<ul>
<li><i>A Pandemic is defined as the proliferation of a disease over the whole country or the entire world.</i></li>
<li>Diseases and illnesses have troubled humanity since the earliest days, but can now occur with increased frequency due to rapid urbanization and globalism. The death toll numbers in Pandemics over the ages are estimates based on available research, and may not be accurate.</li>
<li>Earlier it was believed that Pandemics are God’s punishment on humans, but now, as our understanding has increased, the response to these outbreaks has improved.</li>
</ul>


A History Of Pandemics

Health

<ul>
<li>The original use of the word Quarantine was the act of anchoring a ship arrived in Venice, Italy, for 40  days before landing.</li>
<li>Infectiousness of any disease is measured by the reproduction number (R0, or <i>R naught</i>).&nbsp;<i>For example, Smallpox has an R0 of 6 whereas Measles has an R0 of 16.&nbsp;</i></li><li>Vaccination, if available, and herd immunity can curb the spread of disease.</li>
<li>Big cities, with exploding population and traffic, can lead to the rapid spread of any infectious disease.</li>
</ul>


Quarantined

<img alt="World Economic Forum" src="https://www.weforum.org/assets/logo-b66768797e3f785791fd157ffc33c27eeca6d5100b7f34d418f50d206f1a8004.svg" width="78" height="48"><figure><picture><img alt="A computer image created by Nexu Science Communication together with Trinity College in Dublin, shows a model structurally representative of a betacoronavirus which is the type of virus linked to COVID-19, better known as the coronavirus linked to the Wuhan outbreak, shared with Reuters on February 18, 2020. " src="https://assets.weforum.org/article/image/large_hUqzwQeuSi_WX4zXOnuGAWR7Q4WbFp29-hznYwnuehI.jpg" width="743" height="321"></picture><figcaption dir="auto">Infectious diseases have been constant companions of humans throughout history.
Image: Nexu Science Communication via REUTERS</figcaption></figure><div>
          This article is published in collaboration with </div><UL><LI>Even in the modern era, outbreaks are nearly constant, though not every outbreak reaches pandemic level as the coronavirus has.</LI><LI>This visualization outlines some of history’s most deadly pandemics, from the Antonine Plague to COVID-19.</LI></UL><figure><picture><source type="image/webp" data-srcset="https://assets.weforum.org/editor/responsive_large_webp_FZwzNiahFEvD-Q1w0iTqgo4N1gdPVebkOil9EAHR9BY.webp 850w, https://assets.weforum.org/editor/responsive_medium_webp_Z5fajnv9DZ0XboYW6_MUvOipv3c53SOIb3gOSAijtN8.webp 640w, https://assets.weforum.org/editor/responsive_small_webp_6DU8ew4W7eoQYnrrvriqvhMUVKN54HpRt4Hv7bKx7iA.webp 320w" data-sizes="100vw" sizes="100vw" srcset="https://assets.weforum.org/editor/responsive_large_webp_FZwzNiahFEvD-Q1w0iTqgo4N1gdPVebkOil9EAHR9BY.webp 850w, https://assets.weforum.org/editor/responsive_medium_webp_Z5fajnv9DZ0XboYW6_MUvOipv3c53SOIb3gOSAijtN8.webp 640w, https://assets.weforum.org/editor/responsive_small_webp_6DU8ew4W7eoQYnrrvriqvhMUVKN54HpRt4Hv7bKx7iA.webp 320w"><img alt="A chart showing a history of pandemics." srcset="https://assets.weforum.org/editor/responsive_large_S2M39QUl5bD10riLJHoNlF4XGAVuYKfeTrW9hKbog-0.jpg 850w, https://assets.weforum.org/editor/responsive_medium_g1V4n-hPq9Q_9CKsUUzqgqFDHsldeYYeWi-Mov3fk9g.jpg 640w, https://assets.weforum.org/editor/responsive_small_R_Y1HvL_XeXfQENMwZkb9W5mH84nSKCfMgZcZgO4OMg.jpg 320w" src="https://assets.weforum.org/editor/OidbpPf3QMtt2SvrmNdR4feAAmAiMHhNm59Ak5_7lp0.jpg"></picture><figcaption dir="auto">Image: Visual Capitalist</figcaption></figure><h2>
  The History of Pandemics
</h2><p><i>Pan·dem·ic /panˈdemik/ (of a disease) prevalent over a whole country or the world.</i></p><p>As humans have spread across the world, so have infectious diseases. Even in this modern era, outbreaks are nearly constant, though not every outbreak reaches pandemic level as the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) has.</p><p>Today’s visualization outlines some of history’s most deadly pandemics, from the Antonine Plague to the current COVID-19 event.</p><h2>
  A Timeline of Historical Pandemics
