Abstract:

Each ethnic group has its own communication symbols, with which the members of a given community can communicate with each other. That includes the language and cultural practices of a community. Although the Romani language was first standardised on the basis of the fundamental principles of the Slovak grammar, it has different rules. In the last century, the Romani language was mainly a spoken language, which meant that the rules of written language were not laid down. A number of questions have arisen with regard to the codification of the Romani language: Are Romani dialects spoken around the world dialects of a language or rather a language family comprising closely-related languages? Which of Romani languages/dialects is the most easily understood? Which language/dialect can be considered ‘presentable’? Which of them should be used at important international conferences? Which language/dialect important international conventions should be translated into? The aim of the study is to map the situation of the Romani language and to point out that although the Romani language was codified in 2008 research has shown that it is not intelligible to all Roma groups. We try to answer the question whether it is possible to integrate Roma language into the process of education.

Keywords:

Roma, literacy, language, codification, grammar.