Halgato. Feri Lainščeks ethnologischer Blick auf die Roma in Slowenien

Abstract

What constitutes a Romani (human)? The name of one hero in Feri Lainšček’s novel “Namesto koga roža cveti” (1991; Instead of whom does the flower bloom) is Halgato, the Hungarian word for a melancholic instrumental piece. By evoking the music of the Gypsies, Lainšček’s novel approaches the melancholy and violence in the life of the Romanies; it registers stereotyped perceptions by others as well as the pride of the social outsiders, it traces the social advancement through education and the process of estrangement from family and origin. Considering the social history and the aggravating situation of the Romanies in Slovenia, the paper discusses the tension between the ethnic minority’s integration into society and their social exclusion, as it can be deduced from the realm of artistic representations.