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Book Review – Dictionary of Gypsy Mythology by Claude Lecouteux

Book Review
Dictionary of Gypsy Mythology
By Claude Lecouteux
Publisher Inner Traditions
Length 183 pages

I’ll be the first one to admit that I don’t know anything at all about the Roma, so I found the book interesting. There are several sources that Mr. Lecouteux quotes. His primary source is Heinrich Albert von Wlislocki (1856-1907).

The author states that there are 15 different gypsy languages, he has tried to remain faithful to everything as it appears in the source text. He also tells whether the words are feminine, masculine, plural, or singular. And he is very faithful in the way he listed the source text from which he gathers his information.

One of the first entries is for Adam and Eve pg. 16 (Damo and Yehwah is the way he has it listed in the book), I did not realize that in both the Rama and Jewish traditions that Adams first wife was Lilith. (But Eve’s name should not be confused with the Yahweh the name of God, spelled differently but pronounced the same way.) Each entry into this book is interesting; there are pictures, sigils, and in some entries little hand drawings.

There are four texts at the end of the book, one is on The Great Flood, the next is The White Hind, next is The Mountain of Cats, and the last one is the Bride of Phuvuš. I had never heard the stories before, so reading them for the first time was interesting.

Reading this book, I have gained a lot of insight into the mythology of the Roma. I feel that this book is written with a lot of respect for the tradition, and the people of the Roma society. I learned a lot that I didn’t know; it also sparked my interest into more of the mythology of the Roma.

I’m also inspired to start checking out more of Claude Lecouteux’s books. This being the second book of his I have read, he writes like a professor. At times a little dry, but always interested. If you want to know more about the Roma mythology, I would suggest this book, the Dictionary Of Gypsy Mythology.

Dictionary of Gypsy Mythology: Charms, Rites, and Magical Traditions of the Roma on Amazon

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About the Author:

Dawn Borries loves reading and was thrilled to become a Reviewer for PaganPages.Org. Dawn, also, has been doing Tarot and Numerology readings for the past 25 years. Dawn does readings on her Facebook page.  If you are interested in a reading you can reach her at: Readings by Dawn on Facebook at

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