Irish Travellers

Irish Travellers (Irish: an lucht siúil, translating to the walking people), also referred to as Mincéirs (Shelta: Mincéirí) or Pavees, are an indigenous ethno-cultural group with a historical tradition of mobility, originating from Ireland.

Irish Travellers broke off from the "settled" population in the 1600s to travel around the United Kingdom and Ireland.

Over time, due to their isolation from the settled population, the genetic pool of Irish Travellers became smaller. This has resulted in higher rates of certain genetic conditions within the community.

Today, the health of the Irish Travellers is also impacted by discrimination from the settled population, and suicide has become a leading cause of death within the community.

Those struggling with mental health can reach out for support. One option is by texting ‘pavee’ to 50808 and Travellers in crisis will get a call back.

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1. ↑ "Irish Travellers | People, Traditions, & Language | Britannica". www.britannica.com. Retrieved 2026-07-14.
2. ↑ Gilbert, Edmund; Carmi, Shai; Ennis, Sean; Wilson, James F.; Cavalleri, Gianpiero L. (2017-02-16). "Genomic insights into the population structure and history of the Irish Travellers". Scientific Reports. 7 (1) 42187. Bibcode:2017NatSR...742187G. doi:10.1038/srep42187. ISSN 2045-2322. PMID 28181990.
3. ↑ "All-Ireland Traveller Health Study". gov.ie. 2010-03-11. Retrieved 2026-07-14.
4. ↑ "Irish Travellers Mental Health". Family Peer Support Service. Retrieved 2026-07-14.