trade, fortune telling.
History: After the abolition of serfdom, they migrated from Moldova to Ukraine and Russia. Before the revolution, the process of formation of the merchant class took place. Before the decree of 1956, they had earned criminal income, but with the transition to settled life they took up legal business.
Features: They maintain their dialect, which contains many Moldavian words, and respect ancient customs. They are prosperous and build spacious, beautiful houses - examples of “gypsy taste.”

Occupations: Horse trading, fortune telling.
History: The first camps moved to Russia from Hungary in the 70s of the 19th century. They could not stand the competition with the Russian gypsies - horse traders who knew the market better, and for a long time lived on the earnings of women fortune tellers.
Features: The transition from Catholicism to Orthodoxy is now being completed. Among the gypsies they have a reputation as rich and somewhat arrogant people.

Lingurary

Classes: Making wooden spoons, troughs and other utensils.
History: Some of the Lingurars migrated to Moldova from the Balkan countries in the middle of the 20th century.
Features: Orthodox Christians. The Gypsy language has been lost by the Lingurars - they speak Moldavian. Subject to assimilation. You can still find women selling spoons, including outside of Moldova.

Kotlyary (kelderary)

Occupations: Tinning dishes, making cauldrons, fortune telling, metal resale.
Story: Romanian origin, Orthodox. Moved to Russia in late XIX- early 20th century, live in large closed communities.
Features: They have a rich folklore, observe a strict set of moral standards based on the concept of “defilement” - pekelimos. Women continue to practice fortune telling.

Occupations: Blacksmithing and fortune telling.
History: The ancestors lived in the Danube principality of Wallachia already in the 17th century. They are most numerous in Ukraine and the southern regions of Russia.
Features: Women still wear national costumes. They retain their dialect of the Roma language. The majority are engaged in small trade and low-skilled labor. Hoes, horseshoes, chains, etc. are still made today.

Lyuli (mugat)

Activities: Crafts, livestock barter, music, fortune telling.
History: Direct descendants of people from India settled in Central Asia before reaching Byzantium. Much in customs and clothing was borrowed from the indigenous population (although, for example, Central Asian gypsies never wore a burqa).
Features: Muslims. Native languages are Tajik and Uzbek. After 1992, they were forced to go to work in Russia and Ukraine. Men were hired for agricultural work and construction, but often the only source of income was collecting alms.

Activities: In the past - performances with trained bears.
Story: Moldovan gypsies, Orthodox. In the 19th century, blacksmithing became the main craft of men; In Soviet times, women were hired to do agricultural work on collective and state farms.
Features: Continue to live and work in Moldova, rarely traveling beyond its borders; several families still perform with bears.

Instructions

According to historians, the gypsies left India many centuries ago, after which they found themselves scattered throughout the world. It is difficult to find a country where “Roma” have not set foot - this is what the gypsies themselves call their fellow tribesmen. The uniqueness of this people lies, in particular, in the fact that, while preserving their traditions, they do not remain indifferent to the influence of other cultures.

Among today's gypsies, two main groups can be distinguished - nomads and those who lead a sedentary lifestyle. Nomadic life, when a camp, sometimes consisting of hundreds of gypsies, including small children, women and old people, is still found both in Russia and throughout the world. Often, Roma from poorer regions tend to go abroad, choosing big cities, hoping to make money there. Unfortunately, the level of education among Roma youth and children still remains far from the norm. Therefore, most of the nomadic camp gypsies, as a rule, expect to make money by begging, fortune-telling and fraud on the streets of megacities.

In a number of European cities, after a corresponding decision local authorities Roma were evicted to separate areas. And the camps that appear from time to time in parks and squares of large cities often cause fierce disapproval among local residents. Gypsies are accused of parasitism, reluctance to work, a penchant for various types of crime, etc.

Nomadic gypsies choose the outskirts of cities and forests for stops. On the territory of Russia, according to official statistics, camps are periodically identified setting up tent camps. In order to create a temporary home in the forest, gypsies use a wide variety of materials - plywood, cardboard, polyethylene, etc. Unfortunately, it is not only camp gypsies who live in such primitive conditions. For example, on the outskirts of Belgrade, Serbian gypsies created an entire city, the houses of which were created from whatever “came to hand.”

