The Holocaust

The Holocaust was known as “Porajmos” (“The Devouring”) in Romani. From 1935 to 1945, in all countries allied to or under the occupation of Nazi Germany, Romani men, women, and children were systematically interned and exterminated. Under Nazi ideology, Roma were deemed a threat to the “German racial purity” and were designated for extermination along with the Jews. While specific numbers will never be known, current estimates state that between 250,000 and 500,000 Roma were killed during the Holocaust [United States Holocaust Museum, n.d.]. The significant decrease in the population of European Roma - nearly 100% in some areas - caused the extinction of several dialects of Romani.