A romák vagy cigányok egy Indiából származó nép, mely a 15. században vándorolt be Európába. Önmagukat romnak, vagyis „embernek”, illetve néha kálonak, „feketének” nevezik. A magyarországi vándorcigányok néhol manusnak, „embernek” is nevezik magukat.

Tény, hogy a romák hosszú vándorlás után jutottak el Európába, és az is kétségtelen, hogy ennek kiindulópontja India volt, ez azonban nem jelenti azt, hogy eredeti szülőhazájuk is ez lett volna.
A cigányok állítólagos indoeurópai eredetének elmélete egyetlen tényre hagyatkozik, nevezetesen a roma nyelvre. Ez az elmélet azonban nem vesz figyelembe számos olyan kulturális jellemvonást, amely sokkal fontosabb, mint a nyelvi eredet. A cigányok ‒a roma nyelven kívül‒ semmilyen más módon nem kötődnek Indiához. Ha következetesen alkalmaznánk azt az elméletet, miszerint egy nép eredetét nyelvének eredete határozza meg, akkor az összes észak-afrikai népet arabnak kellene tekintenünk, az askenázim zsidókat germán csoportnak, a sephard zsidókat a spanyol nép egyik vallási kisebbségének, az amerikai négereket pedig, akik ma már azt sem tudják, hogy őseik milyen nyelven beszéltek, angoloknak kellene tekintenünk.

Az idők folyamán sokan megpróbálták bebizonyítani a cigányok indiai eredetét, ezek a próbálkozások azonban mindig kudarcot vallottak, amikor a konkrét bizonyítékokra került volna sor. Ilyen próbálkozás volt Firdawsi munkája is, amelyet ma már senki sem vesz komolyan. Azok a népek, amelyek állítólag rokonságban álltak a cigányokkal (mint pl. a dom, luri, gaduliya lohar, lambadi, banjara stb. népek), valójában semmilyen közös eredetet nem mutatnak velük. Az egyetlen, ami közös bennük, a nomád életmód és az általuk űzött foglalkozások ‒ csakhogy ezek a foglalkozások minden nomád népre jellemzőek. Minden ilyen elmélet kudarcának okozója az, hogy eleve rossz feltevésből indul ki, figyelmen kívül hagyja a cigány nép szellemi kultúráját, amely teljesen más eredetű, mint az indiai.

"Közismert tény, hogy az Indiában élő népek közül egyik sem áll genetikai-rokoni kapcsolatban a romákkal. Ez igaz azokra a nomád népekre is, amelyeket egyébként szintén a „cigány” névvel illetnek. A névazonosság még a tizenkilencedik századból ered, a brit gyarmati rendőrség nevezte így az itteni nomádokat az Angliában élő cigányokkal való hasonlóságuk alapján. Nem véletlen, hogy a névvel együtt ugyanazokat a diszkriminatív szabályokat is alkalmazták rájuk, amit az angliai romákra. Később aztán a legtöbb európai kutató abból a téves feltevésből indult ki, hogy a nomád életmód a roma identitás egyik sarokköve, ezért kutatásaik alapjául a romák és az indiai nomád népekkel való összehasonlítás állt, anélkül azonban, hogy a rokonság bármilyen konkrét bizonyítékát fel tudták volna mutatni. Történt mindez azért, mert makacsul ragaszkodtak ahhoz a feltevéshez, hogy a romák nomád eredetűek".

Ez csak egy kis el gondolkodtató részlet innen:         Kattints ide!

