Södertörn researcher entrusted with unique collection of Romani heritage
Jan Selling, professor of critical Romani studies at Södertörn University, and the journalist Agnes Lakatos have been appointed trustees of The Romani Archives and Documentation Centre (RADOC) – the world’s largest collection of material on Romani culture and history. In association with this donation, Ian Hancock, RADOC’s founder and director, has expressed his desire that the collection finds a new home in Sweden.
“This is a great honour – for Sweden, for the universities involved and for us personally. Making the archive accessible in Europe, in a context in which Roma can themselves access it, will be an invaluable resource for knowledge production from a Romani perspective,” say Agnes Lakatos and Jan Selling, whom Ian Hancock has entrusted with guiding the project home.
The result of 50 years’ work
RADOC has more than 12,000 objects, including books, photographs, audio and video material, and documents from academic disciplines such as linguistics, history and literature. The collection is the result of Hancock’s work, spanning more than five decades, to document Roma voices and experiences. Until now, RADOC has been located at the University of Texas in Austin, where Hancock has worked as a researcher and managed the archive. It has also functioned as an academic hub for Romani studies in the US.
“The collections reflect Ian Hancock’s academic life work. With his Roma background and critical approach, he has challenged established conceptions in Romani studies and become an academic role model for Roma around the world,” says Selling.
Jan Selling, professor Critical romani studies
Support for research in Romani studies
In a written statement, Hancock expresses his desire for the collection to promote research into Romani language, history and antiziganism, and to provide resources for Roma scholars and civil rights activists. He specifically mentions Gothenburg and Lund universities as suitable recipients, while emphasising Södertörn University as a natural partner thanks to its initiatives in critical Roma studies and Romani language education.
“We will be travelling a bumpy road to make this vision reality. What we now want is for the universities to step in and realise that this is a unique opportunity for fulfilling Roma rights,” says Selling.
Working group with representatives from Romani civil society
Selling and Agnes Lakatos regard this donation as an opportunity for Sweden to take greater responsibility for Roma rights. A working group has been formed to drive the project forward, and includes representatives from academia and Roma civil society.
The collection provides Roma people with tools to write their own history, shape their future and create new paths for education, research and political organisation. Bringing the archive to Sweden is concrete contribution to breaking a historical pattern of exclusion, creating a space for the Roma’s own voice – in academia, society and collective memory,” says Lakatos.
Jan Selling is a professor of critical Romani studies at Södertörn University and researcher in Roma history and antiziganism. He has published several books and been a driving force in establishing critical Roma studies as an academic field in Sweden.
Agnes Lakatos is a journalist at Radio Romano and has reported on Roma issues and produced documentaries on Roma culture and history for over two decades. The Swedish Government has tasked Södertörn University with promoting the minority language Romani Čhib, and the university has established itself as a national knowledge centre for Roma language and culture through its education and research.
Working group: Hans Caldaras – artist, author, Soraya Post – politician and former EU parliamentarian, Sunita Memetovic – lawyer, Alma Dzafic Ferhatovic – filmmaker and student, Dezső Mate – researcher at Europa-Universität Flensburg and Heidelberg, Egil Asprem – professor of the history of religions at Stockholm University, Mujo Halilovic – head of unit at the Roma Information and Knowledge Center in Malmö, Elisabeth Rundqvist – National Library of Sweden.
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- Page last updated
- 2025-10-20