Romani varieties and educational materials Peter Bakker Aarhus

Romani varieties and educational materials Peter Bakker Aarhus University Institute for Anthropology, Archaeology and Linguistics

Romani • Romani is the biggest minority language in Europe • The language forms a ”unity in diversity”: a range of dialects with a common core • Just like any other natural language it is not homogeneous • Unlike many other European languages, there is no standard written language

Language education • Since a UNESCO report in the 1950 s there is a consensus that the best way towards literacy is the mother tongue • Ideally, Roma children first learn to read and write in their own variety • and later in the state language • And other Romani varieties and foreign languages • Teaching the mother tongue will enhance acquisition of the dominant language (!)

Romani varieties in Estonia • Linguist classify dialects into groupings – On the basis of shared linguistic features (common words, common structures) • Roma classify dialects – On the basis of linguistic and other features • The labels/names used by Roma are not always the same as the ones used by linguists

Linguists. . . • Compare Romani dialects to find out: – Which words and construction they ALL have in common – Which words and constructions SOME have in common – How and when these words and constructions entered the language or the varieties – Result: a map of migrations

Names of subgroups • Based on (former) occupation – Lovari < Hungarian lo ”horse” – Kalderash < Roumanian câldâr ”kettle” • Based on country/region – Olah/Vlah ”Roumania” – Serbika ”Serbia” – Rom-ungro ”Hungary” • Estonia:

Estonia: Romani dialects • (Laiuse: probably extinct since 1945) • North Russian Romani/Xaladytka • Cuxny/Lotfiko • Branches: Baltic Romani (no

Latvia • An early primer in Cyrillic writing by Leksa Manush

Fiction/poetry/literature • An epic poem in Romani (and Latvian)

Latvia • A much fancier primer/ABC book (1996) in Roman letters

On-line dictionaries • ROMLEX • http: //romani. kfunigraz. ac. at/romlex/dialect s. xml

ROMLEX I • North Russian Romani belongs to the Northeastern dialect group. Varieties of North Russian Romani are spoken in the Baltic-North Russian-Poland area. Another name often used to refer to North Russian Romani varieties is Xaladitka.

ROMLEX II • Lithuanian Romani belongs to the Northeastern dialect group. Historically Lithuanian Romani was spoken on the territory of present-day Lithuania. Today the dialect is spoken by a relatively small population of speakers living in Lithuania and in Baltic Russia, and recent asylum seeking migrants from Lithuania to Western Europe. Documentation of this dialect is yet sparse.

ROMLEX III • Latvian Romani belongs to the Northeastern dialect group. It is spoken by a small population in Lithuania and Latvia. Names also used to refer to this dialect are: Čuxny dialect or Lotfiko/Loftiko.

Dialect Banatiski Gurbet Romani Bugurdži Romani Burgenland Romani Crimean Romani Dolenjski Romani East Slovak Romani Finnish Romani Gurbet Romani Gurvari Romani Hungarian Vend Romani Kalderaš Romani Kosovo Arli Romani Latvian Romani Lithuanian Romani Lovara Romani Macedonian Arli Romani Macedonian Džambazi Romani North Russian Romani Romungro Romani Sepečides Romani Sinte Romani Sofia Erli Romani Sremski Gurbet Romani Ursari Romani Welsh Romani

Albanian Bulgarian Czech English Finnish French German Hungarian Latvian Macedonian Romanian Russian Serbian Slovak Swedish

A catalogue on the net • Publications in Romani, useful for Romani language education • First Edition. September 2004. Compiled by Peter Bakker and Hristo Kyuchukov • Publikacie andi Romani čhib kaj si lačhe andar i edukacia pal i Romani čhib Angluni edicia. Septembr 2004. Kerde o Peter Bakker thaj o Hristo Kju(ukov

More Lotfitka publications •

• }damsonos, rikos. 1971. Čhaj rí Ríngla. Pe Romaní čhíb Lotfítko Čhibátir Tulkindža Ļéksa M~nuš (poetry for children) • Ariste, Paul (ed. ). 1938. Romenge Paramiši. Mustlaste Muinasjutte [Gypsy Stories]. Tartu: P. Arumaa. 22 pp. (legends) • Ariste, Paul. 1973. Einige Märchen der Čuchny Zigeuner [Lotfítko Romenge Paramiši][Some Fairy Tales of the Čuchny Gypsies]. Tartu: Tartu University Oriental Studies/Töid Orientalistika Alalt. (legends)

• Manuš, Léksa, J~nis Neiland & K~rlis Rudevič. 1997. Čig~nu-Latviešu-Ang·u un Latviešu-Čig~nu V~rdn ca [Romani. Latvian-English and Latvian-Romani dictionary]. Riga: Zvaigzne ABC. (dictionary) • Rud vičs, K~rlis. No year. Romanu Dži. Otkedine Gija. Čig~na Sirds. Dzejo·u izlase [Romani life. Selected poems]. (poetry) • Bible. John. 1933. Evangel ben M~ro Rask ro Iisusko Hristoskīro Joannostir Čhindlo. Riga: Britanijas un }rzemju B beles Biedr ba. (religion)

• Rud vičs, K~rlis. 2000. Roméngu Bar nos. Gi·orjá čh~vorénge pu romani te lotf’tku čhib. Čig~nu Barons. (poetry) • Kenrick, Donald. 2001. Romengiro Drom. Indijatyr ke Maškiratuno Derjav [Road of the Roma. From India to the Mediterranean]. Berlin: Parabolis. (history book) • Valmiki. No year. Valmiki’s Ramayana. Romani/English Translation (Abridged) by Leksa Manush. Chandigarh: Roma Publications. (religion)

Xaladytka • Grammar (Lithuania): Anton Tenser, 2006. • Grammar (Russia): Tatjana Ventzel, 1964, 1983 – (Russian, German, English versions) • Texts from the 1920 s and 1930 s: more than 250 publications: technical texts, ABC books, translated literature, original literature, political propaganda. .

• Mahotin Džura. 1993. Adžutipe pre Romani Shib. Аджутипе прэ романи чиб. Пособие по языку романи [Help for the Romani Language]. Tver: Poligraph reklamizdat. 56 pp. • Svetkov, Georgi, 2003. Romengo Kirvo. Romengiro Kirvo.

• Teaching Romani in schools?

• Roma teaching Romani in Sweden

Romani educational catalogue • 710 titles (some listed twice) 2003/2004 • Not yet complete (if ever. . . ) • ABC books, songbooks, cookbooks, dictionaries, poetry, conversation guides, religious materials (Christian, Muslim. . . ), biographies, etc. • http: //fc. hum. au. dk/~peter_bakker/00 D 44 E E 2 -0075824 E. -1/romedu-

• Materials in Estonia can be – Developed in local dialects – Adjusted from materials available for closely related varieties – Reworked from other (non-Romani) materials

The end