Encyclopedia of Southern Italy: L
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Labellum: Ancient name of Lavello (PZ).
Lablache, Luigi: (b. Dec. 6, 1794, in Naples; d. (full entry)
Lachrymae Christi: (= “tears of Christ”). A noted wine produced for centuries in and around Naples and much of Campania. Under the Bourbons, the wine was considered so fine that it was produced only in a small quantity for use almost exclusively by the royal family.
Ladislaus: King of Naples (r1386-1414). He was opposed by Louis II of Anjou (r1390-1399).
Laidulf: Prince of Capua (993-999).
Lamachos: an athlete of ancient Tauromenium in Sicily. He was victor in the stadion at the Olympian Games in 56 BC.
Lamarque, Count Maximilien: b. July 22, 1770, in St. Sever, France; d. June 1, 1832, in Paris. French soldier and political orator. After a distinguished military career, he entered into the service of Napoleon, fighting for him as a brigadier-general at Austerlitz. He participated in the French invasion of the Kingdom of Naples, participating in the capture of Gaeta in 1806. He also was responsible for crushing an insurrection in Calabria. In 1807, he defeated a British force and was promoted to the rank of general of division. Under King Joachim Murat he successfully captured the island and citadel of Capri from the British garrison under Sir Hudson Lowe. In later years, following Napoleon’s return from Elba, Lamarque served with loyalty. After Waterloo and Napoleon’s final exile, Lamarque was forced to flee from France. He settled in Amsterdam for a time before being allowed to return home.
Lametus fl. (mod. river Amato, Calabria): An ancient river in Bruttium. According to one theory, the name is of ancient Illyrian origin, related to the Indo-European root *lama- (‘swamp, puddle’).
Lamezia Terme (formerly Nicastro) (CZ): A commune in the province of Catanzaro. Population: 70,365 (2006e); 18,150 (1901).
Lamezia Terme, Diocese of:
Metropolitan: Catanzaro – Squillace.
Conference Region: Calabria.
Area: 915 km²/ mi²
Total Population: 137,223.
Total Priests: 80 (Diocesan: 67; Religious: 13).
Permanent Deacons: 22
Parishes: 60.
Lanbadusha: Arabic name for the island of Lampedusa.
Lanciano (CH): A commune in the province of Chieti. Population: 36,306 (2006e). It is located 13 miles SE of Chieti.
Landenulf of Capua: Bishop of Capua (r AD 879 – ?).
Landenulf I of Capua: Prince of Capua (r885-887).
Landenulf II of Capua: Prince of Capua (982-993).
Lando: Pope. (rJuly/Aug 913-Feb/Mar 914).
Lando I of Capua: Prince of Capua (r843-861).
Lando II of Capua: Prince of Capua (r861).
Lando III of Capua: Prince of Capua (r882-885).
Landolfo: (fl. early 11th Century). The son of Giovanni IV (Duke of Naples AD 999-1002), he was adopted by the infamous Marozia, senetrix of Rome.
Landolina, Giovanni Battista: (fl. late 17th / early 18th Centuries). Marchese di S. Alfano. Following the destruction of the Sicilian city of Noto in the great earthquake of 1693, he was responsible having the city rebuilt on a new site about 10 km from the original one. Working with three local architects, he designed the new city in a careful layout, structured as much on current socio-economics as practicality. Laid out on a hill, the wealthy aristocrats were given the highest elevations where they could enjoy the cleanest air and best views. The cathedral and its piazza mark the center of the town, while the districts for the poor classes stretched along the urban edges. In 1730, Giovanni’s son, Francesco, disregarded his father’s social town pattern by building his Palazzo Landolina at the town center beside the cathedral.
Landulf I of Capua: Prince of Capua (r840-843).
Landulf I of Capua: Bishop of Capua (r 843-879).
Landulf II of Benevento: See Landulf IV of Capua.
