That they were called Germans, may be accounted for, either by the
supposition that their generic name of Rommany was misunderstood
and mispronounced by the Spaniards amongst whom they came, or from
the fact of their having passed through Germany in their way to the
south, and bearing passports and letters of safety from the various
German states. The title of Flemings, by which at the present day
they are known in various parts of Spain, would probably never have
been bestowed upon them but from the circumstance of their having
been designated or believed to be Germans, - as German and Fleming
are considered by the ignorant as synonymous terms.

Amongst themselves they have three words to distinguish them and
their race in general: Zincalo, Romano, and Chai; of the first two
of which something has been already said.

They likewise call themselves 'Cales,' by which appellation indeed
they are tolerably well known by the Spaniards, and which is merely
the plural termination of the compound word Zincalo, and signifies,
The black men. Chai is a modification of the word Chal, which, by
the Gitanos of Estremadura, is applied to Egypt, and in many parts
of Spain is equivalent to 'Heaven,' and which is perhaps a
modification of 'Cheros,' the word for heaven in other dialects of
the Gypsy language. Thus Chai may denote, The men of Egypt, or,
The sons of Heaven. It is, however, right to observe, that amongst
the Gitanos, the word Chai has frequently no other signification
than the simple one of 'children.'

It is impossible to state for certainty the exact year of their
first appearance in Spain; but it is reasonable to presume that it