Born in Prague, David Z. Scheffel spent his early years in Czechoslovakia, Austria, and the Netherlands. His interest in anthropology took him to several European and Canadian universities where he specialized in Polar and Russian studies.  Author of the original research for the 1989 National Film Board of Canada production The Old Believers, he obtained his doctorate from McMaster University, and now teaches at Thompson Rivers University in British Columbia.

• List of Tables and Figures Acknowledgements Introduction 1. A Fragmented Community The Setting The People The Numbers Inter-ethnic Relations Education Religion Local Politics 2. Inside the Osada The Roma and their Environment Making a Living Sex and Procreation The Family and the Community Deviance, Handicaps, and Pathology Music, Dogs, and Celebrations Relations with the Outside World 3. Romani Marginality in Historical Perspective The Traditional Pattern The First Czechoslovak Republic (1918-1938) and World War II The Socialist Era (1948-1989) Post-war Modernization in Svinia The entrenchment of socialism during the 1950s Uneven development during the 1960s Criminalization and segregation in the 1970s The deepening crisis in the 1980s The post-communist era Conclusions: What Went Wrong in Svinia? Notes Bibliography Index

Born in Prague, David Z. Scheffel spent his early years in Czechoslovakia, Austria, and the Netherlands. His interest in anthropology took him to several European and Canadian universities where he specialized in Polar and Russian studies.  Author of the original research for the 1989 National Film Board of Canada production The Old Believers, he obtained his doctorate from McMaster University, and now teaches at Thompson Rivers University in British Columbia.

• List of Tables and Figures Acknowledgements Introduction 1. A Fragmented Community The Setting The People The Numbers Inter-ethnic Relations Education Religion Local Politics 2. Inside the Osada The Roma and their Environment Making a Living Sex and Procreation The Family and the Community Deviance, Handicaps, and Pathology Music, Dogs, and Celebrations Relations with the Outside World 3. Romani Marginality in Historical Perspective The Traditional Pattern The First Czechoslovak Republic (1918-1938) and World War II The Socialist Era (1948-1989) Post-war Modernization in Svinia The entrenchment of socialism during the 1950s Uneven development during the 1960s Criminalization and segregation in the 1970s The deepening crisis in the 1980s The post-communist era Conclusions: What Went Wrong in Svinia? Notes Bibliography Index

Born in Prague, David Z. Scheffel spent his early years in Czechoslovakia, Austria, and the Netherlands. His interest in anthropology took him to several European and Canadian universities where he specialized in Polar and Russian studies.  Author of the original research for the 1989 National Film Board of Canada production The Old Believers, he obtained his doctorate from McMaster University, and now teaches at Thompson Rivers University in British Columbia.

• List of Tables and Figures Acknowledgements Introduction 1. A Fragmented Community The Setting The People The Numbers Inter-ethnic Relations Education Religion Local Politics 2. Inside the Osada The Roma and their Environment Making a Living Sex and Procreation The Family and the Community Deviance, Handicaps, and Pathology Music, Dogs, and Celebrations Relations with the Outside World 3. Romani Marginality in Historical Perspective The Traditional Pattern The First Czechoslovak Republic (1918-1938) and World War II The Socialist Era (1948-1989) Post-war Modernization in Svinia The entrenchment of socialism during the 1950s Uneven development during the 1960s Criminalization and segregation in the 1970s The deepening crisis in the 1980s The post-communist era Conclusions: What Went Wrong in Svinia? Notes Bibliography Index