There are more than twelve million Roma living in many countries around the world.

Their language, Romani, or Romanes, comes from the Indian subcontinent. The Roma began to migrate from that area over one thousand years ago, although no one knows for certain why they began this great wandering from India to Europe and beyond.

The map below shows the routes the Roma may have taken from India to Asia, Africa and Europe.

The Roma have been made up of many different groups of people from the very beginning. Because they arrived in Europe from the East, they were thought by the first Europeans to be from Turkey or Egypt, and they were called, among other things, Egyptians or 'Gyptians, which is where the word "Gypsy" comes from. This word is often used inappropriately, and many Roma would be offended to be called by this name.

The Roma have been persecuted all through European history. In World War II the Nazis were responsible for the deaths of up to 1.5 million Roma. Since the communist governments of Eastern Europe collapsed in the nineties, there has again been a lot of negative feeling towards this group of people, and there have been violent attacks on Roma immigrants and refugees. In many societies they are discriminated against in finding work, in education, health care and other services. There is also often great ignorance and misunderstanding about their lives and their culture.

Today, these things are probably true for the many Roma groups and communities around the world:

• Roma may travel for much of the time, travel for some of the time, or they may have settled in one place;
• Roma speak many dialects of Romanes, and some Roma may not speak Romanes at all;
• Roma may live in rural or urban areas

The governments of some countries have tried to make the Roma settle in one place. These same governments have also refused Roma any choice of when and where they would like to settle, and when a new Roma encampment begins, they are often forced to move. The reasons that are given can include safety, hygiene, and reducing crime, but there is little effort made by the authorities in power to improve these settlements for the Roma. Although the Roma originated from India, they have no homeland they can call their own; therefore they have no government that will speak for them and protect them.