Hi David & Listers ! Most people in this country (including myself many years ago !) tend to think that leprosy was a disease only found in hot countries - but this is not true as it was quite widespread in many parts of Europe. I have always been very interested in Scandinavia, especially Norway, and I was very surprised many years ago when on holiday in Bergen on the west coast to see that the map from the Tourist Office included among its list of the many museums in that city a "Leprosy Hospital Museum" ! This I had to see, and the visit opened my eyes and my mind to the fact that the disease was not at all confined to hot countries in what we now call 'The Third World' ! The main discoverer of the causes of leprosy was a Norwegian doctor named Gerhard Henrik Armauer Hansen and Norway issued a stamp in his honour in February 1973 to celebrate the Centenary of the discovery; it shows him looking down a microscope at the bacillus, So If leprosy could be a problem in Bergen, Norway I should think it would be very likely to occur in Norwich as well - there was a lot of trade between the two especially through the Hanseatic port at Kings Lynn. I hope this helps your research ! Roger. ---------------------- On 19 Dec 2011, at 19:22, David Cullingford wrote: > Going through the parish registers of St Clements in Norwich I've > frequently > come across the term "Lazar" against people buried. Not having come > across this term before I Googled it and it told me that Lazar was an > antiquated term for Leper? Reading further I see that there were > quite a few > Lazar houses around the city. One such hospital became the Lazar > House > Library in the city, now a community building after cutbacks. I've > also noted > many burials of people being "from the gate", presumably because > these were > people either poor, diseased or not of the parish and therefore not > permitted to > enter? Any comments on this welcomed. They're an interesting > record of life > back then these registers. >