The Dom are a clan whose origins go back to northwest India. The life of its people was characterized by movement and travel around the world, and some of them settled in the Palestinian territories, especially in the city of Jerusalem.
Its members were famous for practicing blacksmithing, playing, and dancing, and they tried to preserve their language and culture despite the social and economic challenges they faced under the Israeli occupation.
Migration and lineage
The origins of the Dom clan go back to northwest India, and their migration began at the beginning of the 11th century, and their life was characterized by continuous travel until the late 20th century.
Some immigrants from India headed towards Europe, while others settled in the Middle East and North Africa, and were distributed among the Levant, Iran, Turkey, and Egypt. Weak accounts indicate that they descended from Arab origins from the Bani Murra and Bani Tamim tribes.
Researchers believe that their migration from India was for one of two main reasons: the first was that they were subjected to persecution because of their belonging to a low class within the Indian caste system, and the second was the economic motive of seeking to improve their living conditions.
The Doms of Palestine constitute the smallest group compared to their communities spread around the world. They arrived there after their first migration to Persia, then they were distributed in the cities of Jerusalem, Ramallah, Nablus, and Gaza and settled there.
Popular sources narrate that they entered Palestine with the leader Salah al-Din al-Ayyubi when he conquered Jerusalem, and he used their skill in making swords and spears due to their work in blacksmithing.
Despite the absence of accurate statistics about them, some estimate their number in the Gaza Strip at about 3,000 people, while about a third of this number is distributed throughout the various regions of the West Bank.
Before the Nakba, the Dom lived in tents erected on the road leading from Jerusalem to the city of Nablus. They later moved to wooden huts that extended along the eastern wall of the Old City, before settling inside the walls near the Lions’ Gate.
With the outbreak of the Nakba of 1948 and then the Nakba of 1967, many Doms were forced to immigrate like all other Palestinians, and most of them settled in Jordan, and an estimated 1,500 members of the tribe remained in Jerusalem, distributed in the Old City, the town of Issawiya, Shuafat Camp, Ras al-Amud, and Silwan.
Their presence is concentrated in Old Jerusalem in the northeastern corner, in the area extending from Bab al-Asbat and Bab Hatta neighborhood all the way to Burj al-Luqluq, and the most prominent of their families are al-Nimr, al-Buarani, and Salim.
Dom clans around the world have a flag that symbolizes them, consisting of two main colors: blue and green. Blue refers to the sky and green to plants, in an expression of their nature associated with movement and travel.
Reason for naming
The name Dom goes back to the ancient Sanskrit language. In its linguistic origin, it means an adult man, but within India it refers to those who perform music, music, and funeral rituals. Later, it came to be called the groups that migrated from India and settled in the Middle East and North Africa, while those who migrated to Europe were called “Rom,” and to Turkey and the Caucasus region were called “Lum.”
Sometimes they are called Gypsies, which is derived from the Old English word “Gypsy”, which means “Egyptians”, based on a widespread belief that the origins of the Dom go back to Egypt.
The Dom were also known by other names, most of which carried negative connotations that they did not approve of, the most prominent of which was the title “Al-Nour,” which researchers believe was derived from the word fire due to their practice of blacksmithing, or from the Persian word “norda,” which means traveler, but with the passage of time it acquired a meaning that does not befit the reputation of this sect.
Mixed language
The city of Jerusalem is full of unique cultural and linguistic diversity, due to its embrace of a mixture of immigrants, ethnicities, and religions throughout history.
Arabic, Hebrew, and English are widespread among residents of Jerusalem, in addition to other less common languages such as Armenian – which is widespread among members of the Armenian community – and French, used in monasteries and the tourism sector, as well as the Dom language, which is spoken by members of the clan.
The Dom language falls within the Indo-European languages, which are not linguistically related to Arabic in terms of origin, and it is sometimes called the “Asfour language.”
Because its speakers were influenced by other Arabic speakers, its grammatical structures were affected over time, making it different in structure from the language of their ancestors, some of whom immigrated to Europe, despite the close linguistic roots between them.
