TWO Essex women have launched a social media campaign to get "Essex girl" removed from the Oxford English Dictionary.

Juliet Thomas and Natasha Sawkins want fellow Essex women to peers to join them in their fight by posting why they're proud to be from Essex under the #IAmAnEssexGirl hashtag.

The Oxford English Dictionary definition for an "Essex girl" is as follows:

"A contemptuous term applied to a type of young woman, supposedly to be found in and around Essex, and variously characterized as unintelligent, promiscuous, and materialistic."

The Collins Dictionary went one step further by describing Essex girls as "devoid of taste and sexually promiscuous."

The pair believe that the term is derogatory and rude and have called on people to sign a petition to get it removed.

A statement published on their petition page says:

"People can argue that it's a bit of "harmless fun, all taken in jest." But it's naive to say stereotypes are harmless, especially derogatory ones. They slowly seep into everyday lexicon, and in turn have a profound effect on general perceptions.

"We want the definitions removed. Or, at the very least, made obsolete. And we know that, in order to do this, Essex needs to reclaim "Essex girl". To let the world know that it doesn't signify anything other than a girl who lives in Essex. Who she chooses to be beyond that, is entirely up to her."

However, they may face a stumbling block in their pursuit to get the term removed as no words are ever taken out of the dictionary.

Definitions of words can be changed but words have never been taken out since the Oxford English Dictionary was launched in 1884.

The Only Way Is Essex star Gemma Collins also condemned the definition and demanded that the dictionary pay everyone in Essex compensation for describing them in such "outrageous" fashion.

You can sign Juliet and Natasha's petition by clicking here.