Romanian Gypsies in Spain. A Migratory Phenomenon, Its Causes and Repercussions

Abstract In the following paper we will discuss about the situation of the Romanian gypsies living in Spain and the main problems involved by their presence in this country. We will analyze the causes that made them emigrate to Spain, together with a historical analysis of this process, the living conditions they have (housing, employment, education...). Also, we will present the social problems they suffer because of their particular culture, other than Spanish, the main settlements where they chosen to live in Spain and social acceptance from the point of view of the Spanish population. The present article is the direct result of a research program that was developed almost two years ago by the Research Center for Regional Development and European Integration of the University of Bucharest, part of a larger research program regarding the ethnic minorities of Romania. The main important aspect of this research is the fact that we used two target groups interviewed both in Romania and Spain and also, we used official information regarding Romanian gypsy located actually on Spanish territory, according with the official Spanish census. This way we managed to gather a large quantity of information and to provide to the reader a closer to reality image of the status of Romanian gypsy presently living inside Spanish border. Also, the novelty brought by this research is the fact that we tried to present the social and integration problems encountered by the Romanian gypsies located in the cities or villages of Spain. The article might be considered a starting point for future research upon this subject.