What is the religion of the gypsies? On equal terms.

Gypsies are a people without a state. For a long time they were considered to have come from Egypt and were called the “pharaoh’s tribe,” but recent research disproves this. In Russia, the gypsies have created a real cult of their music.

Why are gypsies “gypsies”?

Gypsies don't call themselves that. Their most common self-name for gypsies is “Roma”. Most likely, this is the influence of the life of the gypsies in Byzantium, which received this name only after its fall. Before that, it was considered part of Roman civilization. The common “Romale” is the vocative case of the ethnonym “Roma”.

Gypsies also call themselves Sinti, Kale, Manush (“people”).

Other peoples call Gypsies very differently. In England they are called gypsies (from Egyptians - “Egyptians”), in Spain - gitanos, in France - bohemiens (“Bohemians”, “Czechs” or tsiganes (from Greek - τσιγγάνοι, “tsingani”), Jews call gypsies צוענים (tso 'anim), from the name of the biblical province of Zoan in Ancient Egypt.

The word “gypsies”, familiar to the Russian ear, conventionally goes back to the Greek word “atsingani” (αθίγγανος, ατσίγγανος), which means “untouchable”. This term first appears in the “Life of George of Athos,” written in the 11th century. “Conventionally,” because in this book “untouchables” is the name given to one of the heretical sects of that time. This means that it is impossible to say with certainty that the book is specifically about gypsies.

Where did the gypsies come from?

In the Middle Ages, Gypsies in Europe were considered Egyptians. The word Gitanes itself is a derivative of the Egyptian. There were two Egypts in the Middle Ages: upper and lower. The gypsies were so nicknamed, obviously, by the name of the upper one, which was located in the Peloponnese region, where their migration came from. Belonging to the cults of lower Egypt is visible in the life of even modern gypsies.

Tarot cards, which are considered the last surviving fragment of the cult of the Egyptian god Thoth, were brought to Europe by the gypsies. In addition, the gypsies brought the art of embalming the dead from Egypt.

Of course, there were gypsies in Egypt. The route from upper Egypt was probably the main route of their migration. However, modern genetic research has proven that gypsies do not come from Egypt, but from India.

The Indian tradition has been preserved in Gypsy culture in the form of practices for working with consciousness. The mechanisms of meditation and gypsy hypnosis are largely similar; gypsies are good animal trainers, just like Hindus. In addition, gypsies are characterized by syncretism of spiritual beliefs - one of the features of current Indian culture.

The first gypsies in Russia

The first gypsies (serva groups) in the Russian Empire appeared in the 17th century on the territory of Ukraine.

The first mention of gypsies in Russian history occurs in 1733, in Anna Ioannovna’s document on new taxes in the army:

“In addition, for the maintenance of these regiments, determine taxes from the gypsies, both in Little Russia and in the Sloboda regiments and in the Great Russian cities and districts assigned to the Sloboda regiments, and for this collection, identify a special person, since the gypsies are not included in the census written."

The next mention of Gypsies in Russian historical documents occurs in the same year. According to this document, the Gypsies of Ingermanland were allowed to trade horses, since they “proved themselves to be natives here” (that is, they had lived here for more than a generation).

A further increase in the Gypsy contingent in Russia came with the expansion of its territories. When part of Poland was annexed to the Russian Empire, “Polish Roma” appeared in Russia, when Bessarabia was annexed - Moldavian Gypsies, after Crimea was annexed - Crimean Gypsies. It must be understood that the Roma are not a mono-ethnic community, therefore the migration of different Roma ethnic groups took place in different ways.

On equal terms

In the Russian Empire, Gypsies were treated quite friendly. On December 21, 1783, a Decree of Catherine II was issued, classifying the Gypsies as a peasant class. Taxes began to be collected from them. However, no special measures were taken to force the enslavement of the Roma. Moreover, they were allowed to be assigned to any class except nobles.

Already in the Senate decree of 1800 it is said that in some provinces “gypsies became merchants and townspeople.”

Over time, settled gypsies began to appear in Russia, some of them managed to acquire considerable wealth. Thus, in Ufa lived a gypsy merchant Sanko Arbuzov, who successfully traded horses and had a good, spacious house. His daughter Masha went to school and studied French. And Sanko Arbuzov was not alone.

In Russia, the musical and performing culture of the Roma is appreciated. Already in 1774, Count Orlov-Chesmenky summoned the first gypsy choir to Moscow, which later grew into a choir and marked the beginning of professional gypsy performance in the Russian Empire.

At the beginning of the 19th century, the serf gypsy choirs were freed and continued their independent activities in Moscow and St. Petersburg. Gypsy music was an unusually fashionable genre, and the Gypsies themselves were often assimilated among the Russian nobility - quite famous people married Gypsy girls. Suffice it to recall Leo Tolstoy’s uncle Fyodor Ivanovich Tolstoy the American.

Gypsies also helped Russians during wars. In the War of 1812, Gypsy communities donated large sums of money to support the army, supplied the best horses for the cavalry, and Gypsy youth went to serve in the Uhlan regiments.

By the end of the 19th century, not only Ukrainian, Moldavian, Polish, Russian and Crimean gypsies lived in the Russian Empire, but also Lyuli, Karachi and Bosha (since the annexation of the Caucasus and Central Asia), and at the beginning of the 20th century they migrated from Austria-Hungary and Romania lovari and kolderar.

Currently, the number of European gypsies, according to various estimates, ranges from 8 million to 10-12 million people. There were officially 175.3 thousand people in the USSR (1970 census). According to the 2010 census, about 220 thousand Roma live in Russia.

There is no single gypsy people; there are many groups. They are very different from each other in language, activities, and profess different religions. It even happens that one group does not consider another to be Gypsies.

RUSSIAN ROMA

Russian gypsies. Their ancestors came to Russia at the beginning of the 18th century from Poland. The original professions were horse trading, fortune telling and music. They live throughout the Russian Federation, as well as in other post-Soviet states. Already in the 19th century, Russian gypsies were not only nomads, but also artists, merchants and peasants. Nowadays, the majority of Russian gypsies have a good education, are engaged in business, and work in the fields of agriculture, culture and industry. The Russian-Gypsy dialect has become the language of intergroup communication. Russian gypsies are the largest ethnic group. They are very hospitable and traditionally open to a wide range of acquaintances.

SERVES

Ukrainian gypsies. Their distant ancestors came from Romanian lands. They have lived in Ukraine since the beginning of the 17th century, although a significant number also live in Russia (Rostov, Voronezh, Samara, etc.). Traditional activities: horse bartering, blacksmithing, fortune telling. Nowadays, the servs are one of the most educated gypsy ethnic groups with a wide range of professions, including knowledge-intensive industries. Their achievements in the musical field are great (although the folklore of Russian gypsies is used during performances). The process of assimilation has gone far among the Servs and a significant part of them have lost their native dialect. Ritualism was borrowed from the Slavic population.

VLACHI

Ukrainian gypsies. Their ancestors lived in the Principality of Wallachia already in the 17th century. Women of this ethnic group still retain a distinct national costume. Traditional activities: blacksmithing and fortune telling. Blacksmiths who make hoes, horseshoes, chains and the like still exist. The level of education among Vlachs is low. They live in Ukraine and in the southern regions of Russia. Now the majority are engaged in small trade and low-skilled labor. They perfectly preserve their dialect of the Gypsy language. The Vlachs are a very large ethnic group.

