We present to your attention 30 most interesting facts about the mysterious gypsies. These facts are relatively little-known but undoubtedly quite intriguing.
Fact 1
The ideal age for marriage among the gypsies is 14 years old. And girls who haven’t married by the age of 19 are already considered old maids.
Fact 2
Newlyweds usually live together with the groom’s family. Over time, they move into their own house, and only the youngest son with his family continues to live with the parents.
Fact 3
It is said that the belly dance, prevalent in Arab countries, was invented by the gypsies. However, this theory has neither been confirmed nor refuted to this day.
Fact 4
Although it is commonly believed that the ancestors of the gypsies originated from India, as a distinct ethnicity, this community formed in Persia (Eastern branch) and the Roman Empire (Western branch).
Fact 5
The traditional voluminous skirts worn by gypsies women are evidence of their semi-nomadic existence. When the hem of the skirt became worn to tatters, a gypsy’s woman would trim it and then sew strips of fabric from old dresses onto it.
Fact 6
European gypsies have their own national dish – fried or stewed hedgehog. It’s said that this dish was often prepared by Polish and Baltic Roma when they were hiding in forests during persecutions of their people in Europe.
Fact 7
Among the gypsies, the more successfully a woman raises her children (according to their own perspective), the greater honor she holds, and the more weight her own opinion and position carry within gypsies society.
Fact 8
In the world, there are even so-called “sea gypsies.” They spend their entire lives on boats and rafts, only occasionally coming ashore to gather water and other necessary supplies for life. However, they are not related to the traditional Roma people and are a distinct ethnic group living in coastal areas of Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines.
Fact 9
Gypsies live on all continents except Antarctica. In Europe alone, their population varies from 8 to 12 million people, according to different sources.
Fact 10
The gypsies have a national anthem and a flag, although they do not have their own state.
Fact 11
In gypsy society, a woman cannot hold a higher status than a man. Therefore, even in a two-story house, no woman can ascend to the second floor while a man is on the first floor.
Fact 12
Every gypsy family should have a son. If an heir does not appear for a long time, parents often adopt a boy from an orphanage. The child can be of any nationality and appearance.
Fact 13
The most terrible punishment for gypsies is expulsion from gypsy society. But for such punishments you need to be very guilty – to commit a particularly serious crime, according to the gypsies.
Fact 14
Gypsies also have other punishments. For example, short hair is considered a kind of symbol of dishonor. Moreover, the guilty are sheared forcibly, even with the use of force, if necessary.
Fact 15
Among the Gypsies, there is a concept known as “uncleanness.” It refers to the lower part of the body of women. Everything below the waist of a woman is considered unclean, including clothing, footwear, and even the ground she stands on.
Fact 16
Intimate relationships before marriage are not encouraged among the Romani people. It is even customary on the wedding day to display a bloodstained sheet to the guests as evidence of the young bride’s virginity.
Fact 17
Gypsies are not one people, as many people think, but a generalized name for several dozen different nationalities, as well as Slavs or Caucasians, for example.
Fact 18
Most of the Gypsies are Christians or Muslims, but there are also representatives of other faiths, although they are very few.
Fact 19
The excessive fondness for gold jewelry among Gypsies women has an explanation. It’s because this way Gypsies women secured themselves against poverty in case of divorce. If a husband drives them out of the house, he’s unlikely to take off their earrings and rings, which means they won’t have to go hungry.
Fact 20
Despite the fact that the ancestors of all gypsies are the same, eastern and western gypsies practically do not communicate with each other.
Fact 21
Modern Gypsies cannot be called a “nomadic people”, since most of them have a permanent place of residence, and only a small percentage lead a nomadic way of life.
Fact 22
You will never see a drunken gypsy during any of their holidays. It is not customary for them to drink a lot at the table, but all because young people are not allowed to do this in the presence of elders.
Fact 23
If a gypsy wears one earring on his earlobe, then most likely he does not have brothers. For this people, an earring is a distinctive sign of the only son in the family.
Fact 24
Gypsies are mainly engaged in trade, horse breeding and various crafts: from making keys and weaving baskets to jewelry.
Fact 25
There are professions that gypsies avoid as undesirable. It is believed that a gypsy should not be a janitor, a factory or factory worker, and also (which is very strange) a journalist.
Fact 26
Among the Gypsies there are outstanding scientists, writers, poets, composers, musicians, singers, dancers, actors, directors, athletes, historians, politicians, priests, missionaries, artists and sculptors. For example, British boxer Tyson Fury has gypsy roots.
Fact 27
People who carry Gypsies genes are called “Romano rat.” Such individuals, if they wish, can become part of the Romani community. “Romano rats” include well-known personalities like Ronnie Wood, the guitarist of the Rolling Stones, Charlie Chaplin, and others.
Fact 28
Many gypsies are familiar with the basics of hypnosis and even use this knowledge. Although in most cases, with the help of hypnosis, gypsies deceive people for the sake of enrichment.
Fact 29
In 1944, the German concentration camp Auschwitz was destroyed in Poland, in which there were numerous gypsies from Eastern Europe. According to official figures, about 21,000 Roma died in this camp.
Fact 30
All things and things that the deceased gypsy touched before his death are considered dirty and are buried with him in the grave. The same thing happens with the things of the woman in labor: they are destroyed, since they are considered to be the bearers of sin.
