Quinqui
jargon
Jargon, or technical language, is the specialized terminology associated with a particular field or area of activity. Jargon is normally employed in a particular Context (language use), communicative context and may not be well understood outside ...
is associated with ''quincalleros'' (an
itinerant group). They are a semi-nomadic people who live mainly in the northern half of
Spain
Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
. They prefer to be called ''mercheros''. They have declined in number from earlier reports and are possibly vanishing as a distinct ethnic group.
The language is based on ''
Germanía'', an old
Spanish criminal
argot
A cant is the jargon or language of a group, often employed to exclude or mislead people outside the group.McArthur, T. (ed.) ''The Oxford Companion to the English Language'' (1992) Oxford University Press It may also be called a cryptolect, argo ...
. It has elements of
''Caló'', a dialect of the Spanish
Roma. The term comes from the word ''quincallería'' (ironmongery), from
ironmongers who first used this
cant as part of their trade.
Because the men were frequently blamed for petty crime, the word is associated in modern Spanish with delinquents,
petty thieves, or hoodlums. The mercheros identify as a distinct group separate from the Roma ''
gitanos
The Romani in Spain, generally known by the Endonym and exonym, endonym ''Calé'', or the Endonym and exonym, exonym (), belong to the Romani people#Romani subgroups, Iberian Romani subgroup known as Calé, with smaller populations in Portugal ...
''.
Scholars have many theories about the social origins of ''mercheros'', summarized as the following:
*Descendants of mechanical workers who arrived in Spain from central Europe in the 16th century;
*Descendants of peasants who lost their land in the 16th century;
*Descendants of intermarriage between the Roma and non-Roma populations;
*
Descendants of Muslims who became nomads after the expulsion in the 15th century to escape persecution; and/or
*A mixture of the above.
Notable mercheros
*
Eleuterio Sánchez, a.k.a. ''
El Lute'' (born 1942). A petty thief in his early life, he was convicted of armed robbery and murder. After escaping from prison, he was listed among Spain's "Most Wanted" criminals by the Spanish police. Later he earned a law degree and wrote five books. He was pardoned at age 39.
See also
*
Caló (Spanish Romani)
*
Yeniche people
*
Sarakatsani
The Sarakatsani (), also called Karakachani (), are an ethnic Greeks, Greek population subgroup who were traditionally Transhumance, transhumant shepherds, native to Greece, with a smaller presence in neighbouring Bulgaria, southern Albania, an ...
*
Gacería
*
Irish Travellers
*
Vaqueiros de alzada
References
Languages of Spain
Spanish dialects of Spain
Cant languages
Modern nomads
Occupational cryptolects
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