CRIMEA

The distant ancestors of the ethnic group were the Moldavian Ursars. After migrating to the Crimean Peninsula, these gypsies converted to Islam. Many borrowings from the Crimean Tatars appeared in their dialect. Traditional occupations of the ethnic group: blacksmithing, trading and fortune telling. The famine of the 1930s squeezed part of the Crimeans into Transcaucasia, Ukraine and Russia. Men of this gypsy "nation" took part in the construction of the Moscow metro. Many became artists. Crimean gypsies are now considered the best gypsy pop dancers. Nowadays the main occupation of the Crimeans is business. Even living in the capital, the overwhelming majority of them remain Muslims, pay a bride price, and hold tightly to their customs. Other gypsies prefer not to have conflicts with them.

KELDERARY

Gypsies of Romanian origin, Orthodox Christians. In our country they prefer to call themselves Kotlyars. The creators of a set of clothing that is considered the standard of “gypsy” throughout the world. The time of their resettlement to the Russian Empire stretched from the 1870s to the 1920s. The traditional occupation of men is tinning dishes and making cauldrons. Women were famous as fortune tellers. It is the Kelderarki (and Vlach gypsies) who continue to tell fortunes on the streets of our cities to this day. Kotlyars perfectly preserve their dialect and have a rich folklore (which, however, is practically unknown to others). They live in large closed communities in compact settlements. Kotlyars strictly observe customs according to which a person or object may be “defiled” (pekelimos). A ransom is paid for the brides. The level of education is low. After the demand for tinning disappears, they make money by barter trading or resale of metal.

LOVARI

An ethnic group related to the Kalderars. They lived for some time in Hungary, from where they moved to Russia. The first Lovar camps crossed our borders in the 70s of the 19th century; the last settlers appeared before the Great Patriotic War. In the past, the main occupation of the lovars was horse trading, but in our country they could not withstand the competition with the Russian gypsies (who knew the market much better). For a long time, the Lovaris lived off female fortune tellers; later they mastered the pop stage and successfully went into business. For the first decades, the Lovaris remained Catholics, but now the transition to Orthodoxy is being completed. They have very strong traditions associated with ritual “desecration” (in their dialect - Mageripe). Unlike Kotlyars, they dress very modernly. In the national environment, the Lovaris have a reputation as rich, albeit somewhat arrogant people.

CAPEERS

A small and very closed ethnic group, originally originating from the Carpathian (Slovak-Hungarian) region. The Cloaks roamed the southern regions of the Russian Empire for a long time. Their women were pickpockets. Nowadays, many cloakers have acquired modern professions, although their level of education remains low. By religion they are Orthodox Christians. They live in Ukraine, Russia and Azerbaijan. They hold fast to ancient customs.

CHISINAU PEOPLE

The ancestors of this ethnic group lived in Moldova. After the abolition of serfdom, they migrated to Ukraine and Russia. The process of forming their merchant class was interrupted by the October Revolution. The main occupation of women is fortune telling. Until the decree of 1956, male Chisinau residents had criminal earnings, but with the transition to settled life they radically changed their lifestyle and started legal business. Chisinau residents perfectly preserve their dialect, which contains many Moldovan words, and honor ancient customs. Commerce and fortune telling made them wealthy people. Their spacious houses can be considered examples of "gypsy taste." Their level of education is high by national standards. The size of the ethnic group is small.

LOTS

Latvian gypsies, Lutherans by religion. They are related by origin to Russian gypsies, and have much in common with them in language. They live not only in Latvia. Some families moved to Russia and other countries. Traditional activities of the ethnic group: horse trading and fortune telling. The Lotvos are well known throughout the Slavic republics, since under “developed socialism” they mastered the clothing trade. These gypsies have a good education and a very wide range of professions.

CHOCENARY

Moldavian gypsies, Orthodox Christians. Traditional activities: blacksmithing and fortune telling. They have their own dialect of the Roma language. To this day, colorful women's costumes have been preserved in everyday life. Chokenari live in Moldova and Transcarpathian Ukraine, but some go to Russia to work. Many Chokenari families are still engaged in metal work. In particular, they make vats and gutters for drains. As for education, few people study beyond secondary school.

LINGURARS

Moldavian gypsies, Orthodox Christians. As can be seen from the name, the main profession of this ethnic group from time immemorial was the manufacture of spoons and utensils from wood. The Gypsy language has been lost by the Lingurars - they speak Moldavian among themselves. In their environment, assimilation processes are strong. However, even now women selling spoons can be found even outside of Moldova.

URSARS

Moldavian gypsies. In the distant past, they performed with trained bears, but already in the 19th century, blacksmithing became the main craft of men. Women were hired for agricultural work on collective and state farms. The Ursars still continue to live and work in Moldova, rarely traveling beyond its borders.

MAGYARS

Hungarian gypsies. They appeared within the borders of the USSR after the annexation of Transcarpathia, separated from Hungary in 1946. The Magyars lived sedentary for several centuries and were subjected to strong assimilation. They speak Hungarian. By religion: Catholics and Protestants. The main professions of Hungarian gypsies were music and various crafts. Magyar women do not master the art of fortune telling. During the Soviet years, almost the entire ethnic group was employed in the fields of production and agriculture, but after the collapse of socialism, many lost their jobs. Some families of Hungarian gypsies found themselves on the verge of starvation and began to leave for Russia. When residents of Moscow and St. Petersburg saw barefoot women with children tied behind their backs on the streets, these were Magyar women. Russian gypsies do not want to consider people from Transcarpathia as their brothers.

MUGAT

Gypsies of Central Asia, better known to us as "Luli". They were engaged in crafts, exchanging horses and donkeys, as well as music. The women wondered. Tajik and Uzbek became the native languages ​​of the Mugat. Naturally, they borrowed a lot from the indigenous population in customs and even in clothing (although even in the 19th century the gypsies of Central Asia did not wear the burqa). During the years of Soviet power, the level of education among Mugat became quite high. They acquired many modern professions. However, the economic crisis that erupted after the collapse of the USSR produced the same results as the Magyars. Since 1992, Mugat began to go to Russia and Ukraine to work. Men were hired for seasonal agricultural work or construction, but often the only source of income for Mugat camps was collecting alms. Russian ethnic groups generally do not consider Mugat to be Gypsies.

Since the November GEO is already on sale, I’m finally publishing here the author’s version of the article by the Pratsygans :)

I thank Lyosha Tsarev for their help with the article (without him the Chudovsky part would not have existed at all!), Chyargen Vorotnikovskiri, Koshasty and Vladimir Esipov!

Gypsies are considered to be something monolithic, a people that can be described in a few words. However, there are more than seventy gypsy ethnic groups, and each of them has its own customs, its own dialect, and its own way of life. Sometimes they differ so much that one can hardly believe that the two gypsy peoples are related to each other.

Novgorod region, Chudovo. Kotlyary.

