Byzantium: Hidden Code Word in European History Revealed! It became established in like all the European languages. So I mentioned earlier what Byzantium Byzantine means in English but like I found that in Italy in the later half of the 19th century and into the fascist period in Italy. Byzantium was a code word for all the dysfunctions of the Italian bureaucracy especially in like the south of Italy. So like the what today we consider like like the mafia land like all that they just called it o