Landulf II of Capua (1): Prince of Capua (r863-879). He usurped the power in Capua from his nephew in 863.
Landulf II of Capua (2): Bishop of Capua (r 879-882; 882 – ?).
Landulf III of Capua: (). Prince of Capua (co-ruler 901-943). After the death of Atenulf I, he shared power with Atenulf II (r911-940), Landulf IV (r939 or 940-943), and Atenulf III Carinola (r933-943).
Landulf IV “the Red” of Capua: (d. 961). Prince of Capua (r939/940-961) and Prince of Benevento (as Landulf II) (r939/940-961). He was raised to power when his father made him co-ruler. Upon his father’s death he immediately sent his elder brother Atenulf to Benevento and his cousin Landulf to Capua. Both men, believing that they were going to be killed, fled to Guaimar II of Salerno. In modern times, Landulf has figured into the bizarre psychology of Adolf Hitler who believed that he was the reincarnation of Landulf.
Landulf V of Capua: Prince of Capua (959-968).
Landulf VI of Capua: Prince of Capua (968-982).
Landulf VII of Capua: Prince of Capua (999-1007).
Landulf VIII of Capua: Prince of Capua (1057-1058).
Langobardi: Italian name for the Lombards.
L’Aquila: (formerly Aquila, Aquila), Province of: A province (area: 2,485 mi² [5,034.6 km²]) in the region of Abruzzo. It produces cereal crops, flax, hemp and fruits.
L’Aquila: (formerly Aquila, Aquila): A city and regional capital of Abruzzo. (full entry)
Laran (Larun): Etruscan god of war. He was often depicted as naked, holding a spear and wearing a helmet.
Larcii: An important family of ancient Rome. It was originally of Etruscan origins.
Larunda: an ancient Italic/Sabine goddess. An earth mother-goddess, some sources name her as the mother of the Lares. Her name is said to mean “may she cause the eath to turn green.”
La serpe: a long strip of cloud that occasionally lies against the southern base of Mount Etna. It is usually a portent of rain.
Lasa: A class of Etruscan goddesses or nymphs who watched over graves. They were often the companions of the love goddess Turun.
Latymnus Mons: A mountain in ancient Bruttium, located near Croton.
Laus: A Greek city in ancient Lucania. Located near the mouth of the river Laus, it was founded by refugees from Sybaris following the destruction of that city in 510 BC. The city was short-lived and played no significant role in history. It was deserted by the time of Pliny (AD 1st Century). The modern town of (Marcellina di) Santa Maria del Cedro (CS) sits on the site of the ancient city.
Laus (mod. Lao), River: An ancient river on the southern Italian mainland. The river rises in the Lucanian Apennines and is a considerable stream throughout its length. It emptied into the Gulf of Laus (mod. Golfo di Policastro) near the modern town of Santa Maria del Cedro (CS). According to Pliny, Ptolemy and Strabo, it formed the boundary between ancient Lucania and Bruttium. The name of the river, and the associated Greek town, is believed to be related to the Indo-European root *lou(e)- (‘to wash’).
Laverna: an ancient Italic goddess, queen of the underworld. It was a custom to pour libations to her using the left hand.
Lavinium: An ancient town of Bruttium, near the modern town of Scalea (CS). Because it was situated in the valley of the Laus river, it is believed that its name is name is derived from that waterway.
lazzaroni (sing. lazzarone) A derogatory term used for the lowest social and economic classes of Naples during the Spanish and Bourbon eras. These included street peddlers, porters, boatmen, beggers, and the masses of homeless. The term derives from lazzaro, an Italian word for “leper”, and seems to refer to the begger Lazarus mentioned in the parable of Christ. During medieval times lepers were required to wear short drawers and a hooded shirt. The costume was retained until the modern era by the lazzaroni. At the end of the 18th Century, when the lazzaroni formed an important and violent faction of supporters for the Bourbons, it was estimated that they numbered around 40,000.
left-handedness: The belief that left-handedness was considered evil or immoral is a survival from Roman times. Typically it was considered bad-luck to enter a building using the left foot first and left-handed people were viewed with suspicion. The Latin term for “left” (= sinister) has been borrowed by the English language as a negative word.
