I am certain from my own research it was a specific offence to be an 'Egyptian' until 1780s, which is a Gypsy, so effectively Romanies were criminalised from birth. (The death penalty for this offence was a later ammendment to the act in Mary's reign). I am certain people were executed for it in the United Kingdom, in the century from 1560-1660, and have several different examples with names, in my forthcoming books.
Could you please provide the evidence, in England/Wales law, that 'Romanies' were 'criminalised from birth' and thus subject to the 'death penalty' just for being born 'Romany'.
Also evidence of 'executions'.
Similarly with the transportees I have examples from 1669 onwards of Romany people (including Smiths) transported to America. 100% indisputedly Romany people, with evidence again, from both sides of the pond. I won't go into detail here, but again this will be in my books for those who care to know about this period in history.
I already 'know about this period in history' and I also know a fair bit about Crime and Punishment', especially convict transportation.
I have no doubt that some, a small minority, of the many convicts who were transported to the colonies were Romany but they were transported because, like the rest, they broke the law.
You say you have 'evidence' that Romany Gypsies were transported or executed specifically just for being a Gypsy, but you do not post any laws or examples, just that 'it will be in my book'.
"'autosomal' tests cannot tell you your 'ethnicity', especially below 15%."
You are correct there. I never suggested it can. Just adding my contribution that as someone whose maternal line is Romany, documented in the records, this shows in my DNA in the haplogroup U3b, which is the dominant mtDNA halpogroup for Romanies in Western and Northern Europe. This possibly also shows in the autosomal results as the 1.1% South Asain..possibly not.
mtDNA spans thousands of years, ultimately ALL Europeans migrated from outside Europe at certain points in the past.
... But given that the community is insular, originates in India, and Indian Y Haplogroups are still found in levels from 20-60% across Europe, and maternal Indian haplogroups too in smaller proportion, I'd be surprised if a great deal of Romany people didn't show South Asain in some proportion. I believe the Romany DNA project of Donald Locke and the Leicester University British Romany DNA project both confirm this with average results ranging from 1 to 15% (from memory).
Thanks for your input to my post Sally.
I know about the Leicester project but that was a Y haplo scientific study and was nothing to do with Donald Locke or any commercial Family History DNA testing. As far as I remember it, Donald Locke's ancestors left Britain for America in the late? 19th century.
Y haplo testing is not the same as mtDNA testing and the mtDNA result you refer to does not originate in 'India'
It is true that some Romany men will have the Y haplo group, but this is only a test for one male direct line, and more importantly, there would have been other routes/reasons, apart from Romany migration, for this group appearing in Europe