Their mingling with Arabs also led to a significant decline in the use of their original language, as Arabic dominated their daily lives. Most members of the new generation no longer understood anything from their original language except a limited number of common words.
Professions and crafts
Since ancient times, the Dom have been distinguished by their mastery of the blacksmithing profession. At the beginning of the 20th century, they were given the nickname “Father of Nails,” due to their prowess in making war equipment, horseshoes, artificial metal teeth, plowing tools, silver jewelry, and others.
Since their migration, they have also been known for their skill in music, singing and dancing, which made them stand out in hosting parties and presenting dance performances, in addition to circus performances in which they became famous for taming animals, such as bears and monkeys.
In their commercial transactions, the Dom relied on the system of bartering goods and services instead of using money, and in the modern era, their integration into the societies in which they reside led to a decline in these stereotypical professions that were associated with their name, and many of them turned to modern professions such as trade, industry, and engineering.
Customs and traditions
Doms are characterized by distinctive customs and traditions that form an essential part of their cultural identity, the most prominent of which is arranged marriage at an early age for both sexes.
They are also known for their love of bright, bright colors such as yellow, orange, red and gold, which is clearly evident in their embroidered clothes with interwoven patterns.
Their traditions also include special seasons of celebration, the most important of which are the “spring season,” which takes place on the second Friday of April every year, and the “Thursday of the Dead,” in which they distribute colored eggs and dumplings in honor of the souls of the dead and to celebrate renewed life.
As for death rituals, the clan used to slaughter a sheep before taking the body of the deceased out of the house, then distribute sweets to the neighbors, and in the cemetery a week later.
Below the poverty line
The Dom clan suffers from difficult living conditions. Before the 1948 Nakba, they lived in tents made of camel hair, then they moved to marginal and isolated rooms within the walls of the Old City.
Then, after the occupation of Jerusalem, Israel’s violations against its residents increased the economic marginalization of the tribe and the deterioration of its standard of living, until it became the poorest community in the Jerusalem environment, with most of its members living below the poverty line.
Dom children face the problem of dropping out of school, and one of the reasons for this is due to the racism they are exposed to among their peers, which leads to high unemployment rates within the Dom community, and the spread of some social ills such as begging.
Despite these challenges, the clan seeks to involve its members in community institutions to develop their skills and qualify them for effective participation in the fabric of society. The Jerusalemite community also makes efforts to support them financially and morally, which contributes to enhancing their integration and improving their living conditions.
Political positions
The Dom clan adopts the principle of not getting involved in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict at the political and security levels, and considers this position to protect it given that it is a minority in Jerusalemite society.
However, neutrality did not protect them from the suffering that Palestinians experience under Israeli occupation, as restrictions, attacks and arrests do not differentiate between Doms or other residents of the Holy City.
Although they were not directly involved in resistance work, they supported the Jerusalemites and shared their suffering, as some historical testimonies indicate that Palestinian resistance fighters in the late 1930s resorted to Dom tents to hide from British soldiers and hide their weapons there.
After the setback of 1967, the tribe was also subjected to the demolition of a number of its homes in the Old City, and in the gift of the tunnel in 2015, the Dom made great sacrifices, as a number of their sons were martyred, including Mustafa al-Nimr and his mother.
Al-Doumari Association
Jerusalemite Amoun Salim – who is of Doumi origin – founded the non-profit Al-Doumari Association in 1999, with the aim of empowering her tribe within Jerusalemite society and preserving its culture and heritage.
The association’s activity began from a small room that was used to distribute clothes and blankets, and organize informal classes to help children acquire reading and writing skills.
Then the association’s work expanded in 2005, when Amoun Selim established a community center in the Shuafat neighborhood, north of the Old City, that seeks to train women vocationally to enable them to enter the labor market, especially in the fields of jewelry making, embroidery, and cooking, in addition to organizing literacy lessons.
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