Romani people in Arkansas

There were two waves of Romani immigration to Arkansas. Romanichals, who can trace their ancestry to England and Ireland, made up the initial wave. These Romani were forced to immigrate at the beginning. The Lord Protector of England, Oliver Cromwell, expelled a great number of Romanichals in 1664 and sent them as forced labor to the Virginia colonies. These people were the first Romanies to come to America. When their demands for forced labor were satisfied or an opportunity to flee arose, these Romanichals relocated to the Southeast. Many of the Romanichals returned to their original nomadic lifestyle in order to avoid plantation life. There are still Romanichal communities in Arkansas, particularly in the northwest and north central regions of the state.