The Code
The romani people generally live by a set of rules, that is, the Romanipen, a single integration of Romani philosophy taking into account law, religion and culture. Rather than form a strict collection of unyielding rules, the Romanipen has been open to variation, usually as a result of the conditions surrounding the particular group of people, forcing them to adapt in order to remain on as neutral terms with the non-Romani people around them with the least amount of compromisation of their culture.
However, the Romani do require members of their groups to have at least some form of Romanipen, with those who choose to disregard it totally being expelled from their society, the largest form of shaming a Romani may undergo. Similarly, if a non-ethnic Romani living within their society demonstrated utmost respect and reflected the Romanipen in their actions and behaviour, they could then be deemed a Romani. This usually was the case with adopted children of non-Romani descent.
However, the Romani do require members of their groups to have at least some form of Romanipen, with those who choose to disregard it totally being expelled from their society, the largest form of shaming a Romani may undergo. Similarly, if a non-ethnic Romani living within their society demonstrated utmost respect and reflected the Romanipen in their actions and behaviour, they could then be deemed a Romani. This usually was the case with adopted children of non-Romani descent.