Kotlyary. Photo by Tanya Kotova ( tanyakotova )

Chudov from Moscow is six to seven hours by train, just short of Veliky Novgorod. Local residents do not enter the Roma part of the village, they are afraid. If you ask why, they shrug their shoulders, look around in bewilderment as if the answer was written on one of the fences, and finally say:
- Well, gypsies...
However, Russian guests in the Chudov camp are not at all a curiosity. After all, Kotlyars live there - favorites of journalists and photographers of all stripes. If you see an article or program about gypsies, it will almost certainly be about the Kotlyars. There are significantly fewer of them than other gypsies, but they are very conservative and live in camps. They smell of Pushkin's Bessarabia - and for good reason: Kotlyars came to Russia from Moldova and Romania a little over a hundred years ago. It is not difficult to identify their women in a crowd - the inevitable braids at the temples, a wide apron, a colorful scarf with a knot at the back of the head. Many kotlyarki still tell fortunes on the streets, and there are still many children in their families.

A camp is not pitched tents, but a village of assorted houses, small houses and huts, in which about a thousand gypsies live. The streets are not paved. A large brick house, at the entrance to the camp there is an elementary school (however, not quite an elementary school, there is now a fifth grade there, they want to make a sixth one). Near the residential building there is a food stall. Several young women in long skirts and bright blouses immediately come out to meet the guests, or rather, the guests: to find out who and why. Children playing look with curiosity. Among them there are fair-haired ones. The number of children among Kotlyars is a status thing, so they willingly adopt. It is difficult to meet a gypsy child in an orphanage, but the Kotlyars do not divide children by grade, they adopt Russians and in everyday life they do not distinguish them from their relatives in any way, they raise, feed, dress in the same way and, to be honest, they also terribly pamper them. The adopted children grow up to be real gypsies, marry gypsies and give birth to the next generation of fair-haired cats.

At the other end of the street, a middle-aged gypsy is tinkering with a car. You can’t approach him; among gypsies, guests come to women, guests come to men, otherwise it’s “indecent.” But kittens are talkative, and perhaps you can learn even more about their husbands and brothers from them than through direct contact.

Let's go have some tea! - the name of the young laughing Marina and her daughter-in-law Rosa. Marina looks to be 17-18 years old, Rosa is about 30 years old, by local standards - a respectable woman, almost elderly. It is customary to offer tea to guests, but not to everyone: they will not invite you to drink for the first time. We need to get used to it and “sign it up” as a friend. Then refusing tea is a terrible offense; according to gypsy etiquette, this is a gesture of breaking friendly relations.

Rozina's family has a two-story house. The first floor is almost entirely occupied by a spacious, carpeted “hall”. It is needed for holidays: at Easter, Christmas, and weddings, it is customary to invite as many relatives and friends as possible. The furniture is standard for the post-Soviet space: a sideboard with “crystal”, a sofa...

Previously, when we were nomadic, camps met and communicated, there was a connection. Now we live as if scattered. We live in one place for ten, twenty, thirty years... If you don’t invite to the holidays, then you won’t see your relatives, and you’ll forget your friends, and you won’t find a bride for your children, they’ll marry each other, they’ll become freaks,” an old Kotlyar grandmother told me in a completely different village Glad. - I go to other cities four times a year, communicate with everyone, see all my grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

The stairs to the second floor are nowhere to be seen.

No one lives or sleeps there,” explains Rosa. - It's for beauty. Gypsies are not allowed there, but the men will not clean up themselves, and they will not want to live in disorder.

Instead of “disorder,” she uses a much more expressive and savory Russian word.

Women are really not allowed on the second floor at the kotlyars. All gypsies think that women come from below with “filth,” “uncleanliness,” but, for example, Russian Roma believe that ceilings or even underwear can delay it. But the Kotlyars do not agree. With them, if a gypsy goes to the second floor, she desecrates the entire first floor; you can no longer enter the house - “you will be defiled.”

Some kotlyars, however, use the second floors. The girls clean up there.

“Children, they are pure, like angels,” Rada explained.

Together with us, Marina and Rosa, the rest of the women come in to drink tea. They listen with curiosity to the news of cultural gypsy life, complaining that such news is not shown on TV.

All you hear is: a gypsy was arrested here, they were arrested there, bad gypsies, so and so. You ask the police here, do they have any complaints against us? Did we steal anything, or are we pushing drugs? And on TV they compared everyone. Only about crimes. They don’t show any such festivals, they just scold them! - women worry. - And here, only if the guys fight with someone, it’s all crime!

It’s the Russian gypsies who commit all these crimes, they’re the ones who dishonor us, the gypsies! - the elderly gypsy woman angrily says.

Kotlyars often say this about Russian gypsies. I remember black-browed Sasha from Moscow - an intellectual, even Russified. Born in Tula. Already as a child he worked in a dance ensemble, toured, and earned money. Then he managed to be a music journalist, sports columnist, television worker, musician, producer, now he is twenty-nine, he is an editor in a financial magazine, and has lived in Moscow for several years. In conversation he actively gestures, smokes a lot - nothing else about him, it seems, betrays him as a gypsy. When Russian gypsies are mentioned, they react in the same way as the most camp tribesman:

If your Russian Roma showed their nose at the camp in our Plekhanovo, the children there would throw stones at their cars!

Lighting another cigarette, he laughs:

Yes, if I went to visit my grandparents now, they would bombard me first!

Gypsies generally smoke a lot. In the old days, this was explained by the fact that evil spirits are afraid of fire and smoke. Now it's just out of habit.

From outside news, Rosa’s conversation turns to local news.

There were two more weddings over the weekend,” she says. - She was such a poor thing, with no guests. So the groom then had to go through the entire camp and tell everyone that the bride was honest. After all, only the parents saw the “rose,” but everyone needs to know. And so he walks and knocks, he’s such a little guy...

The gypsies laugh loudly.

Teenage wedding at the Kotlyars. Photo by Tanya Kotova ( tanyakotova )

“Rose” is evidence of virginity on the first marriage sheet. It is taken out at a wedding: sometimes in the morning, on the second day of the holiday, more often - at the height of the celebration. This is a common occurrence, but a “poor” wedding is not so much. As a rule, great attention is paid to weddings, they are carefully prepared, and if the family does not have much money, then relatives and friends help them. Sometimes, even to organize a wedding, a family pawns part of the family jewelry in a pawnshop (then the gold is necessarily bought back). I happened to watch a wedding in the poor village of Kotlyar. The dirty streets and gray wooden houses were carefully decorated with red flags and, for some reason, balloons. A dressed-up bride and groom (not arm-in-arm and not even very close) were walking down the street to one of the houses, as well as numerous relatives and guests. The groom was noticeably younger than the bride and looked confused. A dark-skinned little girl in a fluffy pink dress ran along the procession and scattered colorful heads of wildflowers. She looked much happier than both the bride and groom.

How old is the young man?

Fourteen, I think. This is our gypsy custom,” Rosa explains, turning to my companion.

I object that in Moscow gypsies do not marry so early.

Well, your gypsies in Moscow are Russian, but ours are gypsies! - Marina laughs loudly, pleased with the successful pun, and the other gypsies join her.

