Thinking the different in History

A review of Roma historiography from the 19th to the 21st century

Abstract

This article analyzes the historiographic production on the Roma people between the 19th and 21st centuries. We seek to map the main publications on this ethnic minority produced in Brazil and Portugal during these three centuries. After indicating the introductory elements, we point out the difficult historiographical inclusion of marginalized subjects and then reflect on the three stages of Roma studies. The first is characterized by ethnographic and folklorist production, followed by a second moment spearheaded by the works developed in Brazilian graduate programs and, finally, debates promoted by political movements and legal institutions defending the Roma case. These texts vary in style, emphasis, fonts, theoretical background, spatial and geographical scopes, but they all try to bridge this knowledge gap on Roma peoples in Brazil and the western world. Roma historiography faces limited development due to the difficulty of certain knowledge production centers in understanding them as historical and political subjects; the absence of qualified advisors to supervise this topic; the little interest of historians, and limited access to Roma
communities, who orally transmit their culture and history. Our proposal is based on the discussions presented by Rodrigo Corrêa Teixeira, François Laplatine and Geraldo Pieroni.