There are many names that have been used to identify the Romani people. These include Gypsies, Rom, Roma, Tsigani, Zigeuner and many others. The Roma first migrated from Hindustan to eastern Europe circa 1000 CE. There were likely additional migrations at later dates in the fourteenth and fifteeenth centuries. There are three language groups within the Roma: The Domari in the Middle East and Eastern Europe, the Lomarven in Central Europe, and the Romani of Western Europe. Withion these groups the Roma are organized into 4 main and about ten smaller tribes or nations. There are believed to be 12 million Roma eorld. The Roma were some of the last Goddess-worshipers in Europe. Their Goddess, Kali, was viewed as a trinity. Her symbol was a triangle. A male Horned God also played a prominent role. Today, there is neither a single Roma culture or a general agreement on who should qualify to be called a Roma. . The formal affiliation of Roma is often supplemented by traditional beliefs. They believe in the existence of Del (God) and of Beng (Satan). They also believe in the existence of bibaxt (bad luck) and of mulo (supernatural spirits or ghosts). They believe in the power of good luck charms, amulets, and talismans. Marime is a state of impurity brought on a person by the violation of a purity taboo. It is also a sentence of expulsion imposed for violation of purity rules or any disruptive behavior to the Roma community. Some Roma consider the part of a woman's body below the waist to be dirty or polluted, because of menstruation. In many tribes, women wear long skirts, the bottom of which must not touch a man other than her husband. A pregnant woman is considered unclean. She must not give birth in the family home because it would then become impure. Sometime knots are ritually untied as the birth approaches. This is believed to assure that the umbilical cord will not be tangled. After birth, anything that the new mother touches is later destoryed. This quarantine continues at least until the baptism of the baby. Newborns are usually baptized in running water, when they are a few days old. A Roma typically has three names. The first is known only by the mother. This name is given at birth. The purpose is to confuse evil spirits by keeping the real name of the child from them. The second is given at the time of baptism, and is commonly used within the tribe. The third may be given to the child when the child is rebaptized in a Christian church. It has little importance except when dealing with non-Roma. Premarital sex is forbidden and marriages to outsiders are discouraged. The wedding ceremony is usually simple. In ancient times, they use to be married by jumping over a broomstick in the presence of their families. When a person dies, relatives gather around and ask for forgiveness for anything they have done to the person. They are concerned that if they do not, then the dead may come back as an evil spirit and haunt them. In the past, the widow would sometime commit suicide when her husband died so they could enter into the afterlife together. Sometimes the deceased's nostrils are plugged with wax to prevent evil spirits from entering the body. Luxury items and everyday needed items may be placed in the coffin in order to help the decease in the next world. Their possessions are burned, broken, or sold to non-Roma. They believe in the cycle of reincarnation. Alternately,a dead person might appear as living dead seeking revenge on his enemies.. Many Roma behavioral rules relate to water use. They normally wash in running water, as in a shower. baths are not used. Women and men's clothes are seperately washed, because of woman's impurities. Clothes of a pregnant or menstruating woman are washed furthest downstream from the camp to avoid contamination. Women are forbidden to let their legs be seen. The importance of the horse is an assurance of Roma mobility. Therefore, the eating of horse meat is prohibited by some tribes. Many Roma women called drabardi practice fortune telling, but only for non-Romas. Other women are drabarni or drabengi and practice natural healing techniques.
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