The authors of Secrets of Romani Fortune Telling present: Romanistan! Do you love rebels? Do you want to live in a place where outcasts shine their brightest? Welcome to Romanistan! We're your friendly neighborhood Gypsies, celebrating Romani identity and outcast culture, and practicing good diplomatic relations with other marginalized communities.<br><br>We love the rebels who are living their truth, even if it clashes with tradition. We also love tradition and honoring our roots. This podcast is for everyone who loves and supports Roma &amp; related groups, and anyone who feels like a misfit and wants to uplift others to create a beautiful community.&nbsp;<br><br>We feature pioneers in culture, fashion, art, literature, music, activism, cuisine, and everything good. We adore the intersections of gender, sexuality, spirituality, ability, and identity. We cover all topics, from the difficult to the glorious. Let's sit crooked and talk straight.<br><br>Hosted by Paulina Stevens and Jezmina Von Thiele. We reclaim the slur Gypsy, but if you aren’t Romani, we prefer you don't use it. xoxo.&nbsp;<br><br>P.S. The Romani people are a diasporic ethnic group originally from northwest India, circa the 10th century. Now, Roma live all over the globe, and due to centuries of oppression, slavery, genocide, and other atrocities, Roma are still fighting for basic human rights. We seek to raise awareness of who Roma are, and highlight Romani resilience, creativity, &amp; culture.&nbsp;</p>
Sejnur Memisi is a journalist & Roma activist from Germany. He is originally from Kosovo, and escaped 1999 with his family to Germany because of the Kosovo war. He studied Media Management and since April 2020 has produced Podcasts about Sinti & Roma. He began the podcast (Sinti Roma News, formerly RYMEcast) in the German language. 3 of his German speaking Podcast episodes were nominated for media prizes, CIVIS Media Prize & the German Podcast Prize. Since 2023 he is in the Commission Audio for the Civis Media prize, where he can use his vote to nominate other podcasts. In March 2024, he started a new English-language Podcast, “Amaro Voice” about European Roma.
Watch Amaro voice on YouTube, and listen wherever you get podcasts. You can listen to part 1 of this crossover, when Sejnur interviews us, on Amaro Voice. Follow @amaro_voice on Instagram.
The Romani crush this episode is everyone.
Welcome to Romanistan Festival is March 28-30, 2025 in New Orleans!
Thank you for listening to Romanistan podcast.
You can find us on Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook @romanistanpodcast, and on Twitter @romanistanpod. To support us, Join our Patreon for extra content or donate to Ko-fi.com/romanistan, and please rate, review, and subscribe. It helps us so much.
Follow Jez on Instagram @jezmina.vonthiele & Paulina @romaniholistic.
You can get our book Secrets of Romani Fortune Telling, online or wherever books are sold. Visit romanistanpodcast.com for events, educational resources, merch, and more. Please support our book tour fundraiser if you can.
Email us at romanistanpodcast@gmail.com for inquiries.
Romanistan is hosted by Jezmina Von Thiele and Paulina Stevens
Conceived of by Paulina Stevens
Edited by Viktor Pachas
With Music by Viktor Pachas
And Artwork by Elijah Vardo
In this episode, we dive into Romani representation in Robert Eggers' Nosferatu with Madeline Potter, Romani scholar of 19th century Gothic literature! We also get into vampire lore, Romani folklore, mulo, strigoi, and Romani tropes in Gothic literature and media.
Madeline Potter is a research and teaching fellow at the University of Edinburgh, in the literature of the long 19th century (Romanticism to Victorianism). At Edinburgh, she teaches on a range of courses, including one on vampire literature in the long 19th century, which she has designed. Her work primarily looks at Gothic literature and theology: her first academic book is called Theological Monsters: Religion and Irish Gothic and will be published by University of Wales Press. Her first trade book is called The Roma: A Travelling History and will be launched later this year, published by The Bodley Head in the UK and Harper Collins in the USA.
