Names of The Romani People - Gypsy and Gipsy

Gypsy and Gipsy

The English term gipsy or gypsy originates from the Middle English gypcian, short for Egipcien. It is ultimately derived from the Greek Αἰγύπτιοι (Aigyptioi), via Middle French and Latin. It was once believed that the Romanies, or some other Gypsy groups (such as the Balkan Egyptians), originated in Egypt, and in one narrative were exiled as punishment for allegedly harbouring the infant Jesus.

The Oxford English Dictionary (OED) states a 'gipsy' is a

member of a wandering race (by themselves called Romany), of Indian origin, which first appeared in England about the beginning of the 16th c.

According to the OED the word was first used in English in 1514, with several more uses in the same century, and that both Edmund Spenser and William Shakespeare used this word.

This exonym is sometimes written with a capital letter, to show that it designates an ethnic group. The Spanish term gitano and the French term gitan have the same origin.

During the 16th and 17th centuries the name was written in various ways: Egipcian, Egypcian, 'gypcian. The word gipsy/gypsy comes from the spellings which had lost the initial capital E, and this is one reason why it is often spelled with the initial g in lowercase. As time elapsed, the notion of 'the gipsy/gypsy' altered to include other associated stereotypes such as nomadism and exoticism. John Matthews in The World Atlas of Divination refer to gypsies as "Wise Women." Colloquially, gipsy/gypsy may refer to any person perceived as fitting the Gypsy stereotypes.

'Gipsy/gipsy' is a common word used to indicate Romani people, Tinkers and Travellers. It may or may not be considered to carry pejorative connotations by those so described, and use of the word "Gipsy" in English is so pervasive (and is a legal term under English law—see below) that many Romani organizations use it in their own organizational names.