 Roma hírességek

Politikusok és aktivisták

• Damian Draghici – (born 1970) Ambassador for European Year of Equal Opportunities for All, musician, Romania
• Jovan Damjanović – Serbian politician – The first Romani appointed as minister in a government anywhere in the world [1]
• Rajko Djuric – (born 1947) Serbian writer and academic, leader of Roma Union of Serbia
• Alfonso Mejia-Arias – musician, writer and politician, Mexico
• Ian Hancock – Romani scholar and activist, born in UK, living in USA, Professor at the University of Texas
• Lívia Járóka – Hungarian Member of the European Parliament
• Mădălin Voicu – (born 1952) Romanian politician. His father, Ion Voicu, is Romani
• Ştefan Răzvan – (? – 1595) Prince of Moldavia, Ruled Moldavia for four months. (Romani father)
• Nicolae Păun – Romanian politician
• Juan de Dios Ramírez Heredia – Ex-member of the European Parliament, founder of the Romani Union, Spain
• Viktória Mohácsi – (born 1975) Hungarian Member of the European Parliament
• Ronald Lee – (born 1934, in Montreal), Canadian Romani novelist, activist and U.N. delegate
• Romani Rose – German Sinto activist
• Dávid Daróczi – (1972–2010) Government Spokesperson of the Republic of Hungary
• Rudolf Sarközi – chairman of the Austrian Romani association Kulturverein.
• Sani Rifati – Serbian activist
• Ali Krasniqi – Albanian writer and activist
• Bajram Haliti – Kosovar activist

    Szerzők Irók

• Veijo Baltzar – Finnish writer^[1]
• Rajko Djuric – (born 1947) Serbian writer & activist
• Caren Gussoff – American writer
• Delia Grigore – (born 1972) Romanian writer, academic and activist
• Bajram Haliti – Kosovo Romani writer
• Ronald Lee – Canadian Writer, Professor at the University of Toronto
• Matéo Maximoff – French writer
• Louise Doughty – British writer
• John Bunyan – Christian author^{[dubious – discuss]} [2]
• Lafcadio Hearn – Irish writer^[2]
• Charlie Smith – poet.
• Baja Saitovic Lukin – poet
• Mehmed Merejan
• Ceija Stojka – (born 1933) Austrian author and painter
• Katarina Taikon – (born 1932) Swedish children's writer
• Bronisława Wajs – (1908–1987) AKA "Papusza", Polish poet and singer