Lecce, Province of: A province of Puglia.
Lecce, Metropolitan Archdiocese of: A Metropolitan archdiocese in the ecclesiastical region of Puglia.
Suffragans: Brindisi–Ostuni, Nardò–Gallipoli, Otranto, Ugento–Santa Maria di Leuca.
Diocese of Lecce established in 1057.
Promoted to a Metropolitan Archdiocese on Oct. 20, 1980.
Lent Traditions: In the Abruzzo region, it is a tradition to cut a paper figure of an old woman with 7 feet. (full entry)
Quarésema puverella.
Va dicendo pe’ la terra:
Chi me da’ ‘na fuglitélla?
E noglie, noglie?
Chi mi da’ dù far’ ammoglie?
Chi mi da’ la stuppetélla
Pe’ fa’ fila’ quarésema puverella?”
Poor old Lent
Goes wandering o’er the earth, a-crying:
Who will give me a drop of wine?
Who, but who?
Who will give me wherewithal to wed?
Who will give a strand of hemo
For poor old Lent to spin?
Source: Antiquary Magazine vol.36. Jan-Dec. 1900 p.200: Every Sunday one of the feathers is removed from the central figure, and on Holy Saturday, as the churchbells ring, the figures are ritualistically burned as everyone rejoices. (full entry)
Leo I, St: Pope. (r September 29, 440-Nov 10, 461).
Leo II, St.: Pope. (rDec 681-July 3, 683).
Leo III: Pope. (rDec 26, 795-June 12, 816).
Leo IV, St.: Pope. (rJan. 847-July 17, 855).
Leo V: Pope. (rJuly-Sept 903).
Leo VI: Pope. (rMay-Dec 928).
Leo VII: Pope. (rJan 3, 936-July 13, 939).
Leo VIII: Pope. (rJuly 964-Mar 1, 965).
Leo IX, St.: Pope. (rFeb 12, 1049-Apr. 19, 1054).
Leo X: Pope. (rMar 9, 1513-Dec 1, 1531).
Leo XI: Pope. (rApr. 1-Apr 27, 1605).
Leo XII: Pope. (rSept. 28, 1823-Feb 10, 1829).
Leo XIII: Pope. (rFeb 20, 1878-July 20, 1903).
Leo, Leonardo: (b. 5 August 1694, San Vito Degli Schiavi. d. 31 October 1744, Naples). Composer.
Leoncavallo, Ruggiero: (b. 8 March 1857, Naples. d. 9 August 1919, Montecatini). Composer.
Leontini: ancient city, E Sicily, c.20 mi (32 km) S of Catania. It was founded (729 B.C.) as a colony of Chalcidian Greeks from the island of Naxos and, in the 5th century BC, passed under the rule of Syracuse. It was the legendary home of the Laestrygonians, a group of giants encountered by Odysseus. The site of ancient Leontini is now occupied by modern Lentini.
Leotiskos: an athlete of ancient Messene in Sicily. He was victor in wrestling at the Olympian Games in 456 BC and 452 BC.
Leontius (1): (fl. mid-7th century). Ecclesiastic. Bishop of Naples. He was present at the Lateran synod of AD 649. He held the see of Naples for 4 years.
Leontius (2): (fl. 2nd half of the 8th century). Ecclesiastic. Bishop of Bari. He was present at the 2nd Council of Nicaea in AD 787.
Leontius (3): (fl. late 6th/early 7th centuries). Byzantine official. After serving as Consul or Quaestor in Sicily, he remained an important figure. He received a number of letters from Pope Gregory I between AD 598 and 601.
