Leprosy literally means "the peeling disease" — and medieval lepers were legally declared dead while still alive, subjected to a funeral ceremony before exile from society.
A chronic infectious disease caused by the bacterium Mycobacterium leprae, affecting the skin, peripheral nerves, and mucous membranes, causing disfigurement and disability if untreated.
From Old French leprosie, from Late Latin leprōsia, from Latin leprōsus (leprous), from Greek lepra (λέπρα, leprosy, a scaly skin disease), from lepros (λεπρός, scaly, rough), from lepein (λέπειν, to peel, to scale off), from PIE *lep- (to peel, to scale). Key roots: *lep- (Proto-Indo-European: "to peel, to scale off").
Leprosy literally means "the peeling disease" — from Greek lepein (to peel off scales). The stigma surrounding leprosy was so extreme that medieval lepers were forced to carry bells or clappers to warn of their approach and were legally declared dead while still alive. The disease is now called Hansen's disease (after the Norwegian physician who identified the bacterium in 1873) precisely to escape this stigma. Contrary to centuries of belief, leprosy is actually one of the least