# Paparazzi - what is origin of this word?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paparazzi-what-is-origin-of-this-word/143131>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [December 16, 2002, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paparazzi-what-is-origin-of-this-word/143131 "2002-12-16T18:45:06Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![HeyHey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/cdc98d/32.png) [@HeyHey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHey)\
**Post date:** [December 16, 2002, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paparazzi-what-is-origin-of-this-word/143131/1 "2002-12-16T18:45:06Z")

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Paparazzi – sounds italian, sure, but what does it mean in Italian?

thanks.

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**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\
**Post date:** [December 16, 2002, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paparazzi-what-is-origin-of-this-word/143131/2 "2002-12-16T18:51:43Z")

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It’s originally from the name of a character in the Fellini film _La Dolce Vita_, an intrusive photographer. The term was soon extended to other similar celebrity photographers, and pluralized as _paparrazi_.

[Paparrazo](http://www.quinion.com/words/topicalwords/tw-pap1.htm)

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**Author:** ![HeyHey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/cdc98d/32.png) [@HeyHey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHey)\
**Post date:** [December 16, 2002, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paparazzi-what-is-origin-of-this-word/143131/3 "2002-12-16T19:00:00Z")

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excellent. thanks much, and for the great link.