Among the gypsies today there are both poor, barely wealthy representatives (for example, immigrants from Central Asia who make a living as beggers in Russia) and very rich ones. Representatives of the Roma diaspora, who lead a sedentary lifestyle, tend to strive for a luxurious lifestyle. Magnificent stone and brick houses, filled with expensive furniture, paintings in gilded frames, an abundance of colorful carpets and marble staircases - this is not a complete list of the “attributes” of such mansions.

Gypsy houses can accommodate either one or several families. Among the traditions inherent in this people, a special place is occupied by the respect of young people for the older generation. Elderly men and women enjoy unquestioned authority among other family members. At weddings and other holidays accompanied by a feast, the oldest guests are always seated in the most honorable places.

How to steal correctly, who gypsy girls like, how gypsies fight drug addicts and why do modern gypsies have no money? I talked with the gypsy baron Artur Mikhailovich Cherar himself. The first thing the baron did was hand over a business card, which could hardly contain all his titles:

Gypsy Baron of All Moldova;
Social and political figure of the Republic of Moldova and the CIS countries;
World Commissioner for Roma Courts Chris-Romani from Euro International Romani Union;
President of the international charitable foundation“Culture, development and revival of the nation” named after Baron Mircea Cherari;
Honorary President of the Coalition of Roma Non-Governmental Organizations of the Republic of Moldova;
Minister of Foreign Affairs and Minister of Mass Media of Roma Organizations of Moldova:
And so on and so forth.

Arthur Cerari is the son of the famous gypsy baron Mircea Cerari, who, together with his brother Valentin, was still Soviet times made a fortune sewing underwear under the Cherar brand. Mircea and Valentin Cerari were among the first, if not the first, millionaires in the USSR. According to rumors, Mircea even had a personal plane, and his shepherd had gold teeth. But there were so many rumors around him that nothing could be said for sure.

Luxurious houses on Gypsy Hill in Soroki began to grow in the mid-to-late 80s, just during the heyday of the Cherary cooperative business. In 1998, Baron Mircea Cerari died and Arthur became his heir. He assures that his candidacy was approved in full elections, 98% of Roma voters cast their votes for him. He has not yet become a king.

Baron is now 55 years old; he was born in 1960 in Soroki. After school, he studied at a local vocational school and state farm technical school, receiving education as a commodity expert and engineer. Then, in his own words, he studied at MGIMO. None of educational institutions He never graduated, but he once worked at the famous gypsy theater "Romen". The baron has a son, Arthur, his future heir, and two daughters.

It is very easy to communicate with the gypsy baron. You must have a business with him that can bring money. Well, what did you want - this is the legendary gypsy baron!

I arrive in Soroki and look for Arthur’s house. The first gypsy shows the direction, the little gypsy insists that we won’t find the house without his help, and demands to put him in the car. The house is located 50 meters along the same road.

Three-story brick house in the center of Soroca. Arthur and his wife greet the guests. “I have a good wife, but it’s a pity that there’s only one!” – the baron immediately jokes. The house is not completed and, apparently, will never be completed. The gypsies have run out of money...

We have everything, we just don’t have one thing.
- What?
- Money!

My family, the family of barons, is more than a thousand years old. Someone recently told me: “You know, Mr. Baron, you have a name.” All! My father was a recognized baron - I think that he was a king, a king, an emperor! This is the same great Empire was. From all over Soviet Union they came to him: for money, and for advice, and to reason, and to ask for help. Everyone came to Mircea Cerari.
He started in '65... I was 5 years old then, and since childhood I went to all the gatherings, to all the showdowns. And, to be honest, I don’t regret that I’ve been right hand this person. He is worthy of respect: he was handsome, smart, had a 5th grade education. The famine passed in 1946.
Grandfather reached Berlin, took Berlin, and returned back. Father's elder sister Aluna was pulling water from the well, saw him, shouted “Dad!”, she suffered a heart attack, and died before the evening. Here's a tragedy for you: out of joy - heartbreak!

