Irish Travellers

Irish Travellers (also called Irish Gypsies or Irish Tinkers) are itinerant people of Irish origin living in Great Britain, Ireland and the United States. Their pursuit of a nomadic lifestyle in these urbanized countries has generated much friction with the settled population, many of whom have characterised them as thieves or accused them of causing problems due to large amount of rubbish left behind at sites they have stayed at temporarily. There have also been some highly-publicized scams, on the Discovery Channel and elsewhere, that happened to be perpetrated by Irish Travellers. These have lead to stereotyping of all Irish Travellers.

The Shelta language is the traditional language of the Irish Travellers, adapted as a jargon from the Irish language.

"They form a separate social group and are distinguished by mainstream Irish society even when the Travellers are settled in houses. About a third live in caravan camps run by local councils while the others nomadize or are on unofficial sites. Their main occupation is recycling waste material." [1]

The Pavee Point website says:

Travellers are a small indigenous minority, documented as being part of Irish society for centuries. Travellers have a long shared history and value system which make them a distinct group. They have their own language, customs and traditions. [2]

Estimated numbers of Irish Travellers in:

• Ireland: 25,000
• Britain: 15,000
• USA: 10,000

(Source: Irish Travellers' Movement website)

Though often called Tinkers, such a term though widely used in the past is now seen as politically incorrect and discouraged from official usage. Another old term used was Knacker, which again is seen as offensive. Tinker and knacker were trades once commonly followed by Travellers.

Films

The movie Snatch features Brad Pitt as an undefeatable travelling Irish boxing champion. While the "pikeys" (another derogatory term used by the cast when referring to the travellers) are probably pictured in a very fictionalized account in this movie, it does offer an entertaining rendition of such a community.

The movie Into the West is based around the Irish Travellers featuring two traveller boys running away from home.

Political movements

The Irish Traveller Movement was established in 1990 as "a national network of organisations and individuals working within the Traveller community". It seeks full equality for Irish Travellers in Irish society.

See also: Roma and Sinti, Irish diaspora. Compare: indigenous people

External links

• Irish Travellers' Movement website
• Irish Travelers in the USA by Alan Katruska, University of Pittsburgh
• Bibliography of Sources on Irish Traveller Culture
• Timeline of Irish Traveller history
• Pavee Point Travellers Centre
• More references on Irish Travellers
• Irish Medical Journal article on the health of Irish Travellers