History
The first recorded reference to Romani people in Ukraine goes back to the 15th century. Ukrainian Roma made a living through nomadic trades like blacksmithing, bartering, veterinary services, metalworking, and music.
Origin
The Romani people originate from northern India, presumably from the northwestern Indian states Rajasthan and Punjab.
The linguistic evidence has indisputably shown that roots of Romani language lie in India: the language has grammatical characteristics of Indian languages and shares with them parts of the basic lexicon, for example, body parts or daily routines.
More exactly, Romani shares the basic lexicon with Hindi and Punjabi. It shares many phonetic features with Marwari, while its grammar is closest to Bengali.
Genetic findings in 2012 suggest the Romani originated in northwestern India and migrated as a group.
According to a genetic study in 2012, the ancestors of present scheduled tribes and scheduled caste populations of northern India, traditionally referred to collectively as the Ḍoma, are the likely ancestral populations of modern European Roma.
In February 2016, during the International Roma Conference, the Indian Minister of External Affairs stated that the people of the Roma community were children of India. The conference ended with a recommendation to the Government of India to recognize the Roma community spread across 30 countries as a part of the Indian diaspora.
20th century
In the regions occupied by Germany, the initial phase of killings took place in 1941, during which the Wehrmacht and SS police units shot and killed traveling Ukrainian Roma traders they came across. Unlike the organized deportations to death camps that occurred in Western Europe, the Roma in Ukraine were mostly executed immediately by Nazi mobile killing squads (Einsatzgruppen) along with local collaborators.
2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine
During the 2022 invasion of Ukraine, Roma people suffered since the often lack of civil status documentation held off their access to humanitarian assistance.
Several sources report denying refugees access to European countries. EU Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) called for special attention to Roma seeking sanctuary.
The previous discouragement of the education of Roma girls hit them harder after the war disturbance in the education system. Romani Ukrainians are also fighting Russian soldiers in Liubymivka. Despite being part of a marginalized minority, hundreds of Roma volunteered to fight for the Ukrainian army and were awarded.
Culture
Gypsy punk represents a prominent Romani musical genre throughout Ukraine, synthesizing punk rock elements with the nomadic heritage and bohemian artistic sensibilities characteristic of Romani communities.
Ukrainian Romani cuisine is rich in spices, red pepper, and tomatoes. On Sundays, the Ukrainian Romani table often features chicken, cutlets, and *holubtsi* (cabbage rolls)—dishes that are common in the Transcarpathia region. Baked goods are also eaten by Ukrainian Roma, especially *marikla*, a traditional Romani bread in Ukraine. It is simple to prepare, requiring only flour, water, a little baking soda, and oil. This Romani bread is baked on a baking sheet, though in the past, it was baked on a stove.
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