Leonymus: A mythological Greek king of Croton, in southern Italy who made war on neighboring Locri. (full entry)
Leucothea: In classical mythology, one of the Sirens. She had cult centers located in the cities of Neapolis (Naples) and Velia, in Magna Graecia.
Levanzo (anc. Phorbantia; Bucinna): One of the principal islands of the Isole Egadi, off the west coast of Sicily. Its highest point is 850 feet.
Lex municipalis Tarentina: A municipal charter of the city of Tarentum (mod. Taranto) dating from the 1st Century BC. The surviving portion of the charter contains provisions about the responsibilities of municipal magistrates, building regulations, etc.
Liber: Originally an ancient Italic god of animal and vegetation fertility god, he later came to a wine god similar to the Greek Dionysus. His festival on March 17 marked the day when Roman youths assumed the toga virilus, the symbol of adulthood. He was the son of Ceres and brother of Libera.
Libera: An ancient Italic underworld (chthonic) goddess. She was the daughter of Ceres and sister of Liber, with whose worship she was usually connected. She was often identified with Persephone,
Liberius: Pope. (rMay 17, 352-Sept 24, 366).
Licinii: An important gens (clan) of ancient Rome. It was originally of Etruscan origins. The triumvir Marcus Licinius Crassus (d. 53 BC), the conqueror of Spartacus, belonged to this gens.
Ligorio, Pirro: (b. c1510, Naples. d. 1583, Ferrara). Architect, painter, art writer and antique dealer. He was living in Rome in 1534, where he was creating paintings depicting historical events. In 1568, he moved to the court of Este in Ferrara.Principal Works:Paintings:Excavations of the Villa Adriana in the city of Tivoli- 1549.Books:Libro delle antichita’ di Roma- 1553.Architecture-Villa d’Este in Tivoli- (1550-1572).Casino di Pio IV in Rome (1559-1562).Palazzo Torres-Lancellotti- Rome.Niche of the courtyard of Belvedere- Rome.
Liguori (or Ligorio), St. Alfonso Maria de: b. Sept. 26, 1696, at Marianella, near Naples; d. Aug. 1, 1787, at Nocera de Pagani.
Lilybaeum, Cape: ancient name for the westernmost corner of Sicily.
Lilybaeum: ancient city of Sicily, on the extreme western coast. It is the modern Marsala. It was founded (396 B.C.) by Carthage and became a stronghold. In the First Punic War it resisted a long Roman siege (250-242 B.C.). Rome finally captured the city in 241 BC and later used it as a base for the African campaign of Scipio Africanus Major. The city was famous for its harbor.
Linus, St.: Pope (rAD 67-76). He was a native of Tuscany.
Lipara: The principal island of the Aeoliae Insulae.
Lipareae: See Aeoliae Insulae.
Lipari (anc. Lipareae): (area: 37.6 km²). The principal island of the Isole Eolie (Lipari Islands).
Lipari Islands: Also known as Isole Eolie. A chain of volcanic islands in the Mediterranean to the N of Sicily. According to legend, the ancient name, Lipara, derives from that of Liparus, a mythical king of the islands. A less-romantic theory states that the name comes from the Greek word liparos (= “fat” or “rich”).
Lira (Neapolitan): The principal currency used in the Kingdom of Naples in 1812-1813 under Murat. It was subdivided into 100 centesimi and was equal to 1 French franc. Minted as a silver coin, its name derived from the Latin libra = pound.
lire: a 3-stringed bowed fiddle, played on the knee. It is found mostly in Calabria.
Liris (mod. Garigliano): A river in central Italy. Rising near the Fucinus lacus, it flows SSE to Sora, and then turns sharply to the SSW. At Isola dei Liri, its flows cascades and finally flows through marshy ground at Minturnae to enter the Tyrrhenian Sea.
