Brahmins and Samans
Preserved but no longer current.
(Gr. gumnos, naked; sophistes, sages ) Gyp flip). The name at Cambridge (and at Durham) for a college servant, who acts as valet to two or more undergraduates, the counterpart of the Oxford scout. He differs from a bedmaker, inasmuch as he does not make beds; but he runs on errands, waits at table, wakes men for morning charjel, brushes their clothes, and so on. The word is probably from gippo, a 17th-century term for a scullion. Gypsy.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “Brahmins and Samans” mean?
(Gr. gumnos, naked; sophistes, sages ) Gyp flip). The name at Cambridge (and at Durham) for a college servant, who acts as valet to two or more undergraduates, the counterpart of the Oxford scout. He differs from a bedmaker, inasmuch as he does not make beds; but he runs on errands, waits at table, wakes men for morning charjel, brushes their clothes, and so on. The word is probably from gippo, a 17th-century term for a scullion. Gypsy.
Is “Brahmins and Samans” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.