In the yard there are two Seagulls and some other junk cars. The Baron dreamily says that he will definitely restore the Seagulls, and immediately boasts that one of the cars belonged to Andropov.

If it weren’t for the fucking customs, the Union would have survived, we would have wiped the noses of many. I will not hide: we were the first millionaires officially when the cooperative movement opened in the former Union. A company worked for us, we were sponsors of all programs, including the program “Petalo Romano” (“Gypsy Horseshoe”)...

Many cars in Soroki have Russian license plates.

There are Gypsies in Soroki, but most leave. They build houses in the Moscow region, in Serpukhov, and have dual citizenship. The houses have been left here and are not being sold, but some already want to sell. They say: “What prospects do I have? I’d better take it for myself there.” land plot somewhere in the Moscow region - in Serpukhov, Chekhov, Pushkino. The main place for me. I’ll build a hotel there, and Uzbeks and Tajiks will come to me every day.”

"ABOUT! You have Brightling!” – Arthur unmistakably identifies the brand of the watch two meters away and asks to look at it. We sit down at the table. The wife brings homemade wine, lard, onions and radishes.

Romania has slippery gypsies, including the king of the Romanian gypsies. Supposedly he is a king... And who chose him? He came here for the first time when, Kingdom of Heaven, his dad was alive and well, 3-4 years ago. When my dad was a recognized baron of the Soviet Union, best friend Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev, I was the only gypsy in the Soviet Union, the first who studied at MGIMO Moscow... And who is he? I look at him and think: did you come to appoint me? Yes, I don’t need your appointment... It’s not something out of pride. Simply: who are you, what have you done for the people and, in general, what have you done?
Then they told me: his father worked with the cops. He screwed over the cops, their “Securitate” there... And this is how they rose in this field. What next? It’s another matter when you, like my father, were a sponsor, helping both the poor and fools. He took from himself, gave away the last - as long as it was good and peaceful. Maybe he was wrong. But he said: “You are also right. Go and do it so that it will be good, so that there will be peace. There are already few of us.”

The Moldavian way of pouring wine. The lid does not unscrew completely and the wine flows slowly.

I am among the people who are in favor of us preserving our republic and not joining anyone. And we are for the Eastern Partnership, for the former Soviet Union, we are for Customs union. The West are crooks. Yes, maybe everything is beautiful for them, but this is not what we have lived, what we know and what we have seen. Their whole life is in loans, and they want us to be dependent on loans too.
It used to be like this: do whatever you want. The one who didn't work didn't have it. Yes, even he had! May the Lord forgive me, and forgive me, but I always say: there is no one in the world nicer, kinder, sometimes stupider, stronger and richer than the Russian people. It’s not like you came to visit me today. I told them all – Romanian-speaking people and everyone else – that you can live next to a Russian’s ass for another 8,000 years.

An official request has now been made about my official status as the Gypsy King of the CIS and beyond. The official inauguration will take place here - not somewhere in Moscow, Kyiv or Minsk, but precisely in Moldova. When else will Moldova have such an honor that all the royal courts of the world will come here for this inauguration? Including Elizabeth, Queen of England.
What do I need from Chisinau? He doesn't give anything at all, he takes from us. People live and work here, I need to create jobs.

The house is very poor, especially by gypsy standards. The baron and baroness are sleeping right in the living room...

We gypsies also steal. But we don’t steal like they do, stupidly. If you're smart, you stole, right? 100 thousand, 200 thousand, million dollars. Take it, promote it, make money on it. And say: Lord, forgive me, please, I want to return what I stole back, and plus more on top... Throw it under his porch so that he opens the door in the morning and finds it there... Then you will have a blessing, God's blessing!
Nowadays the situation of Roma all over the world is very bad. We were a little affected by this financial situation. While there was the Union and 10 years after the Union, things were fine with us. But now they are impoverished. And if we walk around Soroki today, you will see that in fact people are not at home, they are all on the road. Who is in Russia... Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan - everywhere. These are the Moldovan gypsies.

Some media write that the income of the Cerarei family could be 20-40 million euros per year. Doesn't seem real.

