Interesting-- I had no idea there was a Traveller colony in GA/SC!!

As an Irishman, I can tell you what I know. The so-called Irish Traveller class (AKA tinkers, itinerants, and many derogatory names) is something of a stain on the Irish psyche, because this demographically significant group suffers extreme social exclusion. As a group, they live shorter lives, endure shabby living conditions, are under-educated, find it difficult to get jobs, and are generally shunned socially here by 'settled' people.

They don't seem to be gypsies in the conventional sense: that is to say, they are apparently not descended from the Egyptian gypsies that are said to have come to Europe with the Moorish invasion of Spain. Irish travellers should not be confused with the Romanie.

The theory I have heard most often regarding the Travellers' roots is that they were a group of small croppers who were displaced at the time of the Irish Famine (1840's). Landless, they took to wandering and scavenging, and never returned to the settled life. The tin-fixing skill was once the preserve of the Travellers (AKA Tinkers), and Tinkers are said to have roamed the country fixing people's pots and pans, implements and so on. But with the advent of mass-production, sadly the commercial viability of this skill waned.

The stereotypical Traveller will marry young, have a very large family, be very religious (Catholic, obviously), and 'enjoy a drink'. They have a distinctive accent and a very strong sense of community amongst themselves.


Brad Pitt played a 'Pikey' in the film Snatch-- he did a decent job with the accent and mannerisms too, I have to say.



[edit on 15-11-2008 by eniac]

Just a bump in hopes when I get back tonight, I'll find a lot of wonderful links to information.

Thanks guys.

The fact that I couldnt find anything on them nor know anything about them shows that there is an actual secret here.

If anyone else knows about the Travellers, please share.

[edit on 17-11-2008 by Skyfloating]

Egyptian gypsies that are said to have come to Europe with the Moorish invasion of Spain.

There are many theories of where the "gypsies" came from - but it is generally accepted that they did NOT come from Egypt.

As for secret signs and language I can tell you that the Roma do have such a thing - If you think about it it makes sense to be able to communicate in the language of your surrounding and to have a language which only your tribe can understand.

The Irish travellers are generally accepted amongst the Rom as a seperate tribe. I know that my uncle ( We are Jenisch - which is the swiss branch of Rom) married an Irish traveller and it didn't cause an uproar ( as marrying outside of the tribe can and does ). His wife died 4 years ago but I'll ask him more about it next time I see him.

Next time I communicate with Dr. Hounker ( a professor of history who has done extensive studies of the nomadic people of Europe ) I will ask him specifically about the Irish Travellers as w ell and send you an message with any info I get.

Wonderful links, guys. I knew in my heart that ATSers would have information on this group.

Though you have to admit, these people do present a closed, or secret, society, in the truest sense of the word. The Roma and the Travelers keep a pretty close guard on the details of their lifestyles, past and present.

And it's interesting how these two groups of "road warriors" have evolved. Even now, their historical roots are hard to find.

ATSers rock!

The travelers I experienced as a small child were traveling trades men.

One would come by my grandma's house once or twice a year and sharpen her knives and scissors and even needles.

He would knock on the door and tell all the house wives he would be by the next day, so they could get their items together.

They mostly stayed on state roads and visited small towns. Places where folks didn't have a lot of money and kept things forever.

They would have a small trailer they pulled and usually found a friendly farmer who would let them park at night for exchange for sharpening their tools etc.

I asked about him one time and she said he was a Irish traveler.

Thought it was a cool occupation if it allowed you to travel around and see the country.

Strange I had not thought about that in 45 years.

I think a lot of them worked in carnivals also. At least in the mid west.
Remember hearing a lot of Irish accents there when I visited a carnival.

There are a couple portrayals of Travellers in the mainstream media:

There was the 1997 Bill Paxton movie, Traveller.

There was also the 2007-2008 Eddie Izzard FX TV series The Riches.

There was also a documentary made a few years back that first made me aware of the Travellers in the US. I can't remember the name, but it was based around child beauty pagents used as ways the clan would marry off their young daughters. I don't remember where I saw it, probably on cable, but it was probably sometime in the late '80s or early '90s.

I have a very large community of Travellers about a mile from where I live. The community has been there as long as I can remember. I went to school with Traveller kid's, They wern't the type to be messed with and to be honest as a kid I was pretty scared of them.