The Last Carpathian Romanians

[aherne]

As late as 2008, in remote vilages in Upper Ung valley in Transcarpathia, a previously unknown Romanian group has been discovered to have miraculously survived Russification for over 600 years. They are about 10.000 in number and the only surviving remnants of once numerous Carpathian Romanians (who used to sparsely inhabit the whole mountainous Transcarpathia before Russians came in much greater numbers around 14th century AD). They preserve our ethnic name (Romani) and they are called by their neighbors using the old-Russian name for our people (Volokh). Their language is based on Medieval Romanian and easily intelligible, but physically they have lots of Slavic admixture. Typical villagers:


More pictures to come...

[aherne]

More pictures...

[aherne]

It seems I was wrong. These people are totally Romanian looking (faces you will always see everywhere in Romania) and what is all the more incredible is that they mostly lack visible Slavic admixture (in Maramures region and Bessarabia it's much higher). It seems they managed to survive by remaining endogamous and extremely fertile. A few blonds do exist, but it seems they are as rare as here in Southern Romania. Among the pictures posted, there is one Gypsy-Romanian mix. I challenge you to find him. More pics:

[Daos]

I assume you're referring to the Romanians from Poroscova, however according to the news articles I've read they total only 1600 people.



The child on the left looks remarkably similar to my mother at that age.

Here's a photograph by Robin Benea:

[aherne]

Nu traiesc doar acolo, ci raspanditi prin satele din bazinul superior al raului Ung/Uzh. Cifra totala pare umflata, intr-adevar, probabil o estimare incluzand oameni de origini recente Romanesti. Vorbitori de romana arhaica sunt numerosi in doua sate, Mircea si Poroscova, unde traiesc alaturi de tigani cu care impart acelasi statut social. Baietelul din fundal e clar corcitura:

Figurile par mai obisnuite in Sudul Romaniei. Foarte ciudata e raritatea influentei slave.

[Daos]

Da, majoritatea românilor ce-o rămas peste Tisa o fost asimilați, numa pe lângă graniță mai știu să fie în număr mai mare.



Romanians are in yellow, and I also found a list of the Romanian localities in Zakarpattia.

[Nurzat]

i goes both ways - romanians of ukraine gone ukrainian, ukrainians of romania gone romanian. it is a loss for both sides, especially as the carpathian highlanders have a unique and archaic folklore, architecture, dress tradition and they should keep it at least for the sundays, important religion days and the festivals, not bury them in museums

[aherne]

Seems like "Ukrainians" from same environs are of same Romanian origins, only Slavicized:

^ You would say these are some kids from our villages, but they live in Obava, in upper Latorica basin (Transcarpatia). Such faces are totally uncharacteristic for Russians in general, but very much so for Romanians (including barely visible traces of Slavic admixture in girls).

More Romanian speakers from Poroskovo:



^ Once again typical Romanian faces. Note the incredibly archaic lifestyles of these people.

[Aramis]

Note the incredibly archaic lifestyles of these people.

Reminds me of a documentary I once saw about rural Mongolians and their lifestyle.

[Lithium]

No offence, but some of them look like the gypsies called "копанари" in Bulgaria.