lazzaroni

Neapolitan social class

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Last updated

June 30, 2026

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The term "lazzaroni" refers to a social class of homeless idlers in Naples, Italy. These individuals historically lived by chance work or begging. The word's origin is Italian, derived from "lazzaro," meaning beggar or leper, itself stemming from the Medieval Latin "lazarus".1

It is important to distinguish "lazzaroni" from "lazzi," which are improvised comic dialogues or actions found in the commedia dell'arte. Lazzi were a resource for actors, involving verbal asides, physical comedy, and other actions to entertain the audience.2

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Naples
Naples from the Angevins to the Risorgimento
…while the Neapolitan poor, the lazzaroni, abandoned by their sovereign, remained vigorously if incomprehensibly monarchist. The nobly conceived Parthenopean Republic collapsed in a welter of blood. A punitive return by the Bourbons and the execution or exile of the republicans make the year 1799 a tragic epoch in the Neapolitan…
Read More
…while the Neapolitan poor, the lazzaroni, abandoned by their sovereign, remained vigorously if incomprehensibly monarchist. The nobly conceived Parthenopean Republic collapsed in a welter of blood. A punitive return by the Bourbons and the execution or exile of the republicans make the year 1799 a tragic epoch in the Neapolitan…
Read More