Hungary's 'last' Roma fortuneteller preserves traditions

SOLTVADKERT – Zoltan Sztojka, by his ain relationship Hungary's past Roma fortuneteller, lays 36 weathered tarot cards connected a array astatine his location successful the colony of Soltvadkert, and peers astatine them from beneath the brim of his ample felt hat.

As helium turns the cards with his heavy ringed fingers, helium presents his clients — whom helium calls “patients” — details of their past, contiguous and future, a accomplishment of divination helium says helium inherited from an “unbroken household lineage” of fortunetellers dating backmost to 1601.

“They were fortunetellers and seers,” helium says of generations of his ancestors, who were “chosen by God” to signifier the acquisition of fortunetelling.

Sztojka, 47, whom friends and locals telephone simply “Zoli with the hat,” uses cards and thenar speechmaking to divine accusation astir his clients, a commercialized helium has been practicing for 25 years. His skills astatine seeing the unseeable, helium says, were evident from childhood.

“You're either calved with it oregon you inherit it, but to accidental you tin larn it is humbug,” helium said portion seated successful a country filled with burning candles and spiritual icons, a cigaret dangling from his mouth.

Ad

Sztojka is simply a subordinate of Hungary's ample Roma minority, which immoderate estimates spot astatine arsenic galore arsenic 1 cardinal radical successful the Central European state — astir 10% of its population. Present successful virtually each state successful Europe, galore Roma look racism, segregation, social exclusion and poverty.

First migrating to Hungary successful the 15th century, Roma were known historically for their skills arsenic craftspeople and musicians. They agelong spoke their ain connection and maintained galore dialects and customs related to their trades — metalworkers, equine grooms and traders, musicians and fortunetellers, among others.

But successful the mid-18th century, Habsburg empress Maria Theresa ordered the forced assimilation of the Roma, outlawing their nomadic mode of beingness and the usage of their language, Romani.

Roma children were removed from their homes and placed with non-Roma families, portion usage of the Hungarian connection for Roma — cigany — was besides forbidden. They were dubbed “New Hungarians.”

Ad

This and different processes of marginalization means that astir Roma successful Hungary are nary longer capable to talk the Romani language, and galore of their accepted trades — similar fortunetelling — were lost, said Szilvia Szenasi, manager of the Uccu Roma Informal Educational Foundation.

“Traditional occupations are precise overmuch connected the wane,” Szenasi said. “It is important to sphere them for the adjacent generation, due to the fact that it is done them that the Roma radical tin unrecorded their ain identity.”

For Sztojka, preserving Roma civilization goes beyond keeping the centuries-old creation of fortunetelling alive. He dresses each time successful brilliantly colored vests and shirts adorned with floral people patterns, and wears a accepted long, acheronian moustache.

A devout Catholic, helium lone removes his wide-brimmed chapeau — a trademark of the Gabor Roma clan of Transylvania — erstwhile eating oregon attending church.

“It’s terribly important to sphere our civilization and traditions, due to the fact that if we don’t person a culture, past the Gypsy assemblage volition cease to exist," helium said. “I effort to walk them connected to galore radical truthful they tin truly get to cognize us, due to the fact that each they cognize is that determination are Gypsies, but they don’t cognize thing astir us."

Ad

While successful respective cultures the connection Gypsy is considered an violative term, Sztojka prefers utilizing it to Roma.

He and his household beryllium to the Lovari subgroup of Roma people, and talk the Lovari dialect of Romani — thing helium says is “on the verge of extinction.”

“People don't truly privation to talk the Gypsy language. Everyone assimilates arsenic if abruptly they wanted to beryllium Hungarian,” helium said.

Along with his clairvoyance, Sztojka inherited his 150-year-old tarot cards from his great-great-grandmother, who herself was a fortuneteller successful a clip erstwhile the contented was a overmuch greater portion of Roma identity.

Beatrix Kolompar, 1 of Sztojka's relatives, said that her people's traditions “can separate america arsenic Gypsies, arsenic Roma.”

“Since we don’t person a state of our own, we transportation connected the satellite we unrecorded in, the Roma mode of life, done our traditions,” she said. "The dancing girls, the colorful dresses, the fortunetelling and the fortuneteller, it’s impervious of who we are.”

Ad

But Szenasi, the manager of the Uccu Foundation, says that preserving specified traditions "requires taste recognition, which is precise lacking successful Hungary.”

Without “institutional culture” specified arsenic museums and different taste institutions, she said, "the traditions that the Gypsy radical are doing are dilatory becoming lost, and these values volition unluckily disappear.”

Sztojka says helium has mislaid astir fractional of his concern during the COVID-19 pandemic, but that galore of his “patients” are instrumentality visitors who are convinced of his clairvoyance.

Sztojka makes his surviving from fortunetelling, charging 15,000 Hungarian forints ($50) per session, though helium says helium doesn’t crook mediocre radical away. But helium besides considers it “a mission” that spiritually enriches some him and his customers.

“To work cards is simply a full blessing for me. It’s however I tin assistance my chap quality beings," helium said.

Despite the vanishing of his culture's centuries-old mode of life, “Zoli with the hat” says helium volition ne'er springiness up connected carrying guardant the mystical commercialized of his ancestors.

Ad

“My parents didn’t assimilate, my grandparents didn’t assimilate, and I won’t either. If you person nary past, you person nary future,” Sztojka said.

“I judge that I was calved a Gypsy, and I volition dice a Gypsy.”

Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This worldly whitethorn not beryllium published, broadcast, rewritten oregon redistributed without permission.