Zenészek

• Mariska Veres – (1947–2006) Lead singer of the Dutch rock group Shocking Blue. Her father was the Hungarian violinist Lajos Veres
• Ronnie Wood – (1947–) Guitarist and bassist with Faces, and Rolling Stones
• Carmen Amaya – (1913–1963) Spanish flamenco dancer
• Vicente Escudero – Spanish flamenco singer, dancer and choreographer; occasionally painter, writer and actor.
• Pyotr Leshchenko – Russian (born 1858–1903))
• Grigoraş Dinicu – Romanian composer and violinst
• Anjeza Shahini – Albanian
• Pista Dankó – (born 1858–1903) Hungarian-born bandleader and composer
• Sandro de América – (1945–2010) Argentinian singer and actor
• Adam Ant – (born 1954) British punk/New Wave musician; of Romanichal descent
• Elek Bacsik – (1926–1993) Hungarian-born American jazz violinist and guitarist
• Robi Botos – Canadian musician and composer from Hungary
• Joe Zawinul – Austrian
• Eugene Hütz – Ukrainian singer, guitarist, writer and actor
• Saban Bajramovic – (1936–2008) Serbian singer
• János Bihari – (1764–1824) Hungarian violinist
• Věra Bílá – (born 1954) Czech folk and pop singer
• Iva Bittová – (born 1958) Czech singer, violinist and composer
• Diego "El Cigala" – (born 1968, Madrid) Spanish flamenco singer
• Joaquín Cortés – Spanish flamenco dancer
• "Rayito" Antonio Rayo – Spanish Guitarist, singer and composer. Father Gitano (Iberian Kalo) and mother Japanese
• Panna Cinka – (1711–1772) Hungarian Violinist, born in Kingdom of Hungary in modern Slovakia
• Georges Cziffra – (1921–1994) Hungarian virtuoso pianist
• Drafi Deutscher – (1946–2006) German Sinto songwriter, singer and composer
• Damian Draghici – Romanian, composer and panflute player
• Fanfare Ciocărlia – (formed 1996) Romanian brass band
• "Falete" Rafael Ojeda Rojas – Spanish singer
• Lola Flores – (1923–1995) was a Spanish singer, dancer and actress.
• Lolita Flores – (1958) Spanish singer and actress.
• Antonio Flores – (1961–1995) was a Spanish singer-songwriter and actor.
• Rosario Flores – (born 1963) Spanish singer and actress, Latin Grammy award winner
• Camarón de la Isla – (1950–1992) Spanish flamenco singer
• Kal – Romani world music Band from Serbia
• Gipsy Kings – French (Spanish origin, Iberian Kale) rumba and flamenco singers and guitar players
  • Nicolas Reyes – Franco-Spanish singer, guitar player
  • Paul Reyes – Franco-Spanish singer and guitar player
  • Canut Reyes – Franco-Spanish singer and guitar player
  • Patchai Reyes – Franco-Spanish singer and guitar player
  • André Reyes – Franco-Spanish singer and guitar player
  • Diego Baliardo – Franco-Spanish guitar player
  • Paco Baliardo – Franco-Spanish guitar player
  • Tonino Baliardo – Franco-Spanish guitar player
• Los Niños de Sara – French (Spanish origin, Iberian Kale) rumba and flamenco singers and guitar players
  • Antonio ("Tonio") Contreras – Franco-Spanish singer and guitar player
  • Ramón Compás – Franco-Spanish singer and guitar player
  • Santiago ("Santi") Lorente – Franco-Spanish singer and guitar player
  • Coco – Franco-Spanish singer and guitar player
• Ketama – Spanish new-flamenco band
• Sasha Kolpakov – (born 1943) Russian guitarist
• Biréli Lagrène – (born 1966) French jazz guitarist, violinist and bassist
• Denny Laine – British musician (The Moody Blues, Wings)
• Félix Lajkó – (born 1974) Hungarian-Serbian violinist and composer (part Romani)
• Albert Lee – (born 1943) British country/rock guitar player
• Joe Longthorne – (born 1955) English singer and impressionist
• Irini Merkouri – (born 1981) Greek pop singer
• Aggelopoulos Manolis – (1939–1989) Greek singer and actor
• Sofi Marinova – Bulgarian singer
• Boban Marković – Serbian brass bandleader and trumpet player
• Jerry Mason – American Singer, Guitarist
• Carlos Montoya – (1903–1993) Spanish flamenco guitarist
• Ramón Montoya – (1889–1949) Spanish flamenco guitarist
• Ivo Papazov – (born 1952) Bulgarian jazz clarinetist
• Manitas de Plata – (born 1921) Spanish guitarist
• Valentina Ponomaryova – (born 1939) Russian singer
• Dzej Ramadanovski – born 1964 in Belgrade (former Yugoslavia), modern Serbian folk singer
• Johnny Răducanu – (born 1931) Romanian jazz musician
• Esma Redzepova – (born 1943) Macedonian singer and songwriter
• Django Reinhardt – (1910–1953) Belgian-born jazz guitarist
• Jimmy Rosenberg – (born 1980) Dutch swing guitarist
• Marianne Rosenberg – (born 1955) German singer and songwriter
• Tchavolo Schmitt – (born 1954) French jazz guitarist
• Taraful Haiducilor – (Taraf de Haïdouks) Romanian band, formed 1989
• Nicolae Neacşu ("Culai") – Lăutar, was the leader of Taraf de Haïdouks
• Wally Tax – Dutch rock singer, of The Outsiders
• Martin Taylor – (born 1956) British guitarist
• Manuel Torre – (1878–1933) Spanish flamenco singer
• Isabel Pantoja – Spanish singer
• Encarnación Salazar and Antonia Salazar, better known as "Azúcar Moreno". Spanish singers
• Ion Voicu – (1923–1997) Romanian violinist and orchestral conductor, founder of Bucharest Chamber Orchestra
• Sotis Volanis – Greek pop folk singer
• Harri Stojka – Austrian jazz guitarist
• Radoslav Banga – of Czech group Gypsy.cz
• Joy Olasunmibo Ogunmakin – Ayọ (stage name), German singer
• Didem – Turkish Bellydancer
• Romica Puceanu – (1928–1996) Romanian singer (Urban Lăutarească Music)
• Gabi Luncă – (born 1938) Romanian singer (Urban Lăutarească Music)
• Nicolae Guţă – (born 1967) Romanian singer (Manele Music)
• Florin Salam – (born 1979) Romanian singer (Manele Music)
• Adrian Copilul Minune – (real name Adrian Simionescu, born 1974) Romanian singer (Manele Music)
• Cher Lloyd – Popular singer (including rapping)
• Esma Redžepova – Macedonian vocalist, songwriter, and humanitarian. Born in Skopje
• Pere Pubill Calaf "Peret" – (born 1935) Catalan Spanish singer, guitar player and composer

