Lazar

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A historical figure known as a beggar or leper in biblical accounts, particularly noted for his resurrection by Jesus
2. A character in religious texts who symbolizes the forgotten or marginalized, often representing themes of hope and redemption
3. An individual in literature or folklore who endures hardship and suffering, potentially showcasing the contrast between worldly wealth and spiritual richness

Etymology: The name that gave us this word belonged to a man in Jesus's parable of the rich man and Lazarus, in Luke 16, where a beggar covered in sores lies at a rich man's gate. Its Hebrew source is "Eleazar," a name shared by several figures in the Hebrew Bible, meaning "God has helped." The Greek form "Lazaros" carried that name into the New Testament, and the story of the beggar was then read as a bodily misfortune. The turn from name to noun happened in Medieval Latin, where "lazarus" came to mean "leper." Medieval Latin speakers gave the name this sense because the sick beggar of the parable was imagined as a leper, so the figure became a stand-in for the disease and the people who suffered it. This use, called antonomasia, turns a proper name into a common noun for a type of person. The word came into English through Old French "lazare" and Middle English "lazare," carrying the sense of a leper or a diseased beggar into the language. Its meaning has since narrowed to the single idea of a poor, sick outcast.