ABSTRACT
In the European Union alone, Roma are estimated to number between 10 and 12 million: this makes Roma the largest ethnic/‘racial’ minority group. Roma differ significantly from continent to continent; from country to country; from region to region. Historically, there has been an often-unacknowledged proximity between Roma and lesbian, gay, bi, trans, intersex and queer people, reflected not just in a social, but also a linguistic affinity between queer argots such as Polari used by gay men and drag queens in the United Kingdom or a Lubunca and Kaliardà used by LGBTIQ communities in Turkey and Greece, respectively. Despite an abundance of literature on Roma, queer Roma have barely existed in academic and other literature. Many members of the diverse Roma groups and subgroups living transnationally have maintained aspects of a shared culture and dialects of the Romani language since the 11th and 12th centuries.
