Food resilience and adaptation on the move: the importance of fostering studies on the Romani local knowledge systems
Abstract This analysis explores the food local knowledge of the Romani people in Italy, one of the most significant and historically marginalised ethnic groups in Europe. Despite their centuries-long presence across European countries, the Romani community’s culinary and herbal practices have often...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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BMC
2025-01-01
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| Series: | Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s13002-024-00752-2 |
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| author | Andrea Pieroni Naji Sulaiman Mousaab Alrhmoun |
| author_facet | Andrea Pieroni Naji Sulaiman Mousaab Alrhmoun |
| author_sort | Andrea Pieroni |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract This analysis explores the food local knowledge of the Romani people in Italy, one of the most significant and historically marginalised ethnic groups in Europe. Despite their centuries-long presence across European countries, the Romani community’s culinary and herbal practices have often been overlooked. A preliminary study on Romani domestic food and home (plant) remedies was conducted via 106 interviews in Turin, Rome, and Naples during the past fifteen years among urban Romani community members (who migrated to Italy from Romania and Serbia approximately three decades ago). By examining Romani’s local food knowledge systems, this research highlights the importance of food ritual practices for preserving identity, fostering resilience, and bridging cultural divides; however, the data also show the plastic adaptability of Romani practices. Most quoted herbal items overlap the ones of the Balkan cultures where they lived together for centuries (Romanians and Serbs). The presented preliminary data insights into how the Romani diaspora in Italy has navigated cultural, economic, and social challenges through sophisticated mimicry and constant adaptation to new environments and cultures. Further understanding the Romani food ecological perceptions and ethnobotanical knowledge may be essential for improving social cohesion, challenging stereotypes, recognising the community’s valuable contributions to European cultural diversity and, in general, building a more inclusive ethnobiology. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-4807e2903efd4f06931936702d055fbb |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1746-4269 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine |
| spelling | doaj-art-4807e2903efd4f06931936702d055fbb2025-01-12T12:35:57ZengBMCJournal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine1746-42692025-01-012111810.1186/s13002-024-00752-2Food resilience and adaptation on the move: the importance of fostering studies on the Romani local knowledge systemsAndrea Pieroni0Naji Sulaiman1Mousaab Alrhmoun2University of Gastronomic SciencesUniversity of Gastronomic SciencesUniversity of Gastronomic SciencesAbstract This analysis explores the food local knowledge of the Romani people in Italy, one of the most significant and historically marginalised ethnic groups in Europe. Despite their centuries-long presence across European countries, the Romani community’s culinary and herbal practices have often been overlooked. A preliminary study on Romani domestic food and home (plant) remedies was conducted via 106 interviews in Turin, Rome, and Naples during the past fifteen years among urban Romani community members (who migrated to Italy from Romania and Serbia approximately three decades ago). By examining Romani’s local food knowledge systems, this research highlights the importance of food ritual practices for preserving identity, fostering resilience, and bridging cultural divides; however, the data also show the plastic adaptability of Romani practices. Most quoted herbal items overlap the ones of the Balkan cultures where they lived together for centuries (Romanians and Serbs). The presented preliminary data insights into how the Romani diaspora in Italy has navigated cultural, economic, and social challenges through sophisticated mimicry and constant adaptation to new environments and cultures. Further understanding the Romani food ecological perceptions and ethnobotanical knowledge may be essential for improving social cohesion, challenging stereotypes, recognising the community’s valuable contributions to European cultural diversity and, in general, building a more inclusive ethnobiology.https://doi.org/10.1186/s13002-024-00752-2AdaptationEthnobotanyFood heritageHerbal remediesItalyMarginalised communities |
| spellingShingle | Andrea Pieroni Naji Sulaiman Mousaab Alrhmoun Food resilience and adaptation on the move: the importance of fostering studies on the Romani local knowledge systems Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine Adaptation Ethnobotany Food heritage Herbal remedies Italy Marginalised communities |
| title | Food resilience and adaptation on the move: the importance of fostering studies on the Romani local knowledge systems |
| title_full | Food resilience and adaptation on the move: the importance of fostering studies on the Romani local knowledge systems |
| title_fullStr | Food resilience and adaptation on the move: the importance of fostering studies on the Romani local knowledge systems |
| title_full_unstemmed | Food resilience and adaptation on the move: the importance of fostering studies on the Romani local knowledge systems |
| title_short | Food resilience and adaptation on the move: the importance of fostering studies on the Romani local knowledge systems |
| title_sort | food resilience and adaptation on the move the importance of fostering studies on the romani local knowledge systems |
| topic | Adaptation Ethnobotany Food heritage Herbal remedies Italy Marginalised communities |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1186/s13002-024-00752-2 |
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