The Romani people have long been a part of the collective mythology of the West, where they were (and very often still are) depicted as outsiders, aliens, and a threat.
It is generally thought that the Romanies, because they had no written language until relatively recently, have origins obscured by some mythical past.
The greater problem in attempting a comprehensive history of the Romanies is their distribution, not only throughout Europe, but also in the Middle East and the Americas.
Building on long-held prejudices, the Nazi regime viewed Roma both as "asocials" (outside “normal” society) and as racial "inferiors" believed to threaten the biological purity and strength of the “superior Aryan” race[1] 40-70: Indian Traders settled in Roman province of Egypt.
[6] 1578: The King of Sweden attempt to expel the Romani by threatening them with forced labor in Sala silver mine.
1595: Ştefan Răzvan, son of a Romani immigrant from the Ottoman Empire, rules Moldavia for four months.
1637: Anti-Romani laws passed in Sweden: all adult Romani men are sentenced to death, while women and children are to be expelled.
[10] 2010: In July 2010, French President Nicolas Sarkozy began a systematic deportation campaign against the Romani.
Critics of the Sarkozy administration consider the deportations as a diversionary tactic to reduce attention on threats to French social benefits.
The United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination expressed concern the deportations are evidence of growing racism and xenophobia in France.
The academy has 21 regular members, including prominent Romani academics and public figures from 11 European countries, India, and the United States.
The academy was co-founded by Rajko Đurić, a Serbian Romani writer and academic who is also its first president, and received initial supporting funds from the German Heinrich Böll Foundation.
[11] 2012: On October 24, 2012, after many years of delays and disputes over cost and design, Angela Merkel unveils the Memorial to the Sinti and Roma victims of National Socialism in Berlin.