Kris ( rom, kris) or Kris-Romani is a traditional

court A court is any person or institution, often as a government institution, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between parties and carry out the administration of justice in civil, criminal, and administrative matters in accordance ...

for conflict resolution in the culture of Vlax branch of the

Romani people The Romani (also spelled Romany or Rromani , ), colloquially known as the Roma, are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group, traditionally nomadic itinerants. They live in Europe and Anatolia, and have diaspora populations located worldwide, with sig ...

. The term derives from the

Greek language Greek ( el, label=Modern Greek, Ελληνικά, Elliniká, ; grc, Ἑλληνική, Hellēnikḗ) is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages, native to Greece, Cyprus, southern Italy (Calabria and Salento), southern Al ...

, "κρίση" (judgment). It is a key institution for enforcing the Romani Code ( rom, romano zakono; zakonuri) within

Romanipen The Romani people are a distinct ethnic and cultural group of peoples living all across the globe, who share a family of languages and sometimes a traditional nomadic mode of life. Though their exact origins are unclear, central India is a not ...

. It developed in the area of present-day

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...

, during the times of the

slavery Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...

, as a judicial institution of the local Romanies, in order to enforce the community cohesion and its internal balance. After the abolition, from the half of the 19th century onwards, many Vlax Romanies emigrated in the rest of the world, bringing with them the kris as part of their cultural luggage. More or less formal proceedings exist also among other Romani branches. Some non-Vlax Romanies adopted this institution, like the Drzara from Sweden (originally from

Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...

), in contact with the local

Kalderash The Kalderash are a subgroup of the Romani people. They were traditionally coppersmiths and metal workers and speak a number of Romani dialects grouped together under the term Kalderash Romani, a sub-group of Vlax Romani. The Kalderash of the ...

Proceedings

The kris covers issues involving only Romani parties, since those involving also non-Romani parties are dealt by non-Romani institutions. In the Romani dispute resolution, it is used as the last resort. Many unsettled issues (if their gravity would not require a kris obviously from the start) are dealt informally through involvement of other members from the local communities. This may take the shape of a ''divano'', an informal gathering of clan leaders of the conflicting parties and other local influential and respected Romanies (the presence of the parties themselves is optional). If they consider a certain settlement possible, this amounts only to a recommendation. If the parties still do not agree and the issue remains unsettled, the kris is convened as the formal instrument for the dispute resolutions. Although customs vary according to local tradition, the basic form of the kris involves the conflicting parties making their appeals to the ''krisnitorya'' (singular: ''krisnitori'', also in other variants, ''krisnatory'', ''krisari'', ''krisatore''), respected Romanies appointed by communal acclamation to preside over the kris. The number of krisnitorya is odd, usually between five and eleven. Other members of the group not directly involved in the conflict may participate by presenting their own statements on the nature of the conflict, or on the character of the involved parties. Formerly, only married males were allowed to argue a case or present evidence at a kris, with females' and unmarried males' interests being represented by their married male relatives. However, in the modern era it is more common for married women to take an active part in a kris as one of the conflicting parties, or as a witness. In some areas, for example in the United States, women have begun to serve as ''krisnitori''. The debates are kept only in

Romani language Romani (; also Romany, Romanes , Roma; rom, rromani ćhib, links=no) is an Indo-Aryan macrolanguage of the Romani communities. According to '' Ethnologue'', seven varieties of Romani are divergent enough to be considered languages of their ...

, with a legal register, otherwise unused in the daily speech. In order to enforce the veracity of the communication, various

oath Traditionally an oath (from Anglo-Saxon ', also called plight) is either a statement of fact or a promise taken by a sacrality as a sign of verity. A common legal substitute for those who conscientiously object to making sacred oaths is to ...

s are taken in the name of the ancestors ( rom, mule) or other culturally powerful images. The judgements of the kris are designed to maintain the integrity of the Romani community and uphold the Romanipen. Its proceedings are oriented to reinforce the ''kintala'' (balance), an important notion of the Romanipen. Considering that there is no absolute truth (as a

shame society Shame is an unpleasant self-conscious emotion often associated with negative self-evaluation; motivation to quit; and feelings of pain, exposure, distrust, powerlessness, and worthlessness. Definition Shame is a discrete, basic emotion, d ...

, in contrast with the usually local non-Romani guilt societies) and each party has its own truth, the krisnitorya seek mainly to restore the mutual respect between the involved parties. Their final decisions should consider a future harmony, since, according to its success and durability in time, the Romani community will consider whether they keep being qualified krisnitorya. If it is concluded that an imbalance happened and its nature and gravity make very difficult restoring the balance with reconciliation, then reparations and punishments are also considered. These may range from fines ( rom, glaba) paid by the guilty to the injured party, to the guilty party being declared ''marime'' ('unclean') for a period of time, and banished ( rom, shudine/chhudine) from the community. The period of time may be fixed, or until the guilty will pay the fine or will restore a former status quo. The most extreme sentence is for a Romani person to be declared ''marime'' for all time, and thus permanently excluded from the Romani community, a horrific fate amongst the Roma. In former times, the

death sentence Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the state-sanctioned practice of deliberately killing a person as a punishment for an actual or supposed crime, usually following an authorized, rule-governed process to conclude that ...

was also a possible punishment in some Romani groups, although it is not known to have been practiced for a very long time. If all parties are found guilty and fines are paid, usually these are given to the poor Romanies. Also the punishment may include unpaid work for the local Romani community. The injured party, also in order to reinforce the balance and restore the harmony with the guilty, may renounce a part of the reparations they are entitled to. The decisions of the kris are definitive (there are no higher Romani courts) and they are enforced by the moral pressure of the Romani community.

Non-Romani contexts

Non-Romani authorities have not recognized the kris despite voices that call for otherwise, reminiscent of the Canadian approach to integrating the Aboriginal courts in its legal system. In Romania, in January 2008, about 500 krisnitorya initiated the ''European Committee of the Romani Krisnitorya''. In Canada, the Romani activist

Ronald Lee Ronald Lee (1934January 25, 2020) was a Romani Canadian writer, linguist, professor, folk musician, and activist. He studied Romani society and culture and worked to foster intercultural dialogue between Roma and Non-Roma. Early life and educat ...

has sought to use the kris as a way of promoting greater understanding between the Romani and non-Romani communities. There are also references to the kris in popular culture. For example, in 1997, filmmaker

Bence Gyöngyössy ''The native form of this personal name is Gyöngyössy Bence. This article uses Western name order when mentioning individuals.'' Bence Gyöngyössy (born 26 November 1963 in Budapest) '' Balázs Béla-díj'' winning Hungarian film producer, ...

made the film '' Romani kris - Cigánytörvény'', which was also Hungary's submission for

Best Foreign Language Film This is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various film, festivals, and people's awards. Best Actor/Best Actress *See Best Actor#Film awards, Best Actress#F ...

at the

Academy Awards The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

that year. In 2007, Laurenţiu Calciu produced the documentary film ''Judecătorul – O Krisnitori'', about the life of Marin ''Sută'' Constantin, a krisnitori from the Obreja neighborhood of

Târgu Jiu Târgu Jiu () is the capital of Gorj County in the Oltenia region of Romania. It is situated on the Southern Sub-Carpathians, on the banks of the river Jiu. Eight localities are administered by the city: Bârsești, Drăgoieni, Iezureni, Polata, ...

. In addition, the Kris is also portrayed in multiple episodes of the Hulu original ''Shut Eye,'' in an effort to resolve conflict between characters in Romani families.

Proceedings

Non-Romani contexts

Sources

Further reading

See also