Lasagna is a type of pasta with its own sub-group of numerous flavorful lasagna dishes. The main theory about the history of lasagna is that the word can be traced back to the Greek word laganon, denoting a flat sheet of dough that is cut into strips.
There is also another Greek word, lasanon, denoting an ancient crock-pot. The Romans adopted the word and turned it into lasanum, also referring to a cooking vessel, so lasagna is believed to refer to the vessel it was cooked in.
Although the first recipe for lasagna is traced back to Naples, the term lasagna was coined in the 16th century in Trento, Italy, and the dish was reserved for festive days, consisting of layered pasta with fillings and sauces. In the 1800s, there was an emergence of baked lasagna dishes, known as lasagne al forno, especially in the south.