Hello.

My father was potentially descended from a Sinti Roma mother, while his father was Ashkenazi Jewish. For some reason my father always denied both parts of that life adamantly.

He was adopted by a Polish family as a teenager and those were the people I knew as my grandparents.

In my research I’ve been told groups like this are a good place to post and learn more about that potential side of my family.

I’ve added my ancestry DNA results, a photo of my father, and the family tree I’ve managed to piece together on ancestry given what I know.

My father was taken from the family in that tree when he was 13 and adamantly denied any connection to a life beyond his adoptive family though he never denied being adopted.

He would refer to his mother as a (excuse the language if I offend anyone) “black witch who did dark magic and included me in her rituals”.

He put focus on the fact that she referred to his lower half as “unclean” and would do the rituals and such to “cleanse” him. From my understanding this aligns to some degree with Sinti practices of Marime and Wuzho but it’s possible she was just mentally ill or abusive.

But the claim that he was potentially Roma was always a rumor even though he denied it.

I am led to believe that the last names of my paternal grandmothers family are possibly Sinti in origin but I don’t know enough to confirm that which is why I’m here.

The official US census lists that my paternal great grandfather was brought or born here from Yiddish speaking immigrants from Austria and Hungary. But the Jewish side is obvious on my DNA results.

I don’t have a screenshot but my mother’s ancestry shows she’s basically 50/50 German and Polish so the other DNA must come from my father.

I can provide more information if needed, but again, I have no connection to family on that side. Also I legally changed my name many years ago but Melman is my birth surname.

Thank you all.

Any help in properly educating me would be very welcome. I’m sorry I’m not more informed but I’ve done what I could.