The Early Romani Archaeologies Project: Towards Engaged Excavation on Europe’s Margins
The Early Romani Archaeologies Project will constitute the first-ever archaeological assessment of the earliest known sites of the Roma people. The proposed reconnaissance, to be carried out initially at the best-documented of the very early sites of the Roma people in Europe, on the Messenian peninsula of the southwest Peloponnese, in Greece, and in partnership with archaeologists Dr. Scott Van Keuren and Dr. Vasiliki Koutrafouri, will simultaneously (1) explore local knowledge of the earliest settlements of the Roma people, including among both residents of the immediate area and the closest Romani communities; (2) hold conversations with local, regional, national and transnational stakeholders on the development of a Romani-driven participatory and collaborative archaeology, and on its potential for contribution to local communities; and (3) pursue formal archaeological exploration. The project represents a collaboration with local Roma community members, a nearby majority-Roma primary school, and a consortium of Greek and European Romani organizations. As a project bearing not only upon the past but also upon the present, the Early Romani Archaeologies Project stands against historical erasure, forgetting, and neglect with a bold statement about belonging, cultural heritage, dignity and emplacement.
New FUNDING 24-25: REACH Grant, University of Vermont (van Keuren)