This article is an external collaboration in charge of Diego Fernández Jiménez, Cum Laude PhD in Social and Legal Sciences, writer and former director of the Roma Cultural Institute (public foundation of the Ministry of Culture) and Diego Luis Fernández Jiménez, with studies in East Asia and a Master’s Degree in Editorial Translation, chief of the Sefardí Museum Library in Toledo. The article is translated into English below.
En 2025 se princharela sov sela berjes de la avillipén del gao caló a Pañalí /Españate. Las políticas que se han querao opre amaró gao han naquelao por ververós chirós maskar aratenós mullaripenes hasta el tokenismo achivesunó que nos muquela sar gao. Achivé la chorripen/discriminañí sinela chachipén sosque no se ha querao el princharelipén político calé en una buchí que ha princharelao averós gaos espanicanés. El but baro drom en akava berje 2025 terela que sinar el princharelipén . Corcorró andiar astisaríamos chalar a la barabaripén.
Akavas políticas de achillar al gao han terelao una dikipén en el caló, la chipi de calés pañalis, lalorrís, francicanés tay/y latinoamericanés. En Espaniate se ha princharelao las chipís catalanicanés, gallegocanés, tai euskericanés, andiar sar los dialectos valencianicanés tai mallorquinicanés. Nasti terela bere esprincharelar el caló, una chipí que sina la jañí but barí del ochí de un millón de calés espanicanés tay/y ha contribuirisarao al espanicanés. Nasti se molela el caló en ververós politicanós hasta bichachipenar que el caló sinele una chipi (nanai un dialecto), corcorró una jojaní forma de naquerar maskar calés y averós manús chorrés. Chachipén, los calés no penchavelamos que haya sinao una evoluciñí bari de los politicanós en los chirós palutnós , michabelándose al esprincharelipén político.
Sigó trebul ujuarelar el bajín clasicanó de que la ververipen maskar las chipís/dialectos/vakaripen jojanés terela but que dicar sar/con la política que con un estandarñi aceptisarao por sarós. Chingarar opre si el caló sinela o no una chipí no terela bere y por kadó meklemos akava vakeripén. Si camelamos molelar al gao caló, molelemos la chipí calí , sin chorripenarla, junelando/jabezando que su chivipén ha sinao un querao de zoralipén (paschobajanó) por los curripenes diñaos por coines corcorró camelaban el samullaripén del gao caló, y por akava las puchipenes opre el princharipén y la estandarñí sinelan jabezoy tai lacharoy. El caló duqueló las lirís que prohibisararon naquerarlo con curripenes , chivinando a paslingüisticarnós de los seliberjes XIX y XX que inventisararon una chipí de jojana que buchuvelaron de “la afición” naquerando por caló una buchí que no terelaba chi de caló, corcorró por jaté. Amarí chipí se chachipenó en el flamenco (familienqo , de las familias) sata/como filosofía musicalñí que diquelaba una jañí de molalipenes calés, chachipenándose en las suetis anduquis la lacherarñí de los alaos sinaba un diñipen , sinando un mantra de amarí ochí. El caló sastaró el dar/jindama como los bajadelipenes lachadelan la luchipén, como los beres dican en la rachí, como el viló se junela y terela alaos. Mistó, los mararnós lingüisticarnós han querao tasabelar amari chipí tai no han astisarao.
El caló se michovela buter a los calés espanicanés sosque terela un zoraló kotor de alaos del Rromanés (chipí de estandarñí del gao rromaní marskartemutnó) tai un zoraló kotor de sintaxis de la chipí espanicaní. Sinamos calés espanicanés tai amarí chipí lo mequela dutoy. Dosta beelar un bajín en caló sosque junelemos lo que penelamos. Ha sinao un drom de evoluciñí histórica maskar la chipí que naqueraban amarós puretas kana abillaron a Pañalí y una barvalipén lingüística por la chivipén en los foros con los gaché/pañalós/payos que naqueraban espanicanés. Por akava penelamos que el caló sinela un kotor de mangarí política ketanó al princharelipén del gao caló espanicanó. Acaba princharelipén del caló en amaró them no sinela mamuy el princharelipén del rromanés markartemutnó que sinó estandirisardó en el congreso de Varsovia de 1991 por la maskartemutnó rromani Jekhipé.
