Romeyka

His research moves across Greek, Turkish, and English contexts and blends fieldwork, sociocultural theory, Pontic Greek music, community formation, and the politics of memory.

Our conversation explores Pontic Greek civilization through Romeyka, the Pontic Greek dialect, music, memory, genocide recognition, Black Sea Hellenism, and the question of how cultural survival becomes a living force rather than only inherited memory.

Niko, welcome to Global Greek Influence.

Panagiota, thank you very, very much for inviting me and for hosting me in this, uh, beautiful and creative podcast.

Thank you very much for joining me.

I'm especially glad to have this conversation because Pontic Greek identity is often discussed through memory and trauma, but your work allows us to approach it also through language, sound, lived experience, and cultural continuity.

I would like to begin with Romeyka because language is often one of the deepest markers of historical continuity, especially in regions where identity has become layered, pressured, or contested.

What does the survival of Romeyka in the Black Sea region tell us about the deeper layers of Pontic Greek identity, especially when language, religion, and national belonging do not always fit neatly together?