Kotlyars really get married very early, almost upon the onset of puberty, and consider this, like any of their customs, the most gypsy approach to business. During Soviet times, the average age of marriage was higher, but after the collapse of the USSR it returned to the “pre-revolutionary” level. True, now they try to take girls a little older than the groom, so that they do not die or get maimed in childbirth. Children are matched very early, almost in diapers. Of course, no one asks the opinions of future spouses.

The first wedding, the “gypsy” one, is considered the most important and is not officially registered: the spouses are still too young. Then, upon reaching adulthood, they can register officially - a “stamp” has no meaning in gypsy life, but it’s easier this way in relation to various documents.

Where are the husbands now?

They accept the goods,” Rosa answers and, ahead of the question, adds: “Iron...

The men of the village are trying to do business. They take on cargo transportation (unlike many Kotlyars, they don’t drive themselves, but hire drivers), buy some mysterious “decommissioned hardware” from enterprises - then they either sell it for scrap, or repair it and sell it as used. That’s why not all gypsies go to fortune telling: if the husband makes good money, then the wife stays at home.

We go outside. The women accompany us. Rosa does not have a scarf on her head, and she looks quite modern. Another ten years, and it seems that kotlyars will become uninteresting to journalists. Then the “real gypsies” in the reports will be the Lyuli or, perhaps, migrants from Transcarpathia.

Rose points to the school:

Look, that's where I'm registered now.

So. “Raya”’s registration was taken away. I had to at school. It is registered to my sister as a residential building. And the youngest is also registered with me at school.

“Raya” literally translates to “gentlemen”, “bar”. Nowadays, this is what the gypsies call officials and police officers.

They are now taking away our registration, then they will take away our houses and land,” another woman says gloomily. - I heard they have nowhere to build cottages.

Better talk to Tsarev. He knows everything. “He’s a lawyer,” Rosa interrupts her.

Alexey Tsarev ( altsarev )

Alexey Tsarev is a lawyer from St. Petersburg. He is an affable, graying brunette of forty-four years old. I met the gypsies in December 2006, while defending Roza’s husband regarding some kind of fight. Managed to become friends with Rosina's family.

It's true, he says. - They want to demolish the Gypsy houses. The Kotlyars are offered to move to areas near extinct villages. There is no water, no electricity, no shops, no high school. Previously, Roma lived in the Gomel region, but after the explosion of the nuclear power plant they moved here. They were given a swampy wasteland on the outskirts of Chudovo. They spent a lot of effort to build a building, organize a primary school... For some time no one bothered them, and three years ago an agreement was signed with them that the district administration would undertake to promote the legalization of the village, and the gypsies would not erect unauthorized buildings outside the existing ones territory of the village. Several houses were built, but they were later demolished. Now they want to demolish the entire village. The trouble is that in the area, in general, there are no more areas suitable for living...

Kotlyars, or Kelderars, have lived in Russia for about a hundred years. It began to spread around the world from Romania, after the abolition of serfdom there. There are still many Romanian words in their language. The traditional occupation was tinning and making copper utensils, basins, cauldrons, tanks and trays. Now they also engage in scrap metal, small business, and work as drivers. In everyday life, Kotlyars are very conservative, they consider themselves adherents of ancient gypsy traditions, they are wary of changes in life: they think about each for a long time - will it cause assimilation, the loss of “gypsyism”?

Moscow. Russian gypsies.

International Roma Day in Moscow. Photo by Yulia Vishnevetskaya ( kunstkamera )

Although they make up the bulk of Russian Gypsies, journalists remember the “Russian Roma” only on April 8 (International Gypsy Day), when representatives of the Moscow diaspora lower wreaths into the Moscow River in memory of those who died from the Kali Trash - the Gypsy genocide, and those who died in front during the Great Patriotic War. Sometimes they also interview artists.

Christina is not an artist; she works, as she jokes, as “office plankton.” She is a tall, cheerful young woman, about twenty-seven years old. She lives in a city apartment, dresses impressively and at the same time with taste - like most Russian gypsies. Back in the nineteenth century, they loved to show off. Women decorated their costumes with flirty pockets on the apron, frills, buttons, and tied shawls with great imagination. Men ordered extremely wide shirts from tailors: it is clear that the larger the shirt, the more expensive silk was spent on it. After all, in addition to elegance, gypsies value the ability to earn money and financial success.

The thought that they will write about her in a magazine causes Christina to burst into loud laughter. We start with a question about journalists' favorites.

The Kotlyars, she says, are tough guys. We have one girl here who married a Tula Kotlyar. And then we fought her off from these “Tula gingerbreads” and took her home. Tough guys. And they don’t really like to clean. And there is also the Kotlyar intelligentsia. Demeter Family!

She is laughing. This joke is not her authorship, just an anecdote. But there is a lot of truth in it. Most of the Kotlyar intelligentsia in Russia are representatives of the Demeter family. For example, the late editor of the illustrated magazine "Shunen, romale!" Vladislav Petrovich.

Just like among the Kotlyars, among Russian Gypsies, weddings occupy a very important place in their lives. Weddings are a constant topic of social conversation; people meet and fall in love at weddings, and parents look closely at the dancing boys and girls, trying to guess from the manner of performance the character, upbringing, and health status of potential sons-in-law and daughters-in-law. Wedding videos are actively posted on YouTube and social networks. On average, Russian gypsies marry later than Kotlyars, usually already adults. Officially, the parents marry the boy and girl, but at the same time, as a rule, the children’s opinions are asked. The bride and groom usually know each other well: they have seen each other at weddings, holidays, concerts or discos, and communicated in chat rooms.

This is not the only difference from kotlyars. Russian gypsies live scatteredly, the educational level is on average higher (on one of the popular social networks there is a group consisting almost entirely of college and university students), their professions are more diverse (from a driver or railway worker to a researcher or test pilot). And their problems are not the same as those of the Kotlyars: they care, first of all, about not losing their native culture.

Well, we’re not losing her so quickly, it’s not all that bad,” Christina assures. She opens a video from a closed gypsy disco. For the first five minutes the young man dances to Michael Jackson (in every sense). Then the music gives way to a modern arrangement of a folk song, and now a young couple is dancing in a circle. In the most gypsy manner. Modern suits do not bother them.

There are also two gypsy radios, a music magazine, and a news portal,” Christina lists. - It's all on the Internet.

Russian Roma in Moscow actively use the Internet. They generally value technological progress very much. Favorite “gadget” is a mobile phone. They often put an image of a gypsy flag on it as a screensaver, and from it they listen to songs downloaded from the famous gypsy site gipsymusic.ru. Christina called it a “music magazine,” but the GypsyMusic project is much broader, and its activities largely take place outside the Internet. The electronic magazine “Colors of the Nation” is just one aspect of the activity. It writes about gypsy performers and posts modern and traditional music with their consent. The magazine's audience is very wide; even European and American gypsies download the music. However, recently there were minor technical problems with the site, and not all pages were restored.

Mikhail Buzylev

One of the creators and face of the project, thirty-two-year-old actor and producer Mikhail Buzylev explains the idea of ​​his website:

Culture must be accessible. You can and should make money from it: organize concerts, sell CDs, but some part of the culture must be available for free. So that the gypsies do not break away from their native culture, so that they can follow its development and progress. I made a music website because gypsy culture is based primarily on music. Besides, this is close to me: there are many performers in my family. My father, Dmitry Buzylev, my aunt, Alena Buzyleva, my uncles, my grandfather...