Palutnó, camelamos naquerar que sinela trebul que acaba princharelipén del caló como una chipí but de las chipís espanicanís, musay ginar con la vastenipén de la universidad como un kotor trebutnó en el drom. Musay mochabarse cátedras en ververís universidades que sicabelen el princharipén y el princharelipén del caló. Terelamos que plastarar el drom ketanós con yektanipén tai asanelipén sosque ha lliguerao el chiró del gao caló.
Sastipén tay mestepén a sarós.
THE RECOGNITION OF THE CALÉ ROMANI PEOPLE AND THE CALÓ LANGUAGE
This year, 2025, marks the 600th anniversary of the arrival of the Romani people in Spain. The policies that have been implemented regarding our people have gone through different stages, from the bloody historical genocides to the current tokenism that silences us as a people. To this day, discrimination is evident in the lack of Caló political recognition in a system in which other Spanish cultural minorities have been recognized. Therefore, the main objective in 2025 must be this recognition, a necessary step towards equality.
These policies of silence have also been reflected in Caló, the language of the Spanish Romani (Calé) people, which we also share with our brothers and sisters in Portugal, the south of France, and throughout Latin America. In Spain, the official status of Catalan, Galician, and Basque, as well as the Valencian and Majorcan dialects, has been recognized. It makes no sense, then, that Caló, a language that is one of the fundamental foundations of the identity of at least one million Spanish Roma and that has also influenced the Spanish language itself, has not been recognized.
The undervaluation of Caló goes so far as to say that many political sectors do not recognize it as a language (or even a dialect), but merely as slang used by Roma and other sectors on the margins of society. If we are honest, we Roma do not believe that there has been any significant political evolution in recent centuries concerning our language, and this lack of evolution is followed by the lack of political recognition.
For now, we must start from the classic assumption that the difference between languages/dialects/slang has more to do with the political power of those who create the differences than with the reality of generally accepted parameters. To enter into a discussion about whether Caló is a language or not is as absurd and discriminatory as doing so with others, and therefore let’s drop this debate. If we want to respect the Calé people, let’s respect their language without undervaluing it, understanding that its survival has been an act of bravery (almost a miracle). In the midst of the attacks received by those who only wanted the extermination of the Roma people, the deficits in knowledge or standardization are clearly understandable and solvable.
Caló suffered prohibitive legislation with painful penalties, it survived the pseudo-linguists of the 19th and 20th centuries who created an artificial language called “de la afición” that they passed off as Caló even though it had little to do with it and did for economic reasons. Our language was established in flamenco (familienqo, of the families) as a musical philosophy that reflected the Roma value system, and was asserted within families where the use of each word was a gift we passed on to our loved ones as if it were a mantra vindicating our identity.
Caló overcame fear as sounds overcome heights, as senses overcome darkness, as heartbeats break silences. It is true, therefore, that linguistic executioners have tried to exterminate our language but have not succeeded.
Caló is what Spanish Roma most resemble because it has a strong component of vocabulary from Romani (the standardized language of the world’s Roma) and a strong component of Spanish syntax. We are Spanish and Roma, and our language makes that clear. It is enough to read a thought in Caló to understand what we are referring to. Therefore, we include Caló as a fundamental element of political demand in the recognition of the Spanish Roma people. This demand is not contradictory but rather complementary to the request, within the framework of international organizations, for the recognition of Romani as a sign of identity for all Roma worldwide, which was standardized in 1991 at the Warsaw Congress by the Linguistics Commission of the International Romani Union.
Finally, I would like to emphasize the need for this process of recognizing Caló as one of the Spanish languages that enrich our country. It must be supported by universities as an essential sector without which progress would be impossible. Chairs of Caló must be created in different universities to facilitate its understanding and recognition from an academic perspective. We must advance on this path with unity and enthusiasm because the time of the Roma has come.
Greetings and Freedom to all
