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Sinte Romani in Kazakhstan PRINT VERSION: SHARE:

Population Main Language

4,500 Romani, Sinte

Largest Religion Christian

Islam (98.00%) 2.00%

Photo Source: Copyrighted © 2020 International

Mission Board-SBC All rights reserved. Used with
permission
Evangelical Progress Send us a photo of this people group
Map Source: Joshua Project
0.40%

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1. Country
Introduction / History
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In their homeland of India they were originally called Dom, meaning man. Later, Dom developed
2. People Group
into Rom. Today, they prefer to be called Romani in Europe; but in the Middle East and North
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Africa, many still refer to themselves as 'Dom' or 'Domi'. Here, the term 'Dom' will be used for this
people group found in the Middle East, and 'Romani' will be used as a general, more recognizable
Sections
designation for the larger people group.
Profile

Originally coming from India, the Romani are now scattered throughout the world. Little is known General Info
today about the lives of the 2 to 3 million Dom who live in the Middle East. This is largely due to the Ethnicity
closed communities they maintain. There are many fascinating folk tales about their origins that
Geography
are still passed down from generation to generation.
Maps

Today, communities of Dom can be found in the following Middle Eastern countries: Cyprus, Iran, Languages
Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Israel, the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, and Turkey. Turkish speaking
Resources
Romani are also present in Greece, particularly in the northeast. Survey work is still needed to
Religion
determine the accuracy of reports that refer to Dom in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and the United Arab
Emirates. Unfortunately, accurate population counts are difficult to secure in these countries. Too Sources
often, Dom are not counted in the national census, or they hide their identity on purpose. Register

What Are Their Lives Like?  Close All

Dom lifestyles vary widely. There are those who maintain a peripatetic (nomadic) lifestyle. They
offer their services as entertainers, musicians, or metal workers to other nomadic groups. Also
included in the nomadic lifestyle are those Dom who are migrant workers. They can be found
harvesting crops in the Jordan Valley, as well as working in the tobacco fields in northern Jordan.
Other tent dwelling Nawar move in and out of the Bekaa in Lebanon, as do the Bedouin. Few Dom
in the Middle East are pastoralists. In some countries such as Iraq, donkey and camel caravans of
Romani entertainers still move about the country featuring dancers, fortunetellers, musicians,
jugglers, and acrobats. Others can be described as semi-nomadic: they live in houses in or near a
city part of the year, perhaps during the winter, but live in their tents the remainder of the year.
The houses they live in are often nothing more than tin huts. The Dom in Kurman, Iran, are an
illustration of semi-nomadic people. They support themselves as craftsmen, peddlers,
fortunetellers and dancers, among other occupations, in the streets of the cities. Often, their
children beg in the streets rather than attend school.

What Are Their Beliefs?

The Dom people tend to adopt the dominant religion of their host country. For the Middle Eastern
countries, this is Islam. To find Dom on the annual pilgrimage to Mecca is not unusual. While there
are some devout Muslims among the Dom, the majority are only nominal Muslims. They consider
religion a personal matter, and they are hesitant to talk about it with anyone. Superstition and "the
good elements" of many religious systems make up the nature of their beliefs. Spiritism is
dominant in their thinking as to why things happen in the world. They strongly fear evil spirits and
curses. Dom fortunetellers offer to make clients a potion that will ward off curses.

There are very few known Christians among the Dom. One young man spoke about the isolation
that a Dom feels when he or she becomes a follower of Jesus. As a result of accepting the Christian
 faith, they may find themselves outcasts, separated from their own families, as well as from the
predominantly Islamic environment in which they live.

What Are Their Needs?

In almost all of the countries they live in, their rudimentary command of the local language and
limited use of written documents have contributed to their political powerlessness. Some who
have settled are in transition, as they seek to become a part of the social systems around them. In
an effort to fit in, they may abandon the traditional clothing, tattooing, dancing and fortune telling
that are part of the Romani lifestyle. They may even deny their ethnic identity.