Follow her work on madeline-potter.com and on X and Instagram .
This episode's Romani crush in Katarina Taikon. The two folklore books mentioned are Rromane Paramicha by Hedina Sijercic & Gypsy Folktales by Diane Tong
Our festival, Welcome to Romanistan, is taking place March 28-30, 2025 in New Orleans! Please visit https://www.romanistanpodcast.com/romanistan-festival-neworleans for tickets, and spread the word!
Thank you for listening to Romanistan podcast.
You can find us on Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook @romanistanpodcast, and on Twitter @romanistanpod. To support us, Join our Patreon for extra content or donate to Ko-fi.com/romanistan, and please rate, review, and subscribe. It helps us so much.
Follow Jez on Instagram @jezmina.vonthiele & Paulina @romaniholistic.
You can get our book Secrets of Romani Fortune Telling, online or wherever books are sold. Visit romanistanpodcast.com for events, educational resources, merch, and more. Please support our book tour fundraiser if you can.
Email us at romanistanpodcast@gmail.com for inquiries.
Romanistan is hosted by Jezmina Von Thiele and Paulina Stevens
Conceived of by Paulina Stevens
Edited by Viktor Pachas
With Music by Viktor Pachas
And Artwork by Elijah Vardo
Nancy Black is the alter ego of the journalist and activist Gilda-Nancy Horvath, a Romni from Vienna, Austria. She writes poems in Romanes, English and German which are sometimes translated to music, mainly rap music. Her rap-poem "Trushula" (Crosses) states clearly that the danger of dark history repeating is always present - and that even people from marginalized groups are not safe from being seduced by the very simple answers that far-rights give, which are rooted in fear, hate and anger. Beyond this, she is creator of many projects and consulting governments and politicians.
A few of Gilda's many Romani crushes are Charlie Chaplin, Alina Serban, Kali Michaela, Niko G, all the Romani journalists, Dalibor Tanic and his reporting on the Balkans, and everyone in Gilda's portrait series "Glaso," Cat Jugravo, and the Roma Armee with Sandra Selimović and Simonida Selimović.
Works sampled in this episode are as follows:
"Presidenurija," Love Revolution, Nancy Black
"Trushula," Love Revolution, Nancy Black
"Überschein," unreleased track from a live jam with Nancy Black and the Prizreni Brothers
"Dear Ancestors" by Nancy Black, initially written for a project by Cat Jugravo
Follow Gilda Horvath @nancyblack101
Thank you for listening to Romanistan podcast.
You can find us on Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook @romanistanpodcast, and on Twitter @romanistanpod. To support us, Join our Patreon for extra content or donate to Ko-fi.com/romanistan, and please rate, review, and subscribe. It helps us so much.
Follow Jez on Instagram @jezmina.vonthiele & Paulina @romaniholistic.
You can get our book Secrets of Romani Fortune Telling, online or wherever books are sold. Visit romanistanpodcast.com for events, educational resources, merch, and more. Please support our book tour fundraiser if you can.
Email us at romanistanpodcast@gmail.com for inquiries.
Romanistan is hosted by Jezmina Von Thiele and Paulina Stevens
Conceived of by Paulina Stevens
Edited by Viktor Pachas
With Music by Viktor Pachas
And Artwork by Elijah Vardo
Welcome to season 5! This mini-episode starts with a tarot reading for the year ahead. There’s personal growth and healing in 2025 with the Hermit and the Ace of Cups. Listeners are encouraged to embrace introspection, nurture emotional well-being, and prioritize love in their lives and communities.
• Time for reflection and introspection inspired by the Hermit card
• Healing journey through the lens of the Ace of Cups
• Emphasizing the multifaceted nature of healing experience
• Love as a guiding principle for personal growth
• Gratitude as a practice in welcoming the new year
• Inviting community participation for future episode ideas
• Announcement of upcoming events and connection opportunities
Thank you for listening to Romanistan podcast.
