gypsy: [16] It appears that in late medieval Europe, it was widely believed that the Roma people originated in Egypt. They first appeared in England around the beginning of the 16th century, and at first were generally referred to as ‘Egyptians’ (a name which survived well into the 18th century). Egyptian was soon eroded to gyptian, and by the end of the 16th century a new ending had been grafted on to the word to produce gypsy. [gypsy etymology, gypsy origin, 英语词源]