Dom people

Dom

Total population
ca. 2,158,400 [1]
Regions with significant populations
Middle east, North Africa
Egypt 1,080,000  Turkey +400,000  Greece 200,000–500,000  Syria 250,000  Iran 80,000  Iraq 50,000  Libya 33,000  Sudan 20,000–50,000  Jordan 25,000  Lebanon 12,000  Palestine, Israel 7,200  Cyprus 1,200  Kuwait
Languages
Domari, Arabic, Persian, Kurdish, Turkish, Egyptian Arabic, Levantine Arabic, Iraqi Arabic, Greek.
Religion
Islam, Orthodox Christianity
Related ethnic groups
Romani people, Lom people, Domba, other Indo-Aryans

The Dom (or Domi) (Arabic: دومي or دومري‎) of the Middle East are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group. Some authors relate them to the Domba people of India.

They have a rich oral tradition and express their culture and history through music, poetry and dance. Initially it was considered that they are a branch of the Romani people, but recent studies of the Domari language suggest that they departed earlier from the Indian subcontinent,^[1] probably around the 6th century.^[2]

The majority of the estimated population of 2.2 million live in Turkey, Egypt and Iran with significant numbers in Iraq. Smaller populations are found in Libya and other countries of the Middle East.

The actual population is unknown as some Dom are excluded from national census and others label themselves in national terms rather than as Dom. Nowadays, they speak the dominant languages of their larger societies, but Domari, their national language, continues to be spoken by more insular communities. Iranians and Afghans called them gurbati or kouli, both of which mean "foreigners".

See also

• Lom people
• Lyuli
• Narikurava
• Zott
• Nawar
• Origin of the Romani people

References

External links

• Dom Research Center
• "The Gypsies of Jerusalem: the Forgotten People" By Amoun Sleem
• Domari The society of Gypsies in Jerusalem