Indeed, our people are talented in everything. Trading - they know how, they are good psychologists. People are making money. Some of the gypsies have been doing this since ancient times, they are great. But some of them started doing bullshit.

Am I doing all this for myself? I won't take anything with me to my grave. Not this house, which I want to raise another 10 floors up... Make an office, make a throne room... Plus I also want to open the International Institute of Barony. I spent general meeting and said: “Let’s open here not a Roma university, but an international university center with a faculty of Roma studies.” And everyone gave their consent. They came to me from the Sorbonne, from Paris, and said: “Whatever you need, we will help you.”

In addition to the “Faculty of Gypsy Studies,” Arthur dreams of opening a Gypsy newspaper and television in Moldova.

Arthur in his youth

For all the gypsies of the former Soviet Union, Soroki is like Mecca for all Muslims of the world, a cultural and historical center. Some people don’t like the idea that we’re not good at stealing. No, we are hard workers, we are blacksmiths, brother. We are the most ancient military-industrial complex in the world, we have shackled all the kings, kings, pharaohs - everyone. Even Damascus steel, damask steel. You should say "bottle". “Boot” means “many”, many layers of armor. “Lat” is still with you, the Russians. We are ancient Aryans, and we speak Sanskrit.

Pictured is father and uncle

From Ukraine, most Roma left for Belarus and Russia. Everyone has relatives there. They left them at home and ran away. What, go to war? Who to fight with? Against brothers, against sisters, against children? What are we, monsters? We have not yet forgotten what these people did to us... Ask me why we are not very good with the Romanians. Because they are worse than the Germans were. They made Jewish and Gypsy ghettos. Holocaust. We haven't forgotten yet.

The house is not finished, there is no money...

On the second floor everything is also modest...

Guests are brought here

The baron's main treasure is a collection of porcelain figurines...

Sometimes you go to a gypsy’s house and he doesn’t have a piece of bread for the mouse to chew on. But a gold chain also has gold teeth. He creates his own status. But I create a status for myself from friends. Although I know that 50% of them are enemies. I always said: “Don’t praise me, because I know how much I weigh. On the contrary, criticize me so that I become more perfect.”

Gypsy weddings last three to four days. Previously, under the Soviet Union, a week. All the Soroki - the police chief, the entire city executive committee - are all at our wedding. Do you think we had a wedding? We had a concert, not a wedding, a performance! Now no less than 300-400 euros need to be put on the table. But what about 300-400 euros today? But you made a thousand noises! Music is very expensive here. How does a girl choose her groom? A Russian is better than a gypsy drug addict. Or better yet, a Jew.

Arthur plays the button accordion and piano for all guests. He plays and sings great! His other talents include knowledge of several languages. He himself says that he knows 15, including, for example, Yiddish and Farsi.

I won't hide it. We had times when we cooked nigella for the house, we had a lot of fun, a lot of boys died from an overdose. There were mothers, wives, children, tears, you know... We put things in order. Cops to the side - and they went there. Full of bullshit. They poured gasoline on them and said: “What you got as a pussy, you got it for doing this and that. We have children growing up, we have grandchildren growing up, we have great-grandchildren, and you want to make money on tears - easy money, big money. Okay, yes ? It’s good for you, but for people..."
We went into houses, bombed everything and said: one match - and you will now burn down along with your family members and your house, and we will say that this is what happened. And choose for yourself: or you stop, leave our city and go live there among strangers, and not among the gypsies. And they will drive you away from there, because the tail is coming behind you, the tail is already there. And it says on it that you are a goner. That's it: you're a killer. In Russia and Ukraine, and in the same Baltic states, this blouse-puff predominates everywhere.
In Ukraine, it happened that the gypsies themselves got involved - both children and youth. These are people who have completely lost their sense of dignity. Humanity – everything has been lost. Therefore we were forced...

There is devastation in the yard...

We walk along broken roads to the very top of Gypsy Hill...

Across the river is already Ukraine, Vinnitsa region. A ferry carries people to the other side. Arthur dreamily says that he wants to build a bridge here like in San Francisco and make it a toll bridge, and use the money to rebuild Soroki.

