Let us learn some Romani? Te siklǒvas rromanes?

The Romanis have a language of their own. This may well be a great discovery for many people. The Romani language (Romani chib) is a non-uniform; it has its own dialects, and it has absorbed the characteristics of languages of those countries where the Romanis have lived and are living now—which is something that may be said about the language of any nation. 

Peculiarities of the Romani language

Well isn’t that something unique! Romanis have no country of their own but they have a language of their own. But herein lies the rub: there is no protection, no support, and no measures are being taken to preserve the Romani chib. After all, this is a severely endangered language. Hence, UNESCO has declared the 5th of November the Day of the Romani Language. 

We, however, remember how important it is to protect our language not just on this one day in the year but every day. So we are very happy about this language. Recently, by the way, the Romani language has been added to Google Translate. 

The process of implementation of the Romani language has been overseen by Rovena Marin, a Romani from Romania employed by Google.   

As they launched this option, Google noted the following: «Our approach is to prioritise the most widespread varieties of each and every language. Take the fact that the Romani language has plenty of dialects all across Europe. Our models generate a text most closely related to the Southern Vlakh—a dialect most widespread over the internet. But it also contains elements from other dialects like Northern Vlakh and Balkan Romani».  

The Quality of Translation

So, te siklǒvas rromanes?

We have tested the new option. And then, we asked Romani speakers to evaluate translations offered by Google. But first, let us offer you to learn a couple of key phrases in the Romani language. 

• Have a good day! Lasho dyes mangav tuke!
• The society has plenty of stereotypes, as far as the Romanis are concerned. Ando samhället si but stereotipura pa rom. 
• The Romani language is in need of protection. E romani chib trubul protekcia.
• Ukraine will win. I Ukraina ka lel.

These were the phrases which the online assistant has translated correctly. Romani speakers, however, do note that a number of words and phrases contain errors. That, though, is only expectable as these are early days. Plus, considering the fact that the Romani language does not have unified dictionaries, codified spelling and other lexicographic products, one can only expect errors to occur. Hence, so far, the Romani activists are optimistic about the appearance of their language in Google Translate. 

«The Romani language is one of Europe’s dying languages. In fifty to a hundred years, there will be no native speakers of Romani. So, the appearance of Romani chib in Google Translate is a pivotal event. It is something that will help the Romani people preserve their identity. After all, not all of them speak their own language. This is something that will also be useful both for societies wherein Romanis are integrated. After all, it will allow us to see the cultural diversity, common features of Romani and Ukrainian languages, for instance. And this is also an important step to preserve the language. Until we adopt a single language standard, as there exist many dialects», — says Volodymyr Yakovenko, the Executive Director of ARKA Youth Agency for Romani Culture Advocacy.