Sociological Study: Gypsies

Gypsies have been discriminated against for the majority of history because of their unconventional lifestyles and the tendency to go the unconventional route in life as a scapegoat for almost everything. The Gypsies have gone so far to segregate themselves from society that they have their own language; though it is only spoken and not written. Ever since the culture started, the Gypsies were thought to be below normal culture, or at least what was thought to be normal at the time. This is completely ironic considering the way their culture views what most people would consider typical society; they feel the same way back and disapprove of normal ways. Though many of the accusations made against the group are true, there are several aspects of their lifestyle that need to be taken a bit lighter, and people should start putting them in perspective instead of automatically discriminating. Throughout history the Gypsies have made it a goal to segregate themselves from the rest of society in many different ways. One main symbol that allowed for this segregation was the fact that they use their own language called Romani. This language is fully spoken causing the population to mostly be illiterate in every sense of the term. It is suspected that the language has ties to Sanskrit and therefore they are thought to have originated in India as opposed to Egypt. Their language is also significant in that since they are illiterate, the language can’t be learned since it can’t be written down. Some of their words are also used as a cultural divide in their beliefs as well. One cultural belief that the Gypsies have is called ‘marimé’. It is a Romani word that is used to differentiate the difference between their group and the normal class of society. Literally the word means “defilement or pollution” but the way that the group uses it is as the line drawn between the Gypsies and the non-Gypsies. In the text it talks about how this is used as social control since leadership might not be enough in this culture.
Indeed, it may just be the most important factor in keeping the Rom [Gypsies] in line. The reason is not hard to find, for marimé is more than a simple declaration that a person or thing is polluted. A Gypsy who has been declared marimé is ostracized by the entire group. Other Rom [Gypsies] will have nothing to do with him or her. (116)
The social aspect of the term is used because the Gypsies believe that the lower and upper bodies need to be kept separate and when they aren’t they become dirty and polluted. Their beliefs also stretch to the outside world, for them, in that if they were to come in contact with any of the non-Gypsies they would be contaminated as well. It is used as a social trap essentially because they use this as a tool to keep everyone in line. No one ever wants to be shunned, especially to the extreme that this goes; since in this case the entire group of Gypsies the particular person comes from is shamed as well. The group also breaks many social norms as well, especially in the cases of family and marriage. Arranged marriages are not uncommon in their society and the trade of what is called ‘dorma’ is normal as well. The ‘dorma’ is a monetary trade from the groom’s family to the brides, almost a payment for the marriage; aka bride price. The idea of a young marriage is also quite common, and multiple marriages are as well; the bride may also marry someone that is related to her, as long as they are further back in relation than being a first cousin. Ethnocentrically this is frowned upon because, for one, incest is illegal, as is the idea of a bride price. The idea is more than likely looked at in a very similar light to polygamy, where it is not socially or politically accepted. Socially the idea for paying for any person at all is viewed as slavery in some sense which causes people to look at it negatively; even though at one point it was an acceptable thing. If anyone was to look at this from the view of cultural relativity however, they would see that it provides a sense of security for the bride if she was to be harmed or abused, according to the text. The same goes for the early marriages and multiple children. The Gypsies are a very group oriented bunch of people and value having tons of people around them and the procreation is just a way for them to become more fulfilled in their idea of a family. The fact that they don’t use birth control, however, is another reason that the rest of society frowns upon them; because it comes across as they don’t care whether or not children are born or if they can be cared for. The concept of the Gypsies has opened my eyes to a lot of things in the way that people view the social world and how they view the social world. The term “gypped” is one that I have heard and used many times before, but I never knew that it was derived from this group of people. This discovery has put me in the predicament as to the fact that it is semi-offensive to them, yet it is true in some cases. Many children’s stories and fairy tales use the Gypsies as a main topic of fantasy, but in reality they are actual people with real ideas about society, though they are very different from the dominant cultures ideas. Society is a very delicate balance for many different groups of people, and the Gypsies are no different than the rest of us. They are doing what they were raised to do and believe in what they were taught; they have the power to change but so doesn’t everyone else. There is no way to know who is right and who is wrong, because at one point, everything anyone did was what was right at the time; and even if it wasn’t right ethically, it was right to that one person or group of people at the time, making it ok.