Romanian

Noun

țigan m ‎(plural țigani, feminine equivalent țigancă)

1. Gypsy

Usage notes

The term "țigani", an imprecise exonym for several groups, is loaded with negative connotations: historically, it implied a status like that of a slave; today, the Dictionary of Romanian Language defines a fi țigan ‎(“to be Gypsy”) as "to be a dark-skinned person" or "to be a person with bad habits".^[5][6] Careful speakers therefore refer to the Roma people by their self-designation, romi, or (to prevent confusion with the word român ‎(“Romanian”)) its alternative spelling rromi.

Declension

Adjective

țigan m, n ‎(feminine singular țigană, masculine plural țigani, feminine and neuter plural țigane)

1. Gypsy

Declension

Derived terms

References

1. ↑ 2004, Viorel Achim, The Roma in Romanian History (Bucharest), page 9
2. ↑ 2007, Jean-Pierre Liégeois, Roma In Europe, page 17
3. ↑ 1993, Struggling for Ethnic Identity: The Gypsies of Hungary (published by Human Rights Watch), page 1
4. ↑ 2010, Gabriela Brozba, Between reality and myth: A corpus-based analysis of the stereotypic image of some Romanian ethnic minorities, page 42
5. ↑ 2010, Gabriela Brozba, Between reality and myth: A corpus-based analysis of the stereotypic image of some Romanian ethnic minorities, page 42
6. ↑ 2007, Jean-Pierre Liégeois, Roma In Europe, page 159: In Romanian, the term țigan signifies a lazy good-for-nothing, and the plural țigani evokes not a culturally defined group but rather a disadvantaged, poverty-stricken community on the margins of society, with a status close to that of slaves […]