Interventions to support Europe’s Roma populations risk creating new forms of segregation

In 2010, EU member states committed themselves to a strategy for establishing greater economic and social integration of the Roma communities living in European countries. Yaron Matras notes that while substantial financial resources have been directed toward the issue, some interventions have had the paradoxical effect of increasing segregation. He writes that cutting this funding and investing in self-assertive capacity building might offer a better alternative

Why plans for a European Roma Institute might be a setback for Europe’s Roma

The Council of Europe has announced a joint-initiative with the Open Society Foundations (OSF) to establish a European Roma Institute (ERI). Yaron Matras writes that there is a danger the ERI could have negative consequences for academic freedom in the area of Romani studies. He argues that as the endeavour is guided by the philosophy that self-ascribed ancestry should override formal qualifications, the ERI could end up marginalising the study of Romani culture rather than affording it the respect and rigour that it deserves

Romani self-appellations in a linguistic perspective: A reply to Leonardo Piasere

Rejoinder to Leonardo Piasere, 2019, Pour une histoire des auto-dénominations romanès, Anuac, 8, 1: 85-118.Risposta a Leonardo Piasere, 2019, Pour une histoire des auto-dénominations romanès, Anuac, 8, 1: 85-118

Chapter 1 How open borders can unlock cultures

In March 2014, the e-mail list of the European Academic Network on Romani Studies1 hosted a discussion on definitions of the population known as ‘Roma’. It began when one of the subscribers to the list – which at the time brought together some 350 academics who specialised in Romani/Gypsy studies – asked for reactions to two generalisations which she came across while preparing a legal review of a document on cultural rights: (1) that all Roma speak a variety of the same language, Romanes; and (2) that Roma generally consider themselves to be a nation. Some two-dozen scholars posted their reactions, which together offer a fairly exhaustive summary of contemporary views on the subjec

Multilingual Repertoire Management and Illocutionary Functions in Yiddish Signage in Manchester

Drawing on a corpus of annotated images that capture the linguistic landscape of a residential neighbourhood in Greater Manchester (UK) with a large Hasidic-Haredi (so-called ‘ultra-Orthodox’) Jewish population, we show how choices within a multilingual repertoire are both indicative and constitutive of different communicative acts and illocutions. Written Yiddish is embedded into an established tradition of literacy where creativity is accompanied by authoritative citations from Hebrew scripture. We discuss the use of Yiddish in affective, appellative, mobilising, regulatory and prohibitive actions. Semi-public use of written Yiddish is directed at participants who share a repertoire of closely intertwined social, religious and linguistic practices. Unlike many other lesser-used languages, the use of Yiddish in Haredi communities is not restricted to indexical identity flagging or commodification purposes. We show how in this multilingual setting, the indexical ordering of languages on written artefacts does not represent a hierarchy of absolute valorisation but rather a complementarity of functions that draws on simultaneous activation of several repertoire components

Arabic and contact-induced change

This volume offers a synthesis of current expertise on contact-induced change in Arabic and its neighbours, with thirty chapters written by many of the leading experts on this topic. Its purpose is to showcase the current state of knowledge regarding the diverse outcomes of contacts between Arabic and other languages, in a format that is both accessible and useful to Arabists, historical linguists, and students of language contact

Arabic and contact-induced change

This volume offers a synthesis of current expertise on contact-induced change in Arabic and its neighbours, with thirty chapters written by many of the leading experts on this topic. Its purpose is to showcase the current state of knowledge regarding the diverse outcomes of contacts between Arabic and other languages, in a format that is both accessible and useful to Arabists, historical linguists, and students of language contact

Arabic and contact-induced change

This volume offers a synthesis of current expertise on contact-induced change in Arabic and its neighbours, with thirty chapters written by many of the leading experts on this topic. Its purpose is to showcase the current state of knowledge regarding the diverse outcomes of contacts between Arabic and other languages, in a format that is both accessible and useful to Arabists, historical linguists, and students of language contact

Arabic and contact-induced change

This volume offers a synthesis of current expertise on contact-induced change in Arabic and its neighbours, with thirty chapters written by many of the leading experts on this topic. Its purpose is to showcase the current state of knowledge regarding the diverse outcomes of contacts between Arabic and other languages, in a format that is both accessible and useful to Arabists, historical linguists, and students of language contact