The immigration of the Luri
In 1020 the Arabian historiographer Al-Talibi included the following Persian text about the immigration of the Luri, in his "Story of the Persian Kings" (the original being lost later on): "One evening, when he (Bahram Gur) came back from hunting, he passed a group of subjects who were sitting in the grass and were eating and drinking. He asked, why they did not have any music since music makes the spirit happy. They answered: ‘Oh King, we looked for musicians for 100 Dirham, but we could not find one.’ So Bahram said, ‘We will procure you one!’, and he ordered a writer to write a letter to the Indian Shankalat and to ask him to send four thousand of the best musicians and best singers to his court. Shankalat did so and Bahram distributed them throughout the whole kingdom and requested from the people to take up their service, to enjoy their art and to pay them appropriate reward. And it is from them that the dark Luri derive who know to play the flute and the lute so well." [Kenrick, Donald (1998): Sinti und Roma: Von Indien bis zum Mittelmeer. Die Wanderwege der Sinti und Roma, Berlin, p. 18.]
