Papusza / Bronislawa Wajs. Tears of Blood

Ratfale Jasfa (Romani: Tears of Blood) is a poem by the Romani poet Papusza (Bronislawa Wajs) who survived the German occupation and the Second World War in Volhynia, currently Ukraine. It is also the earliest known testimony by a Romani genocide survivor and a Romani woman. This book introduces the recently re-discovered manuscript which is three times longer than the previously known text. The volume includes a transcript of the poem in Romani, a translation into English, extensive historical-philological commentaries, alongside stand-alone chapters on the poet, manuscript and the historical context.

Volha Bartash is a Postdoctoral researcher at the Graduate School for East and Southeast European Studies at the University of Regensburg. Tomasz Kamusella, Dr., teaches at the School of History at University of St Andrews. Viktor Shapoval is an Associate Professor at the Moscow City University.