You can find us on Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook @romanistanpodcast, and on Twitter @romanistanpod. To support us, Join our Patreon for extra content or donate to Ko-fi.com/romanistan, and please rate, review, and subscribe. It helps us so much.
Follow Jez on Instagram @jezmina.vonthiele & Paulina @romaniholistic.
You can get our book Secrets of Romani Fortune Telling, online or wherever books are sold. Visit romanistanpodcast.com for events, educational resources, merch, and more. Please support our book tour fundraiser if you can.
Email us at romanistanpodcast@gmail.com for inquiries.
Romanistan is hosted by Jezmina Von Thiele and Paulina Stevens
Conceived of by Paulina Stevens
Edited by Viktor Pachas
With Music by Viktor Pachas
And Artwork by Elijah Vardo
This episode explores the inclusion of the Romani language on Google Translate, featuring Rowena Marin's insights on the intersection of technology and culture. We discuss the journey from grassroots initiatives to digital recognition, the complexities of language preservation, and the opportunities technology can create for the Romani community.
• The journey of Rowena Marin from Romania to Google
• Discussion on the grassroots campaign for Romani language inclusion
• Detailed process for adding the language to Google Translate
• Concerns surrounding AI and authenticity in language translation
• Evolution and representation of different Romani dialects in tech
• Opportunities for promoting Romani literature through digital platforms
Resources: Roma Education Fund
Listen to our first interview with Rowena Marin about her book Who Am I in the World?
Thank you for listening to Romanistan podcast.
You can find us on Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook @romanistanpodcast, and on Twitter @romanistanpod. To support us, Join our Patreon for extra content or donate to Ko-fi.com/romanistan, and please rate, review, and subscribe. It helps us so much.
Follow Jez on Instagram @jezmina.vonthiele & Paulina @romaniholistic.
You can get our book Secrets of Romani Fortune Telling, online or wherever books are sold. Visit romanistanpodcast.com for events, educational resources, merch, and more. Please support our book tour fundraiser if you can. You can give our book a positive review too!
Email us at romanistanpodcast@gmail.com for inquiries.
Romanistan is hosted by Jezmina Von Thiele and Paulina Stevens
Conceived of by Paulina Stevens
Edited by Viktor Pachas
With Music by Viktor Pachas
And Artwork by Elijah Vardo
We spoke with Ylva Mara Radziszewski about Water Always Wanders, a multimedia theatre production of queer and trans Romani artists at the Mudlark Theatre in New Orleans, Louisiana December 6th & 7th from 6:30-9:00 pm cst. Our book, Secrets of Romani Fortune Telling will be for sale along with Loly scarves, and other vendors. This performance will also be a fundraiser for our Welcome to Romanistan Festival in spring 2025, sponsored in part by Weiser Books, our publisher.
We also interviewed Robin Badaire about the rest of season 1 of Agatha All Along, and discussed the whitewashing of Romani characters as well what remained of the Romani stereotypes, and what could have been if the characters had actually been written as Roma.
Thank you for listening to Romanistan podcast.
You can find us on Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook @romanistanpodcast, and on Twitter @romanistanpod. To support us, Join our Patreon for extra content or donate to Ko-fi.com/romanistan, and please rate, review, and subscribe. It helps us so much.
Follow Jez on Instagram @jezmina.vonthiele & Paulina @romaniholistic.
You can get our book Secrets of Romani Fortune Telling, online or wherever books are sold. Visit romanistanpodcast.com for events, educational resources, merch, and more. Please support our book tour fundraiser if you can.
Email us at romanistanpodcast@gmail.com for inquiries.
Romanistan is hosted by Jezmina Von Thiele and Paulina Stevens
Conceived of by Paulina Stevens
Edited by Viktor Pachas
With Music by Viktor Pachas
And Artwork by Elijah Vardo
What if spirits could communicate through a simple hair comb? And what role do children play in spiritual practices? Join us as we uncover these mysteries and more, during our vibrant journey on the Good Morning Romanistan book tour. From Portland to Portsmouth, we’ve been embraced by amazing communities and experienced transformative events like our ancestral tarot workshop with Chagall PAC. Listen in as we recount our delightful stop at Cheese Louise and the heartwarming welcome from the queer community at the Sapphic Salon in Newmarket, New Hampshire.
