What do you believe is the difference between gypsies and travellers or is there?

Answer 1

I was not going to bother because I am tired of answering this but there is SO much misinformation that I have to. I shall address them in order:

1) Romanies did not originate in Romania. Rom means "man". We (I am Romani) originally come from the Punjab region of India.

2) We do not travel by horse and carriage anymore. Some of us are more nomadic than others, travelling by more modern means, most of us (at least in America) even live in houses! *gasp*

3) We have lives like anyone else. Why would we not?

4) Travellers are a distinct genetic ethnicity. Gypsy is an umbrella term for many ethnicities, including Romani and Travellers.

5) Romani are Gypsies but not all Gypsies are Romani. Look at Wikipedia rather than the dictionary to get a better idea. Better yet, look at OUR websites.

6) Gypsies of any sort cannot heal you any better than any other human. We also dress however we wish. There is no standard issue "Gypsy outfit". I like jeans and a t-shirt.

7) There is no nation named "Romany". There is "Romania" and "Rome". Reference that "Rom" in OUR tongue means "man".

Romani has many spellings. Rromani, Romany, and a few others are correct.

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To Daniel C...

Yup.

The people perpetrating crime in our name REALLY annoys us. Everyone who engages in criminal activity in the name of "gyspy", whether they ARE a Gypsy or not, gives us more hell to deal with because everybody "knows" that "Gypsies steal" and we are treated as such.

I am guessing you are from Britain? I have heard of some of the problems you face over there from "pikeys". I am glad you know that not all of us are like that. "Pikey" and "gypo" is common now for us all to be called. This is about on the same lines as n*gger.

You DO have decent Romanies there... some of them are my friends and are very upset about the hooligans because the hooligans make THEIR lives hell.

What WE have in the States is roving bands of hooligans who call themselves "gypsies" and are, in fact, mostly Gadje (non-Gypsy). The police call this "gypsy crime" and this makes it even harder on the honest Romani (the majority of us).

Could you slide me a link to the EU human rights laws? Romani, in America, have no human rights laws to aid us.

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To FRANCES M...

Thankyou for the information about Travellers! Travellers are not well known in America because, well, we do not have many. I know a few from over in England who go through everloving Hell because of the bad ones. I think I can relate to that.

I am very careful to say, or I try, that "pikey" is a derogatory term mainly for Travellers and, now, Roma. That is why I always put "pikey" in quotations. I hope I did not offend. I have Romani friends there who routinely get called, and abused, by the word "pikey" and what it entails. In the States, "pikey" has made its way to include the Romani so we get that as an insult, as well as "Gypo". Here is a good question about the word "pikey" (my answer at the bottom... it is not as good as some of the others): http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=Ahddp33QftPCxTM_UJE7tIvty6IX?qid=20070324152008AAQNfWw&show=7#profile-info-93873bfed18c406ec63ac92640182870aa

I wonder if all of the crime ascribed to Travellers is being done BY Travellers, like what is happening in the States to the Roma. The "gypsy criminals" here (mostly Gadje as I said) use the name because of some perverted belief in what we, the Romani, are all about. They think that "no responsibility", "take what you want", "roving", "no guilt", mean "Gypsy".

Answer 2

Gypsies were originally from Romany but the term has become generic for anyone travelling around

Answer 3

I agree with "Just a guy" with regard to Romanies.

I would also like to point out that there are wider differences in "travellers". My children go to school (some of the time) with traveller children from fairground families. There is a permanent site near us. A couple of the families have chosen to only work local fairs so their children can stay in full-time education, but for most of them the children only attend school from November to March - and sometimes not as long as that - because they travel to big fairs all over the country. This lifestyle continues from generation to generation and one mum was describing to me what it was like for her parents during the war years.
Some people resent them and feel they "don't do a proper job" or call them "pikeys". Many others accept them as part of the community. They are very clannish - if someone steps out of line, then they prefer to deal with it themselves and if you offend one, you are likely to have offended them all. However, when there were bad power cuts one winter, they voluntarily helped local people by lending out their generators.

This does not stop our neighbourhood from being extremely aware of the other variety of travellers who have set up temporary camps, been moved on, and left all manner of rubbish. The fairground people have my heartfelt sympathy for being considered the same as them and I'm not surprised they get touchy and resentful.

Answer 4

No difference.

Traveller:
Chiefly British. a member of any of a number of traditionally itinerant peoples of the British Isles and other English-speaking areas, including, in addition to people of Gypsy origin, autochthonous groups such as the speakers of Shelta.

Romany:
Gypsies collectively.

Answer 5

in n/ireland at least i cant speak for where you are travellers is the new pc gypsy

Answer 6

Gypsies ride in nice carriages pulled by horses and leave you feeling nostalgic!

Travellers ride in transit vans stolen from compounds and leave a trail of shiit in their wake!

Answer 7

The primary difference is that gypsies can heal you if you are not well.

Answer 8

in my mind gypsys come from romania or are eclectic irish, all the loud mouthed irish-dress-like-chavs-caravan inhabitants are travellers

Answer 9

i live and they don't sorry thats the best i can say , iv'e seen them and , well, traveled with them and they have no life, per say