Liternum (mod. Lago di Patria): A Roman colony founded in 194 BC in the Liternum Patria, 8 km N of Cumae. It is known that P. Cornelius Scipio Africanus retired to a villa located. Although Livy, in the 1st century AD, wrote that the colony had failed by his time, archaeological evidence contradicts him and seems to show that it survived until the 3rd century AD. The construction of the Via Domitia, in the late AD 1st century, brought the town a brief period of prosperity. The advance of malarial marshes led to the town’s ultimate decline.
Liternum Patria: An ancient district along the northern coast of Campania. The Greeks established Kyme (Cumae), their first colony on the Italian mainland, here.
Locri – Gerace, Diocese of:
Metropolitan: Reggio Calabria – Bova
Conference Region: Calabria
Area: 1,248 km²/ mi²
Total Population: 131,005.
Total Priests: 80 (Diocesan: 56; Religious: 24)
Permanent Deacons: 2
Parishes: 74
Locri Epizephyrii (: Lokroi Epizephyrioi ) : A city of ancient Bruttium. (full entry)
loggia: a roofed gallery or balcony.
Lokroi Epizephyrioi: See Locri Epizephyrii.
Lollia Gens: An ancient Roman plebian gens. Not appearing in history until the last decades of the Republic, it is believed to have been of Sabine or Samnite origins. The first member of this gens to attain the consulship was M. Lollius in 21 BC.
Lollius (1): (fl. 3rd Century BC) A Samnite, he was held at Rome as a hostage after the Pyrrhic War. Escaping, he became the leader of a band of brigands and seized control of the stronghold of Caricinum in Samnium. He used this fortress as a base of operations for raiding the countryside. In 269 BC, he was defeated and his stronghold captured by the Romans under Q. Ogulnius Gallus and C. Fabius Pictor.
Lollius, Quintus (2): (fl. 2nd – 1st Centuries BC). A Roman knight (eques) living in Sicily. Nearly 90 years old when Verres served as governor of Sicily (73-71 BC), he was victimized by the governor’s assistant Q. Apronius. When Cicero later prosecuted Verres for his crimes, Lollius was too feeble to testify, but his son Marcus Lollius served as his agent. Another of his sons, Quintus Lollius, while gathering evidence to use against Verres in Sicily, was murdered on the road. It was generally believed that the act was done by assassins hired by Verres but there is no evidence that anyone was ever officially prosecuted.
Lombards: (It. Longobardi). A Teutonic people of Scandinavian origins. After a period of settlement in the area of the lower Danube, they invaded Byzantine-held Italy in the spring of AD 568. The name, usually translated as “Long Beards”, is a combination of two Germanic words lang ( = long) and bart ( = beard). Some researchers, however, believe that the second root is actually barta( = ax), thus changing the meaning of the name to “long axes”, referring to a favorite weapon of the Lombards.
Longano (IS): A commune in the province of Isernia. Population: 719 (2006e).
Longi (ME): A commune in the province of Messina.
Longobardi: See Lombards.
Longobardi (CS): A commune in the province of Cosenza. Population: 2,295 (2006e).
Longobucco (CS): A commune in the province of Cosenza. Population: 4,077 (2006e).
Loreto Aprutino (PE): A commune in the province of Pescara, located 4 miles from Chieti.
Losna: Etruscan goddess of the moon.
Louis: King of Sicily (Trinacria) (r1342-1355).
Louis I of Anjou: (b. July 23, 1339, Château de Vincennes, France; d. (full entry)
Louis II of Anjou: (b. 1377; d. Apr. 29, 1417). King of Naples (r1390-1399) in opposition to Ladislaus (r1386-1414). He was the son of Louis I of Anjou, whose claim to the throne of Naples he inherited. On Nov. 1, 1389, he was crowned King of Naples by the antipope Clement VIII. Louis entered Naples in 1390 and held the city until Ladislaus recovered it in 1399. He would continue his contest with Ladislaus, driving the latter out of Rome in 1409. In the following year, Louis allied himself with the antipope John XXIII against Ladislaus. He was able to defeat his rival in battle at Roccasecca in 1411, but was never able to retake the Neapolitan throne. Retiring back into his French holdings, he died in 1417, and his claim to Naples passed to his son Louis III.