Throughout our travels, we've also faced the challenges of planning and funding a national tour. Yet, support from fans donating to our GoFundMe allows us to reach more destinations. Our journey isn't just about reaching new cities; it's about forging meaningful connections.
We share the except of a poem “The Cursed Legend of Baba Yaga’s Ravenous Spirit” by Shari X Insanity @sharixinsanity and a ghost story from listener Nina Huertas Kaur. Then we share our own ghost stories!
In our last segment, Romani representation in mainstream media remains an important topic to us, and we dive into the portrayal of Lilia Calderu in Agatha All Along with our return guest Robin Badaire.
Thank you for listening to Romanistan podcast.
You can find us on Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook @romanistanpodcast, and on Twitter @romanistanpod. To support us, Join our Patreon for extra content or donate to Ko-fi.com/romanistan, and please rate, review, and subscribe. It helps us so much.
Follow Jez on Instagram @jezmina.vonthiele & Paulina @romaniholistic.
You can get our book Secrets of Romani Fortune Telling, online or wherever books are sold. Visit romanistanpodcast.com for events, educational resources, merch, and more. Please support our book tour fundraiser if you can.
Email us at romanistanpodcast@gmail.com for inquiries.
Romanistan is hosted by Jezmina Von Thiele and Paulina Stevens
Conceived of by Paulina Stevens
Edited by Viktor Pachas
With Music by Viktor Pachas
And Artwork by Elijah Vardo
Andra Zlătescu is a musician, performer, and illustrator, who performs as part of the band Willow Switch, Spindle Collective, and as a solo performer. Andra plays the singing saw (a carpentry saw played with a violin bow that evokes the haunting wail of the wind in the trees), banjo, guitar, and sings. Andra is passionate about creation that serves to act as a spell to open the doorways- to honour the land, their ancestors and traditions, to celebrate the bodies’ connection with the cycles of the seasons and death//life//death; To invoke the daemons of the crossroads- crossroads of paths meeting, of ancestry, of the past and future as they simultaneously exist within the present moment to weave our stories through time and sing us into the ancestors we are in the process of becoming. Andra premiered at TIFF as one of the main subjects in the documentary COVEN, a film exploring the relationship between Witchcraft and feminism. Willow Switch just released their first album on Samhain and completed two music and pagan Festival tours across Ontario. You can find them on Spotify and Apple Music. Andra is currently in the process of recording a solo album at Half Moon Studio in Toronto.
The Romani crush this episode is Mariska Veres, lead singer of Shocking Blue.
Thank you for listening to Romanistan podcast.
You can find us on Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook @romanistanpodcast, and on Twitter @romanistanpod. To support us, Join our Patreon for extra content or donate to Ko-fi.com/romanistan, and please rate, review, and subscribe. It helps us so much.
Follow Jez on Instagram @jezmina.vonthiele & Paulina @romaniholistic.
You can get our book Secrets of Romani Fortune Telling, online or wherever books are sold. Visit romanistanpodcast.com for events, educational resources, merch, and more. Please support our book tour fundraiser if you can. Join us for the Welcome to Romanistan Festival from December 3-8, 2024 in New Orleans!
Email us at romanistanpodcast@gmail.com for inquiries.
Romanistan is hosted by Jezmina Von Thiele and Paulina Stevens
Conceived of by Paulina Stevens
Edited by Viktor Pachas
With Music by Viktor Pachas
And Artwork by Elijah Vardo
Angeliska Polacheck (they/she) is an Austin, Texas based writer, healer, and professional tarot reader. Devoted to helping seekers find their path, they utilize the tarot in a compassionate and trauma-informed combination of visionary mystic counseling and energy work. Angeliska has been working with the tarot for over 30 years now, and has been reading for clients professionally since 1999. Their dedication and genuine passion for creating joyful and intriguing connections has led to acclaim and recognition from the Chronicle's Best of Austin Awards as Austin's Best Tarot Reader/Psychic for the past ten years running.
