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Reviewed by:
  • Cikáni a etnicita. [Gypsies and ethnicity]
  • Petra Burzová (bio)
Cikáni a etnicita. [Gypsies and ethnicity]. Marek Jakoubek, editor. Prague: TRITON, 2008. 408 pp. ISBN 978-80-7387-105-5 (hardback).

Marek Jakoubek is a Czech anthropologist who has built up a reputation as a distinguished scholar studying Gypsy groups. During the past decade he has published a monograph and numerous articles on this topic, and has co-edited a number of publications (e.g. Budilová and Jakoubek 2007). His work and that of collaborators cannot be overlooked when theorising on Gypsies in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. Cikáni a etnicita is a collection of essays and articles dealing with the question of Gypsy ethnicity and nationalism. The collection aims to contribute to a better understanding of relevant concepts that may not have been sufficiently considered in Czech and Slovak literature.

The collection consists of thirteen papers (and one that has been revised for this collection) by thirteen leading scholars. Twelve are translations of articles originally published in English, most of which appeared in academic journals between 1978 and 2006. Most contributions were translated by the editor, who is also the author of one of the articles and the preface.

As Jakoubek convincingly shows, Czecho-Slovak Gypsy studies are marked by a certain isolation, which is due to the fact that local scholars did not follow international discussions in Gypsy studies before 1989 (p. 12). The ongoing establishment of Gypsy studies as a scientific discipline is accompanied by continuous publication of translations into Czech and Slovak (for detailed information on Gypsy studies literature published in the Czech Republic and Slovakia see Jakoubek 2008). As stated by the editor in the introduction, the goal of this cross-disciplinary collection was to 'introduce the international context of Gypsy studies into our environment' (p. 12). This kind of approach is arguably unavoidable in any scientific discipline in countries like the Czech and Slovak republics: isolation, based on either national origin or subject area, can only impair the process of learning from others.

The publication under review aims to enable scholars and students to compare theoretical perspectives on Gypsy groups in the Czech Republic (plus Slovakia) and abroad, and to compare empirical data obtained through research in the field of Gypsy Studies. The collection also contains some interesting [End Page 169] methodological insights (e.g. Cohn's questions for Gypsies, p. 141) and, in terms of Gypsy studies, 'unconventional' approaches (Gmelch, Lauwagie). One of the stated aims of the collection is to demonstrate to readers how difficult it is to define the subject of investigation in Gypsy studies (p. 13), and that the process of enquiry itself constitutes an important aspect of the investigation. In this way, the book serves as a guide to those interested in becoming involved in Gypsy studies research.

But the collection can also be recommended to the general public, activists, NGO workers, state officials and politicians who take a professional or personal interest in the 'Romani situation', an issue that has been attracting much attention in the Czech Republic and Slovakia (as can be seen from the offers in bookshops, from Czech and Slovak newspapers, magazines and websites). The articles are written in an easily accessible style, which by no means, however, diminishes their scientific value.

The publication contributes to the clarification of several terms frequently employed in the public/political and academic discourse. In his introduction, Jakoubek analyses the term 'Gypsies' and, referring to Matt T. Salo (pp. 10–11), he shows that Czech and Slovak controversies on labelling certain groups as 'Roma' (against the politically incorrect 'Gypsy') are of little scientific value. Debates on the terminological apparatus in the international context Gypsy studies, it is argued, prefer a usage that preserves peoples' original ethnonyms (as in the case of the Gypsy Lore Society) (p. 10).

A similar situation applies to the notion of ethnicity, which also figures in the title of the collection. According to Jakoubek, it is no longer defensible to assert a unique 'Gypsy ethnic identity' (whether based on common origin, language, shared identity or anthropological type). Scientific research (several examples of which are to be found in the collection under...

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