People on the streets recognize him, but they don’t feel any special awe of the baron. At some point, a gypsy boy accosts me and starts begging for wine, food and money. Arthur tries to drive him away from the car, but the boy does not listen. Arthur gets nervous and raises his voice, but the boy just laughs and continues to reach for the bag.

View of Soroki, Gypsy Hill...

The empire began to collapse after the death of Arthur's father... The last high-profile event that shocked Magpies was his funeral. Before Mircea Cherari was buried, his body was kept in the house for 40 days so that all the gypsies of the world could say goodbye to him. To do this, the baron had to be embalmed and the bed where he lay was covered with a ton of ice every day. The ensemble "Lautarius" played near the house, and visitors were shown episodes from the baron's life.

During this time, a coffin was brought from Italy for $14 thousand, and the family crypt was lined with Indian tiles and electricity was installed there. In addition to the coffin itself, a TV, a computer, a printer, a fax machine, a gun, a bottle of whiskey and even a set of Gillette shaving accessories were placed in the crypt. There are rumors that the baron's beloved Volga was also driven there, but Arthur Cherari says that this is nonsense.

Today, almost all the houses are abandoned or unfinished. There is no one left in Soroki, and the only reminders of the baron’s former wealth are articles in Soviet newspapers, which told readers about shepherd dogs with gold teeth and a private plane.

Languid romances and dances with bears for the amusement of the public, the lack of normal housing and even primary education, luxurious palaces and large-scale festivals - all the splendor and all the poverty everyday life the most famous nomadic people in our story.

Gypsies are a truly global, international phenomenon. They live on every continent, somewhere absorbing the culture of the local population, but always preserving their own. Incomprehensible to the general population, which is often reprehensible for the gypsies, they continue to roam the world with their “gypsy spirit”, as if on their own. And this problem of socialization in the modern world, shrinking under the influence of globalization, is determined for them by the same thing as for the Israeli Bedouins. Roma do not recognize state borders, and states do not recognize those who do not recognize their borders.

Photo: borda, deviantart

And who else if not us, the inhabitants of the territories of the former Russian Empire and the Soviet Union, notice the metamorphoses that have occurred with the Roma people. Even a century ago, without the gypsies with their small orchestras and dance troupes, it was impossible to imagine any more or less large feast; artists of the gypsy family distinguished a good tavern from a bad one with their presence; at every fair they were with the obligatory trained bear. Today, the majority of the population associates Russian gypsies with a semi-beggarly existence in illegally occupied flimsy huts, criminal activity and other not very pleasant things. This transformation, of course, did not happen on its own - assimilation and transfer to a sedentary lifestyle of the Roma were important points in the social program of the Soviet government, which the Roma themselves were often not happy about. In many camps it was forbidden to receive even primary education (this, in general, is considered a rule among the gypsies good manners), the fruits of which in the form of mass lack of education are still being reaped by Russian Roma (not without exceptions, of course, for example, the Servas are considered one of the most educated Roma ethnic groups in the world).

Photo: Joakim Eskildsen

And the case with Soviet Russia is by no means unique - the gypsies in Europe have always shared the title of persecuted people with the Jews. Together with them, they were among the peoples who became victims of the Holocaust. In a more democratic form, this continues today (mass evictions of Roma from France in 2010, for example). So what forces the Roma people for centuries under monstrous pressure to live as their ancestors lived, to engage in habitual (albeit often reprehensible from the point of view of the law) activities, to resist perfection? modern world to the last? The answer is simple - romanipe. This is the unwritten philosophy of the gypsies, everyday esotericism (not a religion; by religion, most gypsies are Christians, a few are Muslims), a set of laws passed on from mouth to mouth, from generation to generation. What is commonly called the “gypsy spirit” is the way of life, chosen professions, cultural traditions.