Their writing has been published in NILVX I(II): A Book of Magic, The Folk Horror Revival: Corpse Roads, Arcana: The Tarot Poetry Anthology, Coilhouse Magazine, Tank Magazine, and Astrology.com.
You can read their personal writing at: www.angeliska.com and learn more about their tarot divination services and healing work at Sister Temperance Tarot: www.sistertemperance.com
Follow at @angeliska and @sistertemperancetarot
Romani crushes this episode are Jennileen Joseph @sastimosholistichealth, Katelan Foisy @katelanfoisy
Thank you for listening to Romanistan podcast.
You can find us on Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook @romanistanpodcast, and on Twitter @romanistanpod. To support us, Join our Patreon for extra content or donate to Ko-fi.com/romanistan, and please rate, review, and subscribe. It helps us so much.
Follow Jez on Instagram @jezmina.vonthiele & Paulina @romaniholistic.
You can get our book Secrets of Romani Fortune Telling, online or wherever books are sold. Visit romanistanpodcast.com for events, educational resources, merch, and more. Please support our book tour fundraiser if you can.
Email us at romanistanpodcast@gmail.com for inquiries.
Romanistan is hosted by Jezmina Von Thiele and Paulina Stevens
Conceived of by Paulina Stevens
Edited by Viktor Pachas
With Music by Viktor Pachas
And Artwork by Elijah Vardo
April Wall is an author and international psychic medium with twenty years of experience helping clients sort through life’s ups and downs. A proud Romany, she carries on the traditions started by the strong women in her family, especially her great-grandmother, great aunt, and granny, or as she refers to them, April’s Angels. Find her online at namastemagical.com to book a reading and keep up to date through her social media accounts by following her on Instagram and TikTok at @namastemagical. All three of her books Reading Tarot, Reading Tea Leaves, and Deciphering Angel Numbers, can be found anywhere books are sold.
Romani crushes this episode are Christine Ford of Romany Art, Lucy Doe Designs, Elijah Vardo, & Florian Tacorian.
Thank you for listening to Romanistan podcast.
You can find us on Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook @romanistanpodcast, and on Twitter @romanistanpod. To support us, Join our Patreon for extra content or donate to Ko-fi.com/romanistan, and please rate, review, and subscribe. It helps us so much.
Follow Jez on Instagram @jezmina.vonthiele & Paulina @romaniholistic.
You can get our book Secrets of Romani Fortune Telling, online or wherever books are sold. Visit romanistanpodcast.com for events, educational resources, merch, and more.
Email us at romanistanpodcast@gmail.com for inquiries.
Romanistan is hosted by Jezmina Von Thiele and Paulina Stevens
Conceived of by Paulina Stevens
Edited by Viktor Pachas
With Music by Viktor Pachas
And Artwork by Elijah Vardo
Amanda is a wife. A mother. A blogger. A Christian.
A charming, beautiful, bubbly, young woman who lives life to the fullest.
But Amanda is dying, with a secret she doesn’t want anyone to know.
She starts a blog detailing her cancer journey, and becomes an inspiration, touching and
captivating her local community as well as followers all over the world.
Until one day investigative producer Nancy gets an anonymous tip telling her to look at Amanda’s
blog, setting Nancy on an unimaginable road to uncover Amanda’s secret.
Award winning journalist Charlie Webster explores this unbelievable and bizarre, but
all-too-real tale, of a woman from San Jose, California whose secret ripped a family apart and
left a community in shock.
Scamanda is the true story of a woman whose own words held the key to her secret.
New episodes every Monday.
Follow Scamanda on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen.
Amanda’s blog posts are read by actor Kendall Horn.