MIGRATION STRATEGIES OF UKRAINIAN ROMA IN TIMES OF DANGER: BASED ON GENERAL POPULATION CENSUSES OF THE 19TH – 21ST CENTURIES

Abstract

The aim of the research is to examine the phenomenon of high migratory activity among Ukrainian Roma, exemplified by the current reaction of this ethnic minority to the full-scale Russian invasion. According to the Office of the Ombudsman of Ukraine, approximately half of the total Roma population has changed their place of residence since 2022. Some have gone abroad, while others have become internally displaced persons. Using statistical analysis methods of population censuses from the 19th to the 21st centuries, it has been proven that this is a specific migration strategy of the Roma community, which has previously used such methods to save themselves from danger.The main result of the study was the discovery of a large wave of Roma migration from southern and central Ukraine during the Holodomor in the early 1930s. Census data also revealed a return migration wave after World War II, indicating that the Roma returned home when it became safe. The extremely rapid urbanization of the Roma community in the second half of the 20th century and their readiness to move under difficult economic conditions in the 1990s also confirmed the thesis that Ukrainian Roma are a people accustomed to mobility. The conclusions of the study state that Ukrainian Roma have a historically conditioned migration strategy. This strategy allows the Roma community not only to survive but also to preserve their culture and identity despite external challenges and dangers. The similarity of the migration strategies of Ukrainian Roma now and in the past enhances the significance of the study. This allows predictions to be made about the future activity of this ethnic minority – in particular, it can be assumed that, just like in the 20th century, the Roma will not abandon one of their traditional areas in the south and east of Ukraine and will return as soon as it is safe. The article was prepared as part of the open research project of Kherson State University “Ethnic Minorities of Ukraine in the Conditions of the Russian-Ukrainian War and Migration,” state registration number: 0124U003022.