OVERVIEW

((Note that this version of Gypsies is heavily based on the Roma, however it is not entirely exact. Some additions are my own and I've omitted a great deal of their culture for brevity's sake.))

The Gypsies are a scattered and sparse race, that rarely settles in a single spot for extended periods of time. The exclusive nature of their society does not generally lend itself well to Gypsies making friends where they go as Gypsies are often stand offish to outsiders, not wanting to touch or interact with them much for fear of being tainted.

They generally, however, travel in large, clan oriented caravans though sometimes smaller families travel alone. But they are extremely family oriented, regardless.

APPEARANCE

Those with Gypsy heritage generally stand out from most of the population. Their hair is thick, black and tends more toward curly than straight. Their skin is a slightly darker tone than everyone else and their eyes are usually black, brown or hazel but blue eyes are not entirely uncommon. Green eyes, however, are quite rare.

Gypsy women tend to wear long, colorful skirts, heavy earrings and bangles. According to their traditions, a woman's legs must not show. Typically the lower half of a woman’s body is considered unclean and, therefore must be covered. Exposure of the legs is a grave offense, so long full skirts must be worn. Since the torso and arms don't bare this same stigma, more lenience is given to tops that show skin (bare arms and shoulders in particular. It would still be very uncommon to see a Luri woman in a belly top or something extremely tight or revealing unless it was a costume for a festival or dance).

While the clothing of Gypsy men tends to be less colorful and blends in with normal styles, they too favor heavy jewelry, belts, scarves and other accessories though it's fairly uncommon for them to wear hats of any kind.

SOCIETY AND CUSTOMS

A large portion of society relies heavily on distinctions between that which is pure, vuzho and that which is tainted, or mahrime. Many of their customs are designed to keep people within the realm of purity and prevent straying into the realm of impurity. For example, Gypsies must wash only in running water. A shower would be acceptable (or pouring water over their body while sitting in an area where the water would drain away from them), but a bath would not be because the individual would be sitting in dirty, stagnant water.

Since outsiders do not follow their customs of cleanliness Gypsies will normally not eat or associate too intimately with them for fear of being contaminated. This isn't to mean they look down on others as being dirty but rather that they take great precautions to protect themselves from being tainted physically or spiritually by those outside their culture.

Mahrime taboos often extend to animals as well, from the edibility of certain types of meat to pet ownership. Gypsy beliefs prohibit cruelty to animals, stating that they may only be killed for food or clothing. This can vary from clan to clan but eating a horse would never be permitted. Horses are very nearly sacred to Luri due to their being necessary for clans to travel long distances quickly.

Gypsy culture also relies heavily on luck, basht, and bad luck, bibasht. Good luck charms, amulets, and talismans are common among Gypsies. They are carried to prevent misfortune or heal sickness and are often made by drabani--though really, anyone can make a simple good luck charm like a daisy chain or the like.

Gypsies believe that spirits surround us all of the time. Some spirits, mulo, are bad spirits—the spirits of the unrestful dead. There are also good spirits, leshya'e, which are not related to the dead. Most spirits must be carefully guarded against by the use of charms.

Gypsies have deep, strong spiritual values and beliefs. Palm reading, tea reading, tarot reading and a variety of other arts are all common practices for Gypsy women or Drabani (note: According to custom, Gypsy men lack the spiritual ability to be fortune tellers). They don’t, however, have their own, organized religious system. Instead, they tend to blend their own superstitions with whatever religion is prominent in the area.

Dancing has always been a strong component of Gypsy culture and nearly all Gypsy know how to dance. While they pick up dances from every place they visit and can do many exotic styles, they do have their own, syle of dance that is a blend of many other styles (flamenco, belly, etc--but they do not do harem belly dances with veils and such like unless they're doing a dance they picked up elsewhere). Their music is generally fast, up beat and their free style dances sometimes exhausting, but beautiful to watch.


DEATH

For the Gypsies, death is an unnatural occurrence that should anger those who die. All Gypsy clans have customs and rituals regarding death but there are some specific rituals shared by every clan. Once a person dies, their family gathers all their belongings. These are divided into two categories: those things that will be useful to the deceased during the journey from life and are to be placed in the coffin (or pyre if the clan is one that cremates the dead). These can include almost anything, such as clothing, tools, eating utensils, jewelry, and money.

The rest are those things that must be destroyed. All material ties with the dead must be severed immediately after death. Sometimes even animals that belonged to the dead must be killed--especially if the person died unexpectedly or violently as these are things that may cause them to try to remain in the land of the living. Within twenty four hours, there should not be a single trace of the deceased in the Gypsy camp.

There is a great fear among the survivors that the dead might return in some supernatural form to haunt the living. It is for this reason that all objects that belonged to the dead tying him to this place must be destroyed. Some Gypsy clans practice cremation rather than burying their dead. But regardless, it would be very rare for a Gypsy to keep a memento of the dead as this would be inviting their spirit to stay.


SPECIFIC SUPERSTITIONS AND BELIEFS (IE At least some of these are things your character will believe in/wear/know/etc):

--Owls are generally considered portents of death by Gypsies. The owl's cry is considered very bad luck, or bibasht. For this reason, owls are avoided as food or pets.

--Ravens, on the other hand, are considered extremely lucky and wise. They are messengers for the spirits and gods. Killing or harming a raven is a serious offense and brings bad luck to the entire clan.

--Muleni dori is a special knotted ribbon or belt worn by many Gypsies. It can be tied or untied to call on spirits (usually kesali but mulo as well) to protect one.

--Kesali are natural spirits. These spirits are those that exist naturally in the world and are often tied in closely to nature. They are generally considered a type of leshay’e or good spirit and not the same as mulo--the spirits of the dead.

--Amria is the Gypsy word for curse. Gypsy curses are quite famous (or infamous) and are reserved entirely for those outside their race. A Gypsy would never cast amria on one of their own kind intentionally. Whether or not there is any truth to their curses is anyone’s guess. Gypsies believe that amria can be cast by something as simple as looking at someone. This is amryak, the evil eye. There are many talismans and symbols used to protect against amryak

--Drabani are Gypsy fortune tellers. They are always women. Though men can practice herbology, only women have the power of insight, foresight and healing to be called Drabani.

HALFLINGS

Because Gypsies rarely mix with those outside their own culture, it is worth noting that Gypsy Halflings are extremely rare. This is not due to any specific prejudice against Auldelens but more simply because they are a typically exclusive culture.

Halflings, however, are without exception considered to be unclean. They are not just a blend of a Gypsy and non-Gypsy but a blend of another race. They are extremely tainted abominations. Because of their close family ties, Halflings would not be exiled from the clan but they would certainly be ostracized and not allowed to eat with others or participate in many activities.

For this reason, having relations with Auldelen is also an extreme taboo. Anyone caught in such a relationship would be labeled mahrime, unclean, and would likely be exiled or shunned.



(NOTE: There are always exceptions to the rules. You'll find Gypsies who have things added into their personal belief system as well as those who don't follow this outline perfectly. But all gypsies would probably have at least some of theses beliefs or character traits.)