Abstract
This monograph deals with ethnonyms Roma and Gypsy in the Czech language culture. Attention is paid primarily to complex meaning of both ethnonyms, the way how they are used by native speakers from majority society and the attitude of Roma themselves to both words.
The work renders also exercising the principle of the political correctness with the two words Roma/Gypsy in the time period since 1989. Analysis of lexicographic sources, selected art texts, research in the Czech National Corpus and survey among members of the majority society and Roma themselves evidence double influence of the language in the society.
On the one hand its influence on creating stereotypes when perceiving members of Roma ethnic group, on the other hand the role of the language as "a mirror of the real life", on the basis of which we can reconstruct the image of the reality out of language, in this case the nature of coexistence of the majority society and Roma.