Photo: Joakim Eskildsen

But under the pressure of the modern world and our reality, which does not tolerate alternatives from freedom-loving people, the “gypsy spirit” has less and less free space. For example, most of the gypsies, who have long been considered an exclusively nomadic people, have long switched to a sedentary lifestyle. Many camps settled in vacant houses in villages and on the outskirts of cities, having already survived several generations of settled life. A gypsy house is a small hut, often rickety from age, mostly one-story. The last fact is due to the fact that female body below the waist among gypsies is considered something sacredly dirty, and, therefore, they cannot be on the floor below the one on which the lady walks. Although, not without exceptions, for example, residents of the Roma ghetto Stolipinovo in the Bulgarian Plovdiv abandoned this rule long ago, otherwise they simply could not live in elderly five-story “Khrushchev” buildings. Among the design features of the house - a must-have large hall(often to the detriment of the living space), in which the gypsy family receives guests and holds mass holidays. For those gypsies who, according to the behests of their ancestors, continue to lead a nomadic lifestyle, the role of the hall is played by fresh air. Accommodating all the guests in mobile homes, which in our time have replaced tents for gypsies, understandably seems an impossible task.

Photo: Joakim Eskildsen

Like all peoples of the world, the Roma are no stranger to social stratification - the difference between welfare ordinary people and the so-called gypsy barons can reach incredible sizes. The houses of the barons, the heads of the camps, into whose hands illegal financial flows often flow, could sharply contrast with the rickety shacks and residential trailers covered in dirt, if they were located among them. But, as a rule, barons place their mansions, which are striking in luxury (and, often, in complete bad taste), in very fashionable areas. The size of the profits of some of the Roma leaders is sometimes due to the fact that stealing in Roma society is not considered something shameful. According to one legend, a camp passing by the crucifixion of Christ took with it one of the nails - as a result, God allowed the people to appropriate a little of someone else’s property.

Photo: gdtlive.com

But the gypsies do not live by horse theft and begging alone. Many of them prefer to earn their income through honest labor. Not by working in factories, which among these people is considered a “non-gypsy” profession, for which they can even be expelled from ethnic society, but with the talents of first-class artists. Gypsies may settle in one place forever, they may stop speaking their native language, but at the same time the Gypsies never forget their own culture. And even fortune telling, with which we often associate gypsies, is perceived among them as an esoteric artistic art. But the Roma people achieved much greater success in music and dancing. In Russia they still sing romances and dance the gypsy girl, in Spain they play and dance flamenco no worse than the Spaniards themselves, but with their own flavor, in Turkey they perform their own special belly dance, in which gypsy men are not averse to showing their skills. All this cultural diversity today is already more difficult to find on the street (especially in decent concentration, which remains only in the Balkans), but it blooms in riotous colors at festivals of gypsy culture - the May “Khamoro” in Prague, the autumn “Romani Yag” in Montreal , September “Amala” in Kyiv. And every day - in any place where gypsies live today, because their way of life, the “gypsy spirit”, romanipe - this is real art.

Photo: Angelita70, panoramio

As a rule, all nationalities of the world have seen gypsies. This nomadic nation has settled almost everywhere, joining and adopting much from those with whom it neighbors side by side. During World War II, the genocide of the Roma was as horrific as the “solution of the Jewish question,” but there is still no reliable data, due to the fact that the Roma did not have passports or any other identification documents.

Historians give only approximate figures in the region of 200 thousand people. Now the gypsies, thanks to their enormous fertility, have restored their world population and increase it year by year. They had their own developed and enlightened barons, they mastered the latest advances in technology, but the majority remained faithful to their medieval culture.

So, what do we know about modern gypsies?

Language

Most of the gypsy peoples have long lost their native language, only 20% of Gypsies around the world remained faithful to their native dialect, while the rest adopted the languages of the country in which they stayed. Only in Russia do gypsies speak Romani, and here the number of speakers of the same language is unusually large. The Roma also do not have an alphabet, but all over the world they write in either Russian, Romanian, or Hungarian letters, depending on their place of birth. Also, these three countries listed above are considered by the gypsies to be something like a “homeland”.

Customs

Although gypsies have stopped stealing horses on an industrial scale, the horseshoe is the main symbol of good luck. Finding a horseshoe on the road, which with the advent of progress has become incredibly difficult, is the main event of a gypsy’s life, but if he finds it with its ends facing him, then it is considered spoiled - happiness will spill out of it. If the horseshoe faces the gypsy with its convex side, it means that it should be picked up quickly and then luck will never leave the gypsy.