Regardless of their efforts to assimilate into the mainstream society, the Dom rarely have official
status or citizenship in their country of residence. Due to their poverty, they are often unable to
pay hospital fees when children are born. In this case, no birth certificate is issued, so the
possibility of securing citizenship is forfeited. The concept of owning land is not inherent to the
nomadic Dom world view, and they find it difficult to adjust to such an outlook. Few families own
the plots of land on which they locate their settlements or camps. Therefore, they are often
subjected to forced relocation.

Prayer Points
* Scripture Prayers for the Romani, Sinte in Kazakhstan.

Profile Source: Middle East Resources

General Info  Submit update

People Name General Romani, Sinte

People Name in Country Romani, Sinte

Natural Name Sinte Romani

World Population 227,000

Total Countries 13

Indigenous No

Progress Scale 1 ●
Unreached Yes

Frontier People Group No

GSEC 1 (per PeopleGroups.org)

Pioneer Workers Needed 1

Alternate Names Croatian Gypsy; Croation Gypsy; Gypsy; Kazakhstani Gypsy; Manuche; Manush;
Manush Gypsy; Rom; Romani; Romani-sinte; Rommane Gypsy; Sasitka; Sasitka Roma;
Sinte; Sinte Gypsy; Sinte, South German; South German Romany; Swiss Gypsy; Tsigane

People ID 14202

ROP3 Code 109316

Ethnicity  Submit update

Affinity Bloc Eurasian Peoples

People Cluster Romani

People Group Romani, Sinte

Ethnic Code CNN25f

Geography  Submit update

Country Kazakhstan

Region Asia, Central

Continent Asia

10/40 Window Yes

Persecution Rank 35 (Open Doors top 50 rank, 1 = highest persecution ranking)

Location in Country Kazakhstan (formerly Volga area until 1941) Source: Ethnologue 2010

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 PDF Version
Ethnologue Language Map
Ethnolinguistic map or other map

Languages  Submit update

Primary Language Romani, Sinte (4,500 speakers)

Language Code rmo Ethnologue Listing

Language Written Yes ScriptSource Listing

Total Languages 1

Resources  Submit update

Primary Language: Romani, Sinte

Bible Translation ▲ Status (Years)

Bible-Portions Yes (1875-2007)

Bible-New Testament Yes (2010-2014)

Bible-Complete No

Bible-NT Audio Online

Bible-NT Text Online

Possible Print Bibles

Amazon

Virtual Storehouse

Forum Bible Agencies

National Bible Societies

World Bible Finder

World Bibles

Resource Type ▲ Resource Name

Audio Recordings Audio Bible teaching (GRN)

Audio Recordings Online New Testament (FCBH)

Film / Video Jesus Film: view in Romani, Sinte

Text / Printed Matter Bible: Romani: Sinte - Romani, Sinte

Religion  Submit update

Primary Religion: Islam

Major Religion ▲ Percent Christian Segments ▲ Percent

Buddhism 0.00 % Anglican 0.0 %

Christianity (Evangelical 0.40 %) 2.00 % Independent 40.0 %

Ethnic Religions 0.00 % Orthodox 40.0 %

Hinduism 0.00 % Other Christian 0.0 %

Islam 98.00 % Protestant 20.0 %

Non-Religious 0.00 % Roman Catholic 0.0 %

Other / Small 0.00 %

Unknown 0.00 %

Sources 
Photo Source Copyrighted © 2020 International Mission Board-SBC All rights reserved. Used with permission

Map Source Joshua Project

Profile Source Middle East Resources

Data Sources Data is compiled from various sources. Read more

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Populations are scaled to the current year. Other data may have varying ages. We welcome suggested updates.
2. A displayed zero can mean true zero, a very small rounded number or sometimes unknown. Blanks mean an unknown value.
3. The data is sometimes not as precise as it appears. Values for %Christian Adherent and %Evangelical (which determine
unreached status) are often informed estimates, some more accurate than others. We recommend against using %Christian
Adherent and %Evangelical to calculate absolute numbers.
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