He also lives in an apartment with his wife and two daughters. He started performing with the Hungarian dance at the age of three. He has been acting since he was four years old (his first role was the mute gypsy child Styopka in the film “Men”). Now he is busy with production activities: discovering new talents, organizing concerts for professional musicians and singers. Appreciates traditional gypsy music, but also appreciates modern music genres.

We have always been in music, in any country, at any time,” says Sasha Kotlyar. - Here, open books about jazz and rock in the Soviet Union. And gypsy names are mentioned there. Django Reinhardt, Latsi Olah, Valentina Ponomareva, Mikhail Zhemchuzhny... And now gypsies are listened to not only at gypsy discos. It doesn’t matter how I feel about them, but they really exist, and they are listened to. Alexander Martsinkevich, Evgeniy Gudz, “Shtar”...

“…Berdnikov from “Roots”,” is the first thing that comes to Christina’s mind. She adds: “I recently got married.” Two hundred guests were celebrating in the restaurant. The “rose” was brought out.

What kind of gypsies is he from?

Ours,” Christina answers without hesitation. This may or may not be true. Russian gypsies are so accustomed to feeling like an intellectual and creative elite, the cultural “navel” of the gypsy community, that they automatically consider almost any famous or well-educated gypsy in Russia to be “one of their own.”

Mikhail Buzylev has known virtuoso guitarist Vadim Kolpakov for many years, but had no idea that he was a servo. Reading the biography of Vadim, written jointly by Kolpakov and me, Misha was surprised:

Isn't he a Russian gypsy?..

The servas are indeed similar in culture to the Russian Roma; there are many intellectuals among them. They can usually be recognized by their Ukrainian surnames: Erdenko, Slichenko, Ivanenko...

Vadim Kolpakov, nephew and student of the magnificent Alexander Kolpakov

The second most popular Gypsy electronic magazine is the news one, “Gypsy Culture and Life.” In addition to news and announcements of cultural events, people also visit the site in search of biographies of famous gypsies. The photo report section is visited not only by Russian, but also by foreign gypsies: you don’t need to know the language to look at the pictures, and the short captions are duplicated in English. The magazine's audience, on average, is more “adult”—teenagers rarely read it. They prefer radio: GypsyVoice and Radio Gatsenko.

“...Kotlyars disgrace the gypsies,” says fifteen-year-old Masha. - They tell fortunes on the street, pester people... If they want to tell fortunes, let them open a salon!

She is wearing tight jeans, a wide belt, a pink T-shirt, and sunglasses. All this is richly decorated with rhinestones. According to Masha, this is what most gypsy teenagers in Moscow look like now.

“Gypsy music is cool,” she says, “but I love r’n’b.” It's fashionable now. More rap... Do you know SD-family?

SD-family is a gypsy rap clan.

They sang with the late Ratmir Shishkov,” says Masha. - I download all their mp3s and listen to them.

Yes, they’re really obsessed with rap now,” says Christina. - They dress like rappers and their girlfriends. They don't think about the future. They behave... girls are not shy about smoking in front of boys, they are not shy about swearing. There are kids who have already tried everything: vodka, drugs. It's disgusting to look at them. Another problem, of course, is the level of education. The gypsies are short! Three classes - consider it a "tower"!

How long have you finished?

I have two higher ones. Otherwise, how would I end up in my position!

At first, they didn’t know at work that Christina was a gypsy. We found out when we got used to it. There was a case when she was called Armenian. It rarely occurs to people that a dark-skinned person can be a gypsy if he is combed, washed, well dressed and works. In addition, Gypsies have a rare accent. Therefore, they are especially often confused with Jews.

Russians are all different, and this does not surprise them. Why don't gypsies live differently? The fact that I dress modernly, that I work in an office, that I hang around with Russians every day, does not in any way change the fact that I am a gypsy,” Christina assures. - I come home and speak Gypsy. I follow gypsy rules and etiquette. To be a gypsy, you don’t have to be a nomad or live in a camp. This is not the gypsy spirit.

The gypsy spirit, according to Christina, is in gypsy unity, willingness to help each other, respect for elders, love for children, a penchant for creativity, energy and assertiveness.

Christina has no desire to develop the topic of crime. Disgust appears on her face.

The Kotlyars are always blaming Russian gypsies. And what about the Russian Roma... I can tell a lot worse about the Lovarians or the Chisinau residents! But I won't. Each “nation” has its own wormhole, each family has its own freak. What now - poke your nose? The main thing is that every people also has virtues. The gypsies have them.

Russian gypsies probably have the main advantage of their rich and ancient musical culture. All Gypsies in Russia recognize it as the main one. Russian Roma music, songs, and dances are performed by Servas, Crimeans, Lovaris, and even Russians. The first gypsy theater troupe - which appeared in Moscow at the end of the 19th century - consisted precisely of Russian gypsies. Its director was Nikolai Shishkin, a representative of the famous choral dynasty. Most of the gypsies at the front during the Second World War were Russian Roma, and many volunteered. They served as infantrymen, artillerymen, pilots, tank crews... This ethnic group appeared already in Russia, formed from Polish gypsies who came here about three hundred years ago. Integrated very quickly. By the end of the 19th century, Russian Gypsies were in almost all social strata, and even the nomadic Russian Roma were literate - they sent their children to school in the winter, when the camp settled in the village.

Russia. Gypsies

It must be said that in addition to Russian gypsies and Kotlyars, many other gypsy nationalities live in Russia. It’s just that the first ones are the most numerous and live in this country the longest, while the second ones are the most noticeable and a lot “promoted” by the media. In addition to them, in Russia there live Servas (wonderful musicians), Crimeans (excellent dancers), Vlachs (former blacksmiths) and other gypsies. Everyone grumbles at each other sometimes. But in general they have nothing against each other.

Kotlyar women dance. Photo by Tanya Kotova

And what about Russian gypsies... we all dance to their music, we sing their songs,” says Rosa. - We believe in one God. Let them live. Why should we be enemies?

Everyone lives as they wish. As long as they don't do harm to other people. The Kotlyars want to live in villages, so what now. We walk under the same sky, we celebrate the same holidays. And they are gypsies, and we are gypsies, only different,” says Christina.

It must be said that both the Kotlyars and the Russian Roma are Orthodox, and very devout at that. In the living room of Russian gypsies, in the sideboard or on the wall, there is always an image. Both Kotlyars and Russian Roma hang icons in their cars. The most important holiday of the year for both of them is not the eighth of April, but Easter. Godfathers and mothers occupy an important place in a child’s life and, in the event of an accident, are ready to replace their natural parents. Religiosity is generally characteristic of gypsies. Even on the spot where the singer Sandor, popular in the nineties, died in a car accident, the gypsies erected not a monument, but a small chapel. You can't enter it. Those who want to remember Sandor stop near her and pray in the car. This may be non-canonical, but from the bottom of my heart.

And from the bottom of their hearts, the gypsies are sure that God loves them. There is even such a story: once upon a time God tied peoples to lands. But when I saw how talented and cheerful the gypsies turned out to be, I decided not to tie them down, but gave them all the land...

