Svinia

Svinia
Village
Svinia Location of Svinia in Slovakia
Coordinates: 49°01′N 21°08′E
Country	Slovakia
Region	Prešov
District	Prešov
Area
• Total	14.73 km2 (5.69 sq mi)
Population  (2004-12-31)
• Total	1,452
• Density	99/km2 (260/sq mi)
Postal code	082 32
Car plate	PO

Svinia (Hungarian: Szinye) is a village of some 1,500 people (as of 2005 ) in eastern Slovakia about 8 km west from Prešov. The village covers an area of 14.734km².

It consists of two settlements of similar size, one inhabited by Slovaks and the other by Romani. The Svinia Romani settlement was visited and "discovered" by Canadian anthropologists in 1993, and became the subject of the documentary film The Gypsies of Svinia. The team was shocked at the appalling and unsanitary living conditions, the 100% unemployment, and the deep racial divide between white Svinia and Romani Svinia. Svinia has since become infamous in Europe and has been the subject of studies, books and films. International projects to improve life for the Romani in Svinia have been ongoing since the 1990s.

See also

• Roma in Slovakia

External links

Svinia Project at the Thompson Rivers University, Kamloops, BC website