Szinészek

• Fairuza Balk – actor
• Yul Brynner – actor
• Charles Chaplin – actor
• Bob Hoskins – actor
• Leonard Whiting – British actor
• Marcia Nicole Lakatos – actress
• Soledad Miranda – Andalusian Flamenco Dancer and later Horror Film Actress from Seville, mother was Gitana
• Nikolai Slichenko – Russian actor
• Tony Gatlif – French film maker
• Ştefan Bănică, Sr. – Romanian actor
• Jean Constantin – Romanian actor
• Angel Dark – Slovak pornstar
• Moira Orfei – Italian actress
• Noomi Rapace – Swedish/Spanish actor
• Tracey Ullman – British actress, her father is Polish and her mother of Romani descent^[

Előadók

• Antonio Solario – Italian artist
• Helios Gómez – Spanish artist, writer and poet
• Serge Poliakoff (1906–1969) – painter
• Otto Mueller – painter and printmaker, Sinti mother
• Micaela Flores Amaya, La Chunga, Flamenco dancer and painter
• Joe Machine, (1973) British Stuckist painter
• Mića Popović (1957) – Serbian painter, writer and experimental filmmaker.
• Veijo Baltzar – Finnish writer, theater director, visual artist

Boxolok

• Ivailo Marinov – also known as Ismail Mustafov, Ismail Huseinov or Ivailo Khristov) is a Rom Bulgarian boxer, who won the bronze medal at the 1980 Summer Olympics in light flyweight, and the gold medal in the same category at the 1988 Summer Olympics
• Serafim Todorov – was a Bulgarian/Georgian boxer at the 1996 Summer Olympics who won a silver medal. He is the last boxer to ever defeat the highly regarded Floyd Mayweather Jr.
• Boris Georgiev – is an amateur boxer from Bulgaria who won a bronze medal at the 2004 Summer Olympics in the Light Welterweight class
• Jem Mace – Bareknuckle Boxing Champion, Father of Modern Boxing; called "The Gypsy," but denies Romani ancestry in his autobiography
• Johann Wilhelm Trollmann – German light-heavyweight boxer killed during the Porajmos
• Silvio Branco – Italian light heavyweight Boxing Champion
• Michele di Rocco – Italian Light Welterweight Boxing Champion
• Faustino Reyes – Spanish Boxing he won the silver medal in the featherweight division (– 57 kg), 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona
• Billy Joe Saunders – British Boxing, represented Great Britain in the 2008 Olympics
• Norbert Kalucza – Hungarian Boxing

Focisták

• Tommaso Vailatti – Italian (Torino)
• Gigi Meroni – Italian (Torino)
• Joël Cantona – French (Olympique de Marseille)
• André-Pierre Gignac – French (Toulouse)
• Yohan Mollo – French (AS Monaco FC)
• Pierre-Yves André – French (SC Bastia)
• Tony Vairelles – French (Olympique Lyonnais)
• David Vairelles – French (Nancy)
• Cédric Bockhorni – French (Nancy)
• Richard Carpenter – English (Fulham)
• Freddy Eastwood – Welsh (Coventry City)
• Raby Howell – English (Liverpool, Sheffield United and Preston North End)
• José Antonio Reyes – Spanish (Atletico de Madrid)
• Arturo Garcia, Arzu – Spanish (Real Betis)
• Jesús Navas – Spanish (Sevilla Fc)
• José Mari – Spanish (Real Betis)
• Dani Güiza – Spanish (Fenerbahce)
• Bănel Nicoliţă – Romanian (Steaua)
• Petre Marin – Romanian (Steaua Bucaresti)
• Konstantinos Mitroglou - Greek (Olympiakos)
• Christos Patsatzoglou – Greek (Olympiakos)
• Marian Ognyanov – Bulgarian (Levski)
• Milan Baroš – Czech (Galatasaray)
• Ricardo Quaresma – Portuguese (Beşiktaş)

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