What is a 'pikey'?

Question

I had not come across this word before unti my now ex girlfriend used it in a racist way.

Who does it refer to?

She learned this word when she was at college in Kent. Is it a word that is used mainly down there?

Answer 1

Kent has a long association with Gypsies. When Kent was the `garden of England`, gypsies provided much of the seasonal agricultural labour. `Pikey` as a term may derive from `turnpike`, the now obsolete custom of paying for access to roads/towns/villages via a tollbooth operated by a `pikey`wielding a pike. It is highly likely that turnpike operators were fairly rough characters.I have always considered a pikey to be a non-gypsy, not one of the true clan, a less defined version of a true gypsy, somewhat like `travellers`,or `itinerants`. "Gypsy", is said to derive from E-gyp-t , the original Romany visitors having bronze skin colouring and dress styles which were thought of as Egyptian.

Answer 2

Pikey is a pejorative slang term used in the United Kingdom which refers to Gypsies and other travellers.

Traditionally the word referred to Gypsies or vagrants. The first recorded use was in 1847. Though sources agree that the word derives from "pike" the Bloomsbury Dictionary of Contemporary Slang (which gives pikie as an alternative spelling) indicates that the "precise origins of these terms (and the American term piker) [ are ] unclear because of the convergence of two similar senses of pike" the first is turnpike, a road on which a toll is collected; the second is an archaic British English verb meaning to depart or travel.

Answer 3

A pikey, is a 'fake' traveller (or gypsy). Wherever they plant themselves, (caravans), when they leave the site, they leave behind sooo much sh!te its like someone has gone and fly tipped.

A proper gypsy has a lot of respect for the country and its surroundings (and don't leave the sh!t that a pikey group does), a pikey (although some say they are Irish, they aren't always) are I suppose what you call, messy rubbish leaving travellers. Sometimes you tend to find that some pikeys can be nasty, not dress very nice (think social security benefit claiming scum) who are 'quick fingered' shall we say.
If she's from Kent, then I understand fully as I'm from South East London / Kent and Yes it IS a word (whoever it was said it isn't) that we use for these scummy rubbish mess leaving travellers. (another word for them is Diddycoy's (fake travellers)).

Oh and Princess Nausicaa, what you're on about - teenagers in caps drinking alco pops thinking they're hard!! .......... Thier called CHAV'S down here (not pikeys). Keep up to date girly :)

Answer 4

Um... I from Kent but I live in Aberdeen now and although the word originally referred to a type of gipsy it has become (in the South) slang for what the Northeners call a Ned. This is the sort of person who hangs around on the streets in trackies and caps, bothering people and thinking it's cool to drink alcoholpops. They are usually teenagers and think they are really "hard" and therefore the word is synonomous with people who get into petty (and sometimes quite serious) crime. It's an insult because everyone else despises them even though the are scared of them too. You would expect a pikey to have an asbo etc.

However, where I come from a lot of people act and dress like pikeys because of fashion (as I said, they're usually teenagers) even though they are really nice people etc. Therefore is has become a bit of a stereotype for people who dress in a certain way and hang out in gangs e.g. I believe Bluewater shopping centre has banned hoodies and big groups of schoolkids etc. When I was doing some Teacher Observation in Kent a lot of the children I spoke to was arguing this was unfair as they had never done anything wrong and they maintained their right to dress they way they chose.

So yes it is an insult and it can be viewed as racist as the word originates from a word for gypsy.

Hope this helps!

Answer 5

A mechanic I know fixed a pikey's van and the pikey wouldn't pay for the job. The mechanic had to take the steering wheel home with him to stop them leaving without paying. He did eventually get a payment for the job but not the full amount. That's a pikey for you! NB. In Scotland we refer to them as gypos.

Answer 6

A pikey is a term for a traveller or "gypsy"

You know when you drive down the road and that beautiful piece of land you see every day such as a park or field has suddenly become infested with caravans and when they leave there is litter, nappys and burnt out vehicles everywhere.

They are pikeys.

By the way I live in Lancashire and we use the term here.

Answer 7

Derogative term used in the UK which refers to gypsies and other travelers. Traditionally, pikey referred to gypsies and vagrants.

First recorded use was in 1847

Here's a link for further details:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pikey

Answer 8

It's used as a word for Gypsys, I'm from Bristol and we use it here...I don't see it as racist, just a description. Usually describing robbing scumbags, so the bad gypsy! As opposed to the ones who don't cause trouble? Don't want to tar everyone with the same brush here.

Answer 9

Generally used to describe a member of the Irish Travelling Comminity (very PC) or just generally to call someone a gypsy.

Answer 10

A Pikey is the cockney slang for "Do as you likey". otherwise known as the traveller. Was used by the "old londoners" to describe the people that were seen as being able to get away with anything!