Every gypsy has two or three names in use. One for a passport, the second, short, for everyday use in the camp. The third name is lucky, has a sound similar to jewelry or a flower: Lily, Rose, Ruby, Currency.

A wedding is no less important ritual event

They usually get married at the age of 16-18, although it is possible earlier with the consent of the parents. First, matchmaking takes place, then the bride’s parents evaluate whether the groom is good or not, if everything goes smoothly, they arrange a magnificent wedding, which increasingly takes place in a cafe or restaurant. It is considered bad form to invite DJs, toastmasters and other wedding characters.

The eldest or most influential relative takes on the duties of manager and announces that such and such a family is dancing, and everyone, young and old, is obliged to dance. In the morning, the bride and groom are sent to the bedchamber, and relatives guard the door; they are required to show them a sheet with evidence that the wedding was “honest.”

The wedding is invariably recorded on video, and this video material is wealth and a kind of currency for the gypsies. Distant camps come specifically to “buy” wedding video”, and gatherings with watching and reviewing “your wedding, someone else’s wedding and the wedding of relatives” are replacing our usual TV series and going to the cinema.

Appearance

Gypsy women in colorful wide skirts are not only a tribute to the past, but also a tribute to gypsy fashion, which remains unchanged from century to century - the wider, shiny and richer the skirt looks, the more more beautiful gypsy. You cannot wear trousers, as trousers highlight too much of everything “unclean” that is below the waist. For the same reason gypsy woman you need to be able to deftly handle your wide skirt; she shouldn’t touch men with it - it’s an insult.

Modern gypsies simply explain wearing a large amount of gold

Firstly, these are family jewels, the memory of parents. Secondly, leading a continuous nomadic life, it is difficult to take and transport acquired property, and if everything is converted into gold jewelry, the task is simplified. Bracelets, chains, and earrings are bought for each child from birth. The bride must be provided with a substantial gold dowry, and gypsy barons They often wear a large gold cross as a symbol of their high position.

Earnings

Gypsies do not like to work - this is a generally accepted fact. However, men, who mainly spend their time playing cards and friendly get-togethers, are hungry, so the gypsies earn money in the following way. The youngest, under the supervision of one or two “mothers”, go to beg, the older youngsters are left to their own devices - they collect scrap iron, bottles, but one way or another they also have to supply money.

The elders, as a rule, are engaged in trade. Gypsies trade mainly in clothes or items household items(carpets, jackets, slippers) or, succumbing to the trends of the times, they resell Chinese mobile phones and tablets. In this case, men provide security and supervision.

Stealing or selling drugs, contrary to popular belief, is rare among Roma. In the average camp, a relative caught in such a situation is expelled from the community, the person is no longer helped or invited to visit. Moving to another city will do nothing - the gypsy post office works like clockwork, and the news of the “bad romance” will spread very far.

A very narrow segment, those same enlightened and cultured gypsy families, are engaged in real estate - they rent out premises or run their own cafes and restaurants. They are called barons, and it is they who have built large mansions, next to which there are the latest model SUVs.

Education and medicine

This is where the gypsies are hopelessly behind and are not at all eager to close the gap. They are reluctant to send their children to school, since studying interferes with earning money. Even a gypsy who enters there is unlikely to be able to fully complete it, since gypsies treat receiving any documents, certificates, passports, etc. with hostility.

Birth certificate- even this document is considered completely optional among the Roma, and its absence is the first obstacle to entering school. Only with the onset of inexorable progress, when a passport became mandatory for social benefits, residence and crossing borders, did the Roma begin to receive one, often putting the first city they came across in the “registration” column.

Gypsies are treated exclusively with herbs and spells

In pharmacies, in their opinion, there is nothing but chemistry, and tinctures of herbs, berries and a proven secret plot are the best remedy for the disease. If the gypsy still dies, it means he just came life path by the end, you must definitely throw away all his things except gold, and, if possible, destroy his house.