On Saturday, 23 September 2017, the Second Yenish Cultural Day (external link: https://perma.cc/NKA4-YUG4) was held in the Die Bäckerei – Kulturbackstube [The Bakery – Culture Centre] in Innsbruck. One of the main goals of the event was to raise the profile of Yenish culture and highlight its contribution to Tyrolean history. The event was also aimed at the critical reflection on stereotypical and romanticising images, which contrast with the more realistic and multilayered accounts of the life and history of the Yenish people.

A major focus of the programme was the work of the Swiss Yenish author Mariella Mehr. Nina Debrunner, a literary scholar and musicologist, introduced the author’s work and talked about her life and background. The actress Carmen Gratl read excerpts from works by Mariella Mehr ‘Phralalen, Pejalen Mama’, ‘Als das Wort vom Leder zog’, ‘Daskind’ and ‘Heimat im Wort’.