From massacre to miracle: Romani presence and the making of a pilgrimage site in Piaui, Brazil

SPEAKERS: Martin Fotta, Institute of Ethnology, Czech Academy of Sciences

DISCUSSANT: Mattijs van de Port, University of Amsterdam

DATE: 14 November ACTIVITY: CEDLA LECTURE

In a small rural settlement in the interior of Piauí, northern Brazil, a chapel dedicated to Ciganinho Milagroso (the Miraculous Little Gypsy Boy) stands beside a large courbaril tree. Local memory and archival material tie the site to events that took place more than a century ago, when police and henchmen pursued and massacred a group of Romani people (Ciganos) crossing the region. According to the story, a small boy attempted to hide in the tree but was killed. When an epidemic struck the settlement years later, the residents attributed the misfortune to the unjust killing of an innocent soul. Over time, the site gradually developed into a local place of pilgrimage. This presentation reconstructs and contextualises the historical and mnemonic layers through which inter-ethnic violence, culpability, and sacralization became intertwined, examining how the Romani presence has been simultaneously integrated into regional religious imaginaries. By situating the devotion to Ciganinho Milagroso within broader debates and contexts, the presentation reflects on shifting configurations of Romani social position in Brazil.