#boyash

First, some background. The Romani are a diasporic people with roots in what is now northern India. There are tons of sub-groups of Romani people, with all kinds of dialects of the Romanes language. A lot of us are settled nowadays — being nomadic was never a choice as much as a reality of being chased from place to place. And because we’re such a varied and far-flung ethnicity who have repeatedly faced genocide and continue to face pogroms and discrimination, I wouldn’t dare to speak for anyone but myself. With that said, it’s being fiercely protective of cultural traditions and human rights.

"Tu Jésty Fátã...-You Are That Girl" by Kanizsa Csillagai from the album The Boyash Gypsies of Hungary

Tu eşti fată care n-are N-are, n-are suflet n-are N-are, n-are suflet n-are Haide fată, tu a fată Să te vadă tot ţigani Haide fată, tu a fată

Aj, o Doamne, să cu fire Nu zvon des ține cu mine Aj, o Doamne, să cu fire

Tu eşti fată, fată bună, Care nu mine să joacă, Care nu mine să joacă, Haide fată, tu a fată Să te vadă tot ţigani Haide fată, tu a fată

Aj, o Doamne, să cu fire Nu zvon des ține cu mine Aj, o Doamne, să cu fire

English

You are that girl, who has got no Got no, got no heart, got no, Got no, got no heart, got no, Come girl, come out, So that men can see you Come girl, come out.

Oh, my God, she has brains. She does not speak to me, She has brains.

You are that girl, that good girl, Who is not playing with me, Who is not playing with me, Come girl, come out, So that men can see you Come girl, come out.

Oh, my God, she has brains. She does not speak to me, She has brains.