Lucania: ancient region of S Italy. It had an area of about 3,900 sq. miles. It was bounded on the east by the Gulf of Tarentum (now Taranto) and by Apulia, on the north by Samnium and Campania, on the west by the Tyrrhenian Sea, and on the south by Bruttium. Italic tribes and Greek colonists lived there before the Roman conquest in the 3d cent. B.C. Their chief cities were Heraclea and Metapontum on the Gulf of Tarentum and Paestum and Buxentum on the Tyrrhenian coast. The non-Greek Lucanians were Samnites. The western portion of ancient Lucania is now in Campania; the larger eastern part is in Basilicata.
Lucanians (Lucani): An ancient Indo-European Oscan-speaking people of southern Italy. The few Lucanian inscriptions which still survive are relatively late (4th-3rd centuries BC) and written using a Greek alphabet.
It is known that the Lucanians moved south into “Oenotria” in the middle of the 5th century BC, driving the native Oenotrians, Chones, and Lauternoi, into the mountainous interior of the peninsula. The expansion southward eventually brought the Lucanians into direct conflict with the Greeks of Taras (Tarentum). The Tarentines utilized allies such as Alexander of Epirus to fight their wars with varying success.
The initial contact between the Lucanians and the Romans was on good terms.
Luceria: A city of ancient Apulia, the modern Lucera (FG). Situated on the borders of Samnium and Apulia, it first appeared in history in 315/4 BC as a Samnite stronghold captured by the Romans. A Latin colony was established on the site, which was renewed by Augustus. It was during the reign of Augustus that a fine amphitheater was contructed on the site.
Luceria survived the collapse of the western Empire and maintained enough local importance to have a strong citadel constructed there in medieval times.
Lucia (Lucy), St.: (date uncertain). Christian martyr. (full entry)
Lucilius, Caius: (b. 148 BC in Suessa Aurunca; d. 103 BC in Naples). Latin poet. As a youth he joined the Roman army and served under the younger Scipio in Spain. He is believed to have been a maternal great-uncle of the triumvir Pompey the Great. Lucilius had an important influence on Latin poetry and is considered the first important writer of Roman satire. Many fragments of his workers have survived though few are of any length.
Lucius I, St.: Pope. (r June 25, 253-March 5, 254).
Lucius II: Pope. (rMar 12, 1144-Mar 15, 1145).
Lucius III: Pope. (rSept 1, 1181-Nov 25, 1185).
Luco dei Marsi (AQ): A commune in the province of L’Aquila. Population: 5,811 (2006e).
Lucrino, Lago (anc. Lucrinus lacus): A lake in Campania, separated from the sea by a narrow strip of land, which, according to tradition, was created by the hero Hercules. Since ancient times, the lake was famous for its oysters.
Lucy, St.: See St. Lucia.
Lungro, Eparchate of:
Metropolitan: Immediately subject to the Holy See.
Conference Region: Calabria
Area: 493 km²/ mi²
Total Population: 33,086
Total Priests: 34 (Diocesan: 32; Religious: 2)
Permanent Deacons: 1.
Parishes: 29.
Lupiae (LE): Ancient name for the city of Lecce.
Lurs: An obscure Etruscan god about which little is known.
Lusciano (CE): A commune in the province of Caserta. Population: 13,636 (2006e).
Lustitieratus Aprutii: A small state in the Abruzzi created by Frederick II in the 13th Century. It was centered of the city of Sulmona.
Lygdamis: An athlete of ancient Syracuse. He was victor in the pankration at the Olympian Games in 648 BC.
Lykinos: an athlete of ancient Kroton. He was victor in the Stadion at the Olympian Games in 584 BC.
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