Abstract
In studies of the relationship between peripheral ethnic minority groups and the larger society in industrialised societies, it is commonly assumed that the minority is in the process of assimilation or is becoming economically dependent, A number of theoretical arguments on the nature of change are reviewed. The case of Gypsy communities in Europe and North America is used to demonstrate the inappropriateness of theories that predict a transformation of the minority group's culture—a picture of continuity and persistence appears more reasonable in the light of historical and fieldwork evidence.