A TRAVELLER woman has revealed that she got married, one year after being allowed to have her first mobile phone.
Zoey, 19, often uses her social media platforms to educate others on the difference between travellers and non-travellers.
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In a recent video, Zoey, who is from Ireland, revealed that her parents first allowed her to have a mobile phone when she was 17 years old.
According to an Ofcom report, most children in the UK get their first mobile phone between the ages of nine and 11.
The year after Zoey got her first phone, aged just 18, she got married.
According to Statista, the average age for women to get married in the UK in 2023 was 33.
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However, in the traveller community, is is far more common for people to get married when they are still teenagers.
As well as getting married at a very young age, Zoey revealed that she also left school very young, at just 14 years old.
In a previous video, she explained that traveller women often leave school young as they become housewives whose husbands provide for them.
Zoey’s lifestyle has led to some cruel comments, online, including one commenter who said “How can you like the life you have?”
However Zoey isn’t fazed at all by the haters.
In a TikTok video, she said: “I’m proud to be living in a caravan.
“I’m proud to be a traveller as well.
“I don’t care what people think about me, because people are going to talk anyway, so just let them talk.”
Zoey’s video, which was posted under the username @zoey_pon, has likely struck a chord with many people, as it has racked up 62,000 views on the video sharing platform.
TikTok users raced to the video’s comments section to share their thoughts.
Facts on gypsy and traveller communities
Typically, gypsies is a term used to describe Romani people who migrated to Europe from India while traveller refers to a person with either Irish, Scottish or English heritage.
Around 300,000 Gypsy, Roma and Irish travellers are thought to live in the UK.
All three groups come from nomadic ways of life, however, as it is increasingly difficult to find land to live on, many are moving into permanent housing.
They place high value on family life and often live close together even after reaching adult years and getting married.
Often the men are the breadwinners of the family while the women stay home.
While many English gypsy girls are allowed to drink alcohol and go on holiday with their friends before they get married, their Irish counterparts are not.
One person said: “I love Irish travellers.”
A second person said: “Why did you get married at 18?”
A third person added: “I’d love a tour of your caravan.”
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