Who are Gypsy Roma and Travellers?
Travellers can be divided into two groups, those that are ethnic Travellers, such as Romani Gypsies and Irish Travellers, and those who live on the road for purely economic reasons such as New Travellers and Showmen. In reality, there isn’t one Traveller community but many, each with their own particular culture and history.
There is no one Gypsy and Traveller culture, just as there is no single Gypsy and Traveller community. But most Gypsies and Travellers have certain cultural things in common, which have evolved over time in response to the conditions created by life on the road.
For example, a traditional preference for self-employment and a suspicion of authority created after centuries of persecution, is something that many Gypsies and Travellers share. There are also great differences, for example, Romani Gypsies have strict taboos about which implements can be washed in which bowls and how men and women should interact, that aren’t shared by New Travellers. In many ways, it is easier to define Gypsies and Travellers by what they are not, by looking at the myths which are spread about them.
The types of communities.
The Romanichal Gypsies/ Romany Gypsies/ English Gypsies are the largest group of Travellers in the U.K. They first arrived in England in the 1500’s and had originally travelled from Northern India from about 1000 A.D. It’s worth noting that although we use the terms Romany and Gypsy in England, others, particularly on the continent of Europe, use the terms Rom and Roma.
English Gypsies have lived in England for over 500 years and their mother tongue is English.
The term Gypsy had become increasingly given a pejorative meaning, being used to describe a social category with a wandering nomadic way of life, rather than an ethnic minority group. That is the reason why many English Gypsies prefer often to be called themselves ‘Travellers’.
English Gypsies experience a high level of prejudice and exclusion in British society.
Irish Travellers are an indigenous minority in Ireland who, historical sources confirm, have been part of Irish society for centuries. Travellers long shared history, cultural values, language, customs and traditions make them a self-defined group, and one, which is recognisable and distinct. Their culture and way of life, of which nomadism is an important factor, distinguishes them from the sedentary (settled) population. They travelled throughout Ireland and also across to England and many Travellers settled in the UK particularly in the 1950’s and 60’s.
Travellers, as individuals and as a group, experience a high level of prejudice and exclusion in Irish society. Many have to endure living in intolerable conditions, with approximately one third having to live without access to the basic facilities of sanitation, water and electricity. (Source:The Irish Traveller Movement)
English Gypsies and Irish Travellers are recognised ethnic groups in UK for the purposes of the Race Relations Act (1976), identified as having a shared culture, language and beliefs.
Roma are believed to have originated mostly from Northern India. They began their migration to Europe and North Africa via the Iranian plateau about 1000 years ago.Traditionally many of European Roma speak Romani (Romany) as a mother tongue, an Indo-Aryan language with different dialects.
During the early to mid nineties Roma families began to arrive in Britain as refugees or asylum seekers from Eastern Europe and the Baltic States where they have often been subject to racist attacks.
They have recently settled in the UK because of the enlargement of the European Union. Most live in private rented accommodation or are housed by the Council. Roma experience multiple disadvantages associated with their relatively new immigrant status.
The words Romani/ Romany, British/ English Gypsy/ Roma /Irish Traveller/ Travellers can be used interchangeably.
Other distinctive Traveller communities include Circus Travellers, Fairground Communities (Showpeople) and Bargee families who live on the their boats and travel carrying cargo for a living leading a nomadic lifestyle similar to that of Fairground or Circus families. Scottish Travellers are a traditionally nomadic minority community in Scotland, who have a great deal in common with Irish Travellers and also English Gypsies or Romanichals. They are internationally recognized for their storytelling traditions.
About this section.
Part of the text in this culture and history section comes from "Guidebook for Health and Other Professionals" from Waltham Forest Traveller Education Service, itself modified from the Finnish model “The Roma and health services” - Guide for health professionals, 2nd renewed edition 2000, produced and created by the National Board of Education, Finland.
Our thanks go to London Borough of Waltham Forest and Janette Gronfors in particularly for allowing us to use this information in support of Gypsy Roma Traveller History Month.
