Lazarretos

Abstract

Tonight I would like to talk about Lazarettos. An alternative title might be "a historico-economic study in depth of socially accepted means of community behaviour and preventative disease containment in the ongoing epidemic enzootic disease situation", or more shortly — "To flee or not to flee". I would like to discuss the various attitudes and preventative measures taken by populations when they are threatened by an outbreak of an epidemic infection. By the way, for those of you who are still wondering what a "Lazaretto" is and have not found out where the dictionary is in the library — it is derived from the Italian word "Lazaretto" and is a house for the reception of the diseased poor, especially lepers. Lazar houses were a particularly popular means of controlling epidemic disease in the Middle Ages — but more of that anon.