All Roma in Russia have common issues that need to be resolved, says Sasha. - Political passivity, which leads to the fact that the Roma always strive to be squeezed. Legal illiteracy. Low level of education. Nationalist aggression, pogroms. Information disunity. The inability to easily get acquainted with the gypsy culture in its entirety, with native history, because of which the world narrows down to one city. This will definitely lead to regression.

We all have a gypsy soul,” says Christina. - God loves us all. We have to stick together.

And the little girl in Chudovo was drawing something on the ground with a stick and singing “Jelem, dzhelem.” Whether she knew it was a gypsy hymn or not, she sang with all her heart:

"I was driving, I was driving
Long roads
I met
Happy gypsies."

Any ethnic group in relation to the community is a parallel world

Dzhandzhugazova E.A., Pyatnov P.V.

...According to legend, God gave the gypsies the whole Earth. This people does not have a geographical homeland, but there is a law common to all. Only those who follow it can call themselves a gypsy.

Today, the Gypsies are a variety of ethnic groups, united by a common Indian origin and a nomadic way of life, which almost all of them abandoned in the last century. The number of Roma is about 10 million people. These people are like a colorful patchwork quilt, with each patch representing a different ethnic group. So the Hungarian gypsies are called Romungrs, the Italians are called Sinti, the gypsies from Eastern Europe are Kalderari, from Finland - Kale, the Spanish and Portuguese gypsies are Kale, the English are Romanichals, the French are Manush, etc. Most Gypsies speak the Romanes language, which belongs to the New Indo-Aryan group of Indo-European languages, and the Gypsies themselves call themselves “Roma”, which means “man”.

The route of the gypsies to Europe from India, which they left in the 10th century, lay through Persia and Armenia, where they became famous as acrobats, musicians and horse trainers. In the 14th century, gypsies appeared in Byzantium and from there dispersed throughout Europe. The fate of the Roma people is not simple. Over many centuries, they suffered severe trials: they starved, were expelled from cities and villages, they were neglected, they were destroyed in fascist ghettos. For five centuries, these people lived as serfs in Romania and Moldova. Having received freedom in 1864, most Moldovan gypsies migrated to Russia and Ukraine, some of them moved across the ocean to North and South America.

Roma living in different countries live differently and make a living in different ways. Very often they keep the traditions of the countries where they settled. So Finnish gypsies “Kale” are the only ones who wear heavy velvet dresses, once so popular in the original Finnish villages. This is one of the many paradoxes of the Gypsy people, distinguished by such a confused self-identification, easily changing their appearance from village to village and at the same time possessing a persistent Gypsy spirit - freedom-loving and mobile. About twenty gypsy peoples live in Russia. All Roma, regardless of their ethnicity and country of residence, adhere to a number of general rules, which are called the “Gypsy Law”. The gypsy people themselves are considered the bearer of this law. Sometimes this Law is understood as a certain set of rules and customs, but this definition is not only inaccurate, but also erroneous.

The Gypsy Law (Romano Zakonno) is the rules common to all Gypsies; each nationality has its own customs, but they are all based on the Gypsy Law. The Law itself is a major part of the Romanipe, what makes a Gypsy a Gypsy. Explaining what Romanipe is is as difficult as explaining what the “mysterious Russian soul” is. This concept is complex and ambiguous, including, in addition to the Law (as a general set of rules), a special way of life, a worldview, a set of personal qualities necessary to be called a gypsy, and most importantly, the desire to be one!

In general, there are many legends about the “Gypsy Law”. In particular, many people think that he orders gypsies to deceive non-gypsies. Actually this is not true. First of all, the Law regulates the relations of a Roma to other Roma. For example, the relationship between children and parents, older and younger generations, men and women. Almost all of these unspoken instructions relate to the arrangement of gypsy life. The topic of relationships with “gadje” (non-gypsies) or strangers is almost not touched upon in it, although some instructions are given, but in general the most important rule is that when dealing with non-gypsies, a gypsy must adhere to the rules, laws and restrictions of non-gypsy society, that is, respect foreign laws!

In Romano Law, the taboo on murder, robbery, and violence applies to all people, regardless of nationality, as well as the rules of hospitality. Although in the gypsy consciousness there is a clear division into two worlds - “Roma” (our own) and “Gadzhe” (strangers), in the universal sense, We are all people who have lived side by side for centuries! Of course, the world of gypsies and the world of non-gypsies never intersect - these are parallel worlds! Each world has its own laws and rules, but who prevents them from conducting a lively and useful dialogue in order to get rid of obsessive phobias and harmful myths.

Our ideas about the Gypsies are very superficial, and judgments are sometimes extremely polar and range from excessive romantic mythologization to complete rejection, accompanied by discussions about the “pathetic fate” of this “renegade people” who have not joined the mainstream of civilization. The nomadic life of the gypsies from the outside always seemed romantic, this was facilitated by the bright gypsy tents (vardo), colorful clothes and the slightly wild, but attractive color of gypsy life. At the same time, the gypsies - these “eternal vagabonds” - took pleasure in causing reverent amazement among the surrounding peoples; it emphasized their certain selectivity and even the absence of their own territory indicated the special qualities of the gypsy people.

One of the legends said that God especially loved the gypsies for their fun and talent and therefore did not tie them to pieces of land, like other peoples, but gave them the whole world to live on. That’s why the gypsies wandered - to take full advantage of the gift of the Lord...

Today, gypsies can be found, perhaps, on all continents (except Antarctica).

The civilized way of life, which almost all modern peoples lead, has given them benefits and conveniences, but has almost completely deprived them of an intuitive perception of the metaphysical picture of the world. The gypsies never lost this perception of the world, existing in nature not as its masters, but as its children, loving their parents with unconditional love.

At the same time, Gypsies are very consistent in their choice of profession and, following their traditional adherence to the caste principle, try to occupy certain professional niches.

From the point of view of the gypsies, there are “decent” and respected gypsy professions, these include: handicrafts, music, dancing, theater and circus arts, trade, animal training, horse breeding, begging.

By the way, gypsies are actively mastering modern types of business that fall within the framework of “decent” professions. For example, show business, engineering, driving, etc. However, different ethnic groups of gypsies have their own professional preferences, usually entire labor dynasties. Gypsy youth willingly continue the family business. So this unique people “without a homeland”, which itself forms a separate ethnic group, is very heterogeneous within and is divided into professional communities or castes. Each ethnic group considers its profession to be the main one, and, of course, the best for the gypsies, and each ethnic professional group kindly ridicules the other. So the artists make fun of the merchants, who in turn make fun of the blacksmiths, who are not averse to making fun of the drivers, and so on in a circle.

Of all the ethnic groups of Roma living in Russia, two of them seem to be at different poles. Some remain faithful to the gypsy way of life, others are actively involved in modern society.

The first group includes the Kotlyars or Calderars, who came from Romania; their traditional craft is considered to be working with metal. They are conservative and jealously guard traditions. Kotlyarka women are easy to recognize in a crowd; they are distinguished by the indispensable braids, a wide apron, a colorful scarf and the eternally heard phrase: “Let me tell my fortune.” Kotlyars always have many children - this is an indicator of the high status of the family. Weddings take place early and no expense is spared on them, because a “gypsy wedding” is the biggest celebration. Kotlyars live simply, like their distant ancestors, maintaining close ties and helping each other.

