David Mayall – författare

Gypsies have lived in England since the early sixteenth century, yet considerable confusion and disagreement remain over the precise identity of the group. The question 'Who are the Gypsies?' is still asked and the debates about the positioning and permanence of the boundary between Gypsy and non-Gypsy are contested as fiercely today as at any time before.This study locates these debates in their historical perspective, tracing the origins and reproduction of the various ways of defining and representing the Gypsy from the early sixteenth century to the present day. Starting with a consideration of the early modern description of Gypsies as Egyptians, land pirates and vagabonds, the volume goes on to examine the racial classification of the nineteenth century and the emergence of the ethnic Gypsy in the twentieth century. The book closes with an exploration of the long-lasting image of the group as vagrant and parasitic nuisances which spans the whole period from 1500 to 2000.

The Gypsy is traditionally portrayed as a black-eyed, tousle-haired savage from a distant land who makes a living by deceit and parasitism on the host society. This book critically examines the nature and source of such stereotypes, locating the image of the wild but often romantic Romany in various works of fiction and the writings of lorists and gypsiologists, fascinated by the need to classify, categorize and describe. The author reveals the inadequacies of the racial construct, and replaces it with a definition that allows for the coming together and coexistence of indigenous itinerants and the original, foreign immigrants. A picture emerges of a distinctive group living on the fringes of industrialized society and economy, but necessarily involved in a close economic relationship with the settled community.

This volume examines the ways in which sport shapes the experiences of various immigrant and minority groups and, in particular, looks at the relationship between sport, ethnic identity and ethnic relations. The articles in this volume are concerned primarily with British, American and Australian sporting traditions and the themes covered include the consolidation of ethnic identity in host societies through participation immigrant sports and exclusive sporting organizations, assimilation into host' societies through participation in indigenous, national sports, and the construction by outsiders of separate ethnic identities according to sporting criteria.

This volume examines the ways in which sport shapes the experiences of various immigrant and minority groups and, in particular, looks at the relationship between sport, ethnic identity and ethnic relations. The articles in this volume are concerned primarily with British, American and Australian sporting traditions and the themes covered include the consolidation of ethnic identity in host societies through participation immigrant sports and exclusive sporting organizations, assimilation into host' societies through participation in indigenous, national sports, and the construction by outsiders of separate ethnic identities according to sporting criteria.