Dom people

The Dom (also called "Doma" and "Domi"; Arabic: دومي‎‎ / ALA-LC: Dūmī , دومري / Dūmrī ; Egyptian Arabic: هناجره‎‎ Hanagra ), of the Middle East, North Africa, Caucasus, Central Asia and the Indian subcontinent, are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group. Some authors relate them to the Domba people of India.

Culture

The Dom have an oral tradition and express their culture and history through music, poetry and dance. Initially, it was believed that they were a branch of the Romani people, but recent studies of the Domari language suggest that they departed earlier from the Indian subcontinent,^[1] than the Romani, probably around the 6th century.^[2]

The world-wide used name for Gypsies to identify themselves is the term “Rrom”,^[3] which in the Romani language means a man. The words Rom, Dom and Lom are used to describe Romani peoples who diverged in the 6th century. Several tribes moved as far as Western Europe and are called Rom, while the ones who remained in Persia and Turkey are called Dom.^[4]

Among the various Domari subgroups, the Ghawazi are the most famous for their dancing and music. The Ghawazi dancers have been associated with the development of the Egyptian raqs sharqi style.

Distribution

The majority of the estimated population of 2.2 million live in Turkey, Egypt and Iran with significant numbers in Iraq. Smaller populations are found in Libya, Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco, Sudan, Jordan, Syria and other countries of the Middle East and North Africa.

The actual population is unknown as some Dom are excluded from national censuses and others label themselves in national terms rather than as Dom. Nowadays, they speak the dominant languages of their larger societies, but Domari, their national language, continues to be spoken by more insular communities. Iranians called them gurbati or kouli, both meaning "foreigners".

Doms also reside in the Gilgit-Baltistan region of Pakistan in small numbers as well as in the Chitral, Swat, Kohistan and Ladakh regions of Pakistan and India. In Gilgit, Dom are coupled with the Kameen and Mons, who are also musicians, blacksmith and do similar menial jobs.

There is a large concentration of Dom/Gypsies in Jordan. Researchers claim that, "they accommodate Arab racism by hiding their ethnic identity," since they would not be accepted into Arabian society once their true identity is revealed.^[5] Another group of Dom origin in Iran are the Lori, who are found in the Baloch regions of southeast Iran. There is also a similar small community with some colonial Romanichal ancestors in Malta. That community is called the Maltese Romanichal.

In popular culture

The Iranian singer Googoosh wrote a song "Koeli", in which she mentions the Dom people, the gypsies of Iran.

See also

• Domari language
• Lom people
• Lyuli
• Narikurava
• Zott
• Nawar (Syria)
• Origin of the Romani people

References

External links

• Dom Research Center
• "The Gypsies of Jerusalem: the Forgotten People" By Amoun Sleem
• Domari The society of Gypsies in Jerusalem
• "The Gypsy People of Israel, Gaza & the West Bank" by Valery Novoselsky
• "Evolving, educating: Israel's Gypsy community" by Roi Mandel
• "The Dom People and their Children in Lebanon" by Terre des Hommes

Demographics of Egypt
Religions	Islam Sunni Shia Ismailis Christianity Orthodox Catholicism Protestant Jews
Ethnic groups	Arabs Sa'idi Bedouin Arab-Berber Lebanese Syro-Lebanese Ababda Abazins Ahamidat Alhoarh Beja Berber Bisharin Circassians Copts El homaydat Hedareb Houara Huteimi Magyarab Nubian Roma (Gypsy) Turks Kouloughlis
Foreign nationals	Armenians Britons Chinese Filipinos Greeks Indians Italians Japanese Koreans Lebanese Malays Pakistanis Palestinians Syro-Lebanese Sudanese Turks