The second group is the Russian Roma, they make up the bulk of Russian Gypsies. This ethnic group settled in Russia, dissociating itself from the Polish gypsies who came to our territory about three hundred years ago. Already in the 19th century, Russian gypsies could be found in almost all strata of society; they very quickly integrated into the life of Russian society and were willing to study. The level of education of Russian Roma was quite high. Even the nomadic representatives of the Russian gypsies were literate.

We can say that Russian Roma are a special caste; they do not live in a camp, although they love and honor their families, they work successfully, although the majority are still attached to “decent” gypsy professions. They do not wear traditional wide gypsy shirts and long fluffy skirts, but prefer to dress brightly, expensively and festively.

Russian Roma for the most part are friendly and hospitable; their attitude towards non-Gypsies is correct, but at the same time, they struggle no less than other ethnic groups to preserve their native culture, traditions and language. Russian gypsies are proud of their rich musical culture, deep theatrical traditions and rightfully consider themselves the intellectual and creative elite of the gypsy people.

The artistic and musical talent of the gypsies inspired interesting images in literature, music, and cinema: the fatal beauty Carmen in Prosper Merimee, the wise gypsy Melquíades in the novel “One Hundred Years of Solitude” by Gabriel Garcia Marquez, the fiery young man Aleko in A.S. Pushkin’s poem “The Gypsies”, charming and strong Budulai in the cult film by A. Blanc “Gypsy”. But, perhaps, one of the most interesting embodiments of the living and sparkling Gypsy talent is the famous Romen Theater, created in 1931 and located today in the building where in the past there was the famous Yar restaurant - one of the centers of Gypsy folk music and dance.

From the history of the Romen Theater

At the origins of the theater...

In 1930, the idea of ​​creating a gypsy theater arose among the Moscow intelligentsia, which was supported by A.V. Lunacharsky. At the end of January 1931, the grand opening of the theater studio took place, which a month later showed its first work - a performance in two parts. The first is a review of “Atasya and Dadyves” (“Yesterday and Today”) by E. Sholokh, the second is staged songs and dances under the general title “Ethnographic Show”. The director of the studio's first work was M. Goldblat, the composer was S. Bugachevsky, who laid the foundation for the musical culture of the future Romen Theater. For more than three decades, Bogachevsky created the basis of the theater’s musical repertoire. Memorizing and recording original Gypsy tunes, he compiled the collection “Gypsy Folk Songs and Dances,” which most fully reflected the features of the musical and poetic creativity of various ethnic groups of Russian Gypsies. After the premiere performance of the musical-dramatic performance based on the play “Life on Wheels” by Alexander Germano, the studio was renamed the Romany Theater “Romen”, the first director of which was Georgy Lebedev.

The period of formation of the world's first gypsy theater

In 1937, “Romen” was headed by Moscow Art Theater actor Mikhail Yanshin, who significantly expanded the theater’s repertoire with works of Russian and foreign classics; performances began to be performed in Russian, which significantly expanded the theater’s audience. A great connoisseur and connoisseur of gypsy art and camp song, M. Yanshin sought to make “Romen” a theater of “serious content, to combine folklore with great drama.” To this end, he brought with him the Moscow Art Theater directors B. Vershilov, P. Leslie, V. Sakhnovsky, who helped the gypsy actors achieve the necessary synthesis of deep content, song and dance. These principles, implemented by M. Yanshin in his productions of the plays “Gypsies” based on A. Pushkin, “Makar Chudra” based on M. Gorky, “Bloody Wedding” and “The Wonderful Shoemaker” based on the plays of G. Lorca, became the basis of artistic development for many years theater And the play “Bloody Wedding” is still one of the pinnacles of the artistic history of the Romen Theater.

Theater in difficult years

Professor of the Moscow Conservatory P.S. gave “Romen” more than fifteen years. Saratovsky (1941-1957) Under his leadership, “Romen” worked for four war years. During the Great Patriotic War, artists lived the same life with all the people. They performed in hospitals and mobilized points, went to the advanced positions of the Southern Front, and played directly in dugouts and dugouts. In 1943, “Romen” visited the Far East, showing its performances to the sailors of the Pacific Fleet and the working people of Transbaikalia. During the war years, 1200 performances and 700 patron concerts were given. It is symbolic that the Soviet sky was also protected by the Romenovets heavy bomber, built with funds raised by the theater.

Theater "Romen" currently

Today, the Romen Theater has become a true center of Gypsy national culture for Roma people all over the world. But at 80 years old, the theater is still young, it continues to create, master new heights, proving with each new work that the glorious and strong-willed team can handle a lot. The theater's repertoire today includes more than 15 performances from classics to modern drama. Some performances have been around for decades, while others have appeared quite recently. Every year the theater delights audiences with its premieres. Modern audiences still love “Romain”! He is attracted by the brightness, national color and special energy of the theater.

Guardian of theatrical traditions "Romen"

For more than thirty years, the gypsy theater "Romen" has been headed by Nikolai Slichenko - a brilliant singer, a brilliant actor and a talented director. He came from among Russian gypsies and, like a true son of his people, absorbed their extraordinary musicality and magical charm. In 1951, as a young boy, he left the collective farm “Romen” for the first and then only gypsy theater in the world, the founders of which were the best representatives of Russian culture: actors M. Yanshin, V. Kachalov, A. Tarasova and others.

In the Roman collective, Nikolai Slichenko went through all stages of civil and creative growth: from supporting artist to chief director, demonstrating the extraordinary strength and originality of his talent. He became a kind of “face” or, as they now say, a brand of his ancient people, covered in legends, who experienced many troubles and sufferings. From early childhood, Nikolai Slichenko knew the difficult fate of the gypsies; before his eyes, the fascists, for whom the gypsies were not a people, but “dirty scum,” shot his father and destroyed almost all his relatives. The tragic pages of his personal biography are reflected in the life and work of the famous artist, who learned to feel subtly and deeply empathize. When Nikolai Slichenko sings, his hands, his body, his soul sing as if burned and bewitched by the flame of passion, and his imagination gives rise to a whole world of artistic associations.

Slichenko is a born artist, whose exceptional vocal talent developed on the basis of the song traditions of the Gypsy people and was supported by the singer’s reverent attitude towards song as a shrine of the Gypsy spirit. Every song performed by Nikolai Slichenko turns into a real concert. All his solo performances are so artistic and infectious that it is simply difficult for listeners both in Moscow and distant Tokyo to sit still and not break into a fiery gypsy dance. A true miracle can be considered the artist’s talent with just one movement of the hand or even a glance, burning eyes, making the whole audience feel the subtle lyrics of a gypsy romance or almost with a shiver in the body feel the gentle sound of guitar strings. Therefore, probably, in one of the best and, as they say, landmark performances of the theater “We are Gypsies,” his performance of the role of the Singing Gypsy is perceived as the apotheosis of a true Gypsy song. At the same time, Nikolai Slichenko’s talent is universal and international; his ability to originally perform songs of many peoples of Russia and the world is amazing.

