Note 45 — Chapter XV

Patron, Sundt’s Norwegian gipsy, signifying a leaf, a signal; Patrin, Paspati’s Turkish gipsy, a leaf; Patrin, in the “Italien Lingua Zingaresca” of Francesco Predari; Patrin, in Hoyland’s “English Gipsy;” Patrin in Bischoff’s “Deutsch-Zigeunerisches;” Patrin, in the “German Gipsy Vocabulary” of Dr. Liebich. Patrin is also given as German gipsy by Grellmann. The word is used by gipsies, signifying a signal or sign on the gipsy trail to indicate to other gipsies, who understand this silent language, the route they have taken. The word is pronounced occasionally with some slight variation, as patteran, patrin. Borrow, in his admirable work, “The Zincali; or An Account of the Gipsies in Spain,” vol. i., p. 37, uses “Patteran.” We have spelt the word as nearly as possible as pronounced by the gipsies of our party. Patrins of chor (gip. grass) are commonly put by gipsies. Some gipsies we have met with used to put patrins for their favourite blind dog, “Spot,” when he had strayed or lingered far behind. A few blades of grass or leaves crushed in the gipsy female’s hand, and cast on the road, were scented out by the blind animal, who ultimately reached the encampment. Spot would occasionally remain all day in charge of the tents, and would never steal a morsel of the hobben (food), though he were famishing; “but,” said the gipsy female, “dogs brought up in the tents are like nobody else’s dogs, and they know our language as well as we do ourselves.” Poor Spot strayed one day, and, losing the trail, they never saw him again.