But, perhaps, none of the singers performed the song “I love you, Russia...” so soulfully. At Nikolai Slichenko’s concerts, the hall explodes with a storm of applause when she performs. No contemporary singer has ever managed to convey the feeling of love for the Motherland so subtly

Today, Nikolai Alekseevich Slichenko, People’s Artist of the USSR and the RSFSR, laureate of State Prizes and holder of a number of orders and medals, still devotes a lot of effort to the development and promotion of gypsy musical art, making it not only modern, but also highly professional. Today's artists of the gypsy theater "Romen" are not just musically gifted people, they are, first of all, professionals who preserve the origins of the unique folk art that generously decorates our lives.

It’s not for nothing that the gypsy proverb says: “Novels of yag sarenge svetinel”, which means: “The gypsy fire shines for everyone.”

Literature

1.​ Anisimov A.V. Moscow theaters. M., Moscow worker, 1984.

2. Barannikov. A.P. Gypsies of the USSR (brief historical and ethnographic sketch). M. 1931.

3. Vladykin V.E. Gypsies. Questions of history. No. 1. M.: 1969.

4. Druts E., Gessler A. Fairy tales of the gypsies. M.: “Science”, 1991.

5. Nikolay Slichenko. I was born in a camp. Moscow "Young Guard". 1987.

6. Raymond Buckland. Gypsies. Secrets of life and traditions. M., 2003.

7. Sokolov D.S. Neskuchnoe, former Count of Orlov-Chesmensky near Moscow. M., 1923.

8.​ Geo magazine. October 2008. No. 161. Sia Riene "Gypsies: a parallel world."

9. www. teatr-romen.ru

10.​ www. slichenko.ru

The anthem of the Gypsies is the song “Djelem, Djelem Bare Dromensa” (Let's go, let's go along the high road). April 8 is International Roma Day. The Gypsy flag is green and blue with a red chakra in the middle, it speaks of the Indian origin of the Gypsies.

According to the results of the population census, 204,958 Roma live in Russia. This ancient people belongs to the eastern branch of the Gypsy people, and at a time when its western branch is losing languages ​​and customs, the eastern Gypsies are trying to preserve them.
The exodus of Gypsies from India occurred about a thousand years ago, when several ethnic Aryan groups went north.

Experts count three waves of gypsy migrations - first from India to Asia, then in the 14th century to Europe, and at the end of the 19th century to America. The language of all Gypsies comes from Sanskrit, but each ethnic group has its own dialect. Ethnographers divide the Gypsies into three large groups - the Domari (Gypsies living in the Middle East), the Lomari living in Europe, and the Romani inhabiting Eastern Europe and Russia.
Gypsy scholar Nikolai Bessonov, in the article “Gypsy ethnic groups in the post-Soviet space” (National Geographic magazine), believes that Gypsy ethnic groups in Russia are distinctive, but differ in language, customs, faith and occupations.

Russian gypsies

The largest gypsy ethnic group is the Russian Roma. The ancestors of the ethnic groups came out of Poland in the 18th century; Roma were engaged in horse trading, music and fortune telling. In the 19th century they were artists, musicians, merchants, and some were peasants; The main faith was Orthodoxy, and the language became the Russian-Gypsy dialect.
The Russian government treated the Gypsies favorably, they were given the right to be assigned to estates, and Russian aristocrats married Gypsy singers. After the revolution, horse markets disappeared, the Gypsy merchants were destroyed, but the Nazi occupation dealt an even greater blow to the Gypsies - the Nazis shot entire camps of Gypsies.
In modern Russia, 100% of Russian gypsies lead a sedentary lifestyle, they have good houses, often an excellent education, many are engaged in trade, agriculture, and become musicians and artists.

Ukrainian gypsies

Servas came from Romania, the main religion is Orthodoxy. In Russia they live in Rostov, Samara and Voronezh. Before the revolution, there were good blacksmiths among the Serovs. After the revolution, servas settled in cities and villages, children went to study; during the war, their men became officers of the Red Army and fought against the Nazis. Now these people have an excellent education; among them there are many scientists, businessmen and musicians. Linguists note that the servas are losing their language and assimilating.
Among the Ukrainian gypsies there are the Vlachs - immigrants from Wallachia. These are Orthodox Christians, also famous for their blacksmithing, which they still do today. In Russia, Vlachs live in the south, the majority are engaged in small trade and part-time work, but the Vlachs have preserved their culture and way of life.
The Gypsy people of Crimea descended from the Moldavian Gypsies who came to Crimea and, under the influence of the Crimean Tatars, became Muslims. The Crimea came to Russia in the 1930s. Now people are engaged in business, many live in Moscow, but still remain Muslims - they pay bride price for their wife and go to the mosque. They are a very musical people, and there are many good performers among them.

Polish gypsies

Polish Roma live in the Smolensk region, in language and traditions they are close to Russian gypsies. They did not stop wandering even in winter, exchanging wagons for sleighs and asking to spend the night in Russian houses in the villages. If they were refused, they camped in the nearest forest, lighting a huge fire. Eyewitnesses recalled that the women of this nationality remained barefoot in the deepest frost. Until the middle of the 20th century, the ethnic group was engaged in horses and fortune telling. now they live in houses and have prestigious professions.

Romanian gypsies

They are called kelderars or kotlyars. Orthodox Christians, they have their own “zest”: their outfits have become an example for gypsy fashion. Before the revolution, men made and soldered boilers, and their wives wondered; now boilers live by resale or handing over metal. It is Kotlyarki and Vlashki who tell fortunes on the streets of Russian cities. The people live in communities and observe customs: they preserve the language and folklore, which is little known to ethnographers. According to the old customs of the Kotlyars, they give a ransom for a girl.

Hungarian gypsies

The Lovaris are relatives of the Kotlyars, in the past they worked with horses, often lived off female fortune tellers, became pop artists under the USSR, and have now mastered the business. Among the gypsies they are considered rich but arrogant people. They follow traditions, but dress in modern clothes.
Magyars - these gypsies were always involved in music, weaved baskets, and made bricks from adobe. Magyar women never told fortunes. Under the USSR, Magyars worked in the countryside and in enterprises, but after the collapse of the country, many chose to leave. Russian gypsies consider the Magyars not gypsies, which is very offensive.

Carpathian gypsies

This small nation is called the Plaschuns. Before the revolution, the wives of the plashuns were thieves, and now there are few literate people among them. Despite their poverty, the Shrouds adhere to traditions and are in no hurry to assimilate.
In addition to these ethnic groups, separate families of Moldovan gypsies live in Russia: Kishinevs, Ursars, Chokenaris, Lingurars; There are also Lotvas in the country - Latvian gypsies.

Gypsies of Central Asia

These gypsies are called Mugat, they are Muslims and adopted clothing and traditions from the peoples of Central Asia. If you see a woman with a child asking for alms on the streets of Moscow, most likely she is a Mugat, because begging is a tradition that Mugat have used to earn their living for centuries; in addition, Mugat have been engaged in fortune-telling and witchcraft. In the USSR they worked in agriculture, and then were left without work; Russian gypsies do not consider Mugat gypsies.