</h2><p>Disease and illnesses have plagued humanity since the earliest days, our mortal flaw. However, it was not until the marked shift to agrarian communities that the scale and spread of these diseases increased dramatically.</p><p>Widespread trade created new opportunities for human and animal interactions that sped up such epidemics. Malaria, tuberculosis, leprosy, influenza, smallpox, and others first appeared during these early years.</p><p>The more civilized humans became – with larger cities, more exotic trade routes, and increased contact with different populations of people, animals, and ecosystems – the more likely pandemics would occur.</p><p>Here are some of the major pandemics that have occurred over time:</p><figure><picture><source type="image/webp" data-srcset="https://assets.weforum.org/editor/responsive_large_webp_xoVjYUdeW9HFU7wVo0wgDx0jZlMJ1XIRrp77tcXUoAY.webp 850w, https://assets.weforum.org/editor/responsive_medium_webp_Mr8Q23wh5SNYykaXuwZj2ksjeXclkDme29L5Xpt15qA.webp 640w, https://assets.weforum.org/editor/responsive_small_webp_gslYXpkEALwZtt4dnZ5o-kvM0ZnhTL4rZMFcVMcWIoU.webp 320w" data-sizes="100vw" srcset="https://assets.weforum.org/editor/responsive_large_webp_xoVjYUdeW9HFU7wVo0wgDx0jZlMJ1XIRrp77tcXUoAY.webp 850w, https://assets.weforum.org/editor/responsive_medium_webp_Mr8Q23wh5SNYykaXuwZj2ksjeXclkDme29L5Xpt15qA.webp 640w, https://assets.weforum.org/editor/responsive_small_webp_gslYXpkEALwZtt4dnZ5o-kvM0ZnhTL4rZMFcVMcWIoU.webp 320w"><img alt="" src="https://assets.weforum.org/editor/jkLwcMl9wtfD38DLL-0xVHiTVGufYb5Uj9tqj69swRk.jpg"></picture></figure><p dir="ltr">Note: Many of the death toll numbers listed above are best estimates based on available research. Some, such as the Plague of Justinian, are <a href="https://www.pnas.org/content/116/51/25546" rel="noopener" dir="ltr">subject to debate</a> based on new evidence.</p><p>Despite the persistence of disease and pandemics throughout history, there’s one consistent trend over time – a gradual reduction in the death rate. Healthcare improvements and understanding the factors that incubate pandemics have been powerful tools in mitigating their impact.</p><h2>
  Wrath of the Gods
</h2><p>In many ancient societies, people believed that spirits and gods inflicted disease and destruction upon those that deserved their wrath. This unscientific perception often led to disastrous responses that resulted in the deaths of thousands, if not millions.</p><p dir="ltr">In the case of Justinian’s plague, the Byzantine historian <a href="https://www.ancient.eu/article/782/justinians-plague-541-542-ce/" rel="noopener" dir="ltr">Procopius of Caesarea</a> traced the origins of the plague (the Yersinia pestis bacteria) to China and northeast India, via land and sea trade routes to Egypt where it entered the Byzantine Empire through Mediterranean ports.</p><p>Despite his apparent knowledge of the role geography and trade played in this spread, Procopius laid blame for the outbreak on the Emperor Justinian, declaring him to be either a devil, or invoking God’s punishment for his evil ways. Some historians found that this event could have dashed Emperor Justinian’s efforts to reunite the Western and Eastern remnants of the Roman Empire, and marked the beginning of the Dark Ages.</p><p>Luckily, humanity’s understanding of the causes of disease has improved, and this is resulting in a drastic improvement in the response to modern pandemics, albeit slow and incomplete.</p><h2>
  Importing Disease
</h2><p dir="ltr">The <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/quarantine/historyquarantine.html" rel="noopener" dir="ltr">practice of quarantine</a> began during the 14th century, in an effort to protect coastal cities from plague epidemics. Cautious port authorities required ships arriving in Venice from infected ports to sit at anchor for 40 days before landing — the origin of the word quarantine from the Italian “quaranta giorni”, or 40 days.</p><p dir="ltr">One of the first instances of relying on geography and statistical analysis was in mid-19th century London, during a cholera outbreak. In 1854, Dr. John Snow came to the conclusion that cholera was spreading via tainted water and decided to display neighborhood mortality <a href="https://www.visualcapitalist.com/data-visualization-cholera/" rel="noopener" dir="ltr">data directly on a map.</a> This method revealed a cluster of cases around a specific pump from which people were drawing their water from.</p><p>While the interactions created through trade and urban life play a pivotal role, it is also the virulent nature of particular diseases that indicate the trajectory of a pandemic.</p><h2>
  Tracking Infectiousness
</h2><p>Scientists use a basic measure to track the infectiousness of a disease called the reproduction number — also known as R0 or “R naught.” This number tells us how many susceptible people, on average, each sick person will in turn infect.</p><figure><picture><source type="image/webp" data-srcset="https://assets.weforum.org/editor/responsive_large_webp_yR5BqQThhT3PXjThCnHJ6dSjagtLvBPYQEx_9XAIEQE.webp 850w, https://assets.weforum.org/editor/responsive_medium_webp_9JUWGgQ3d0kQq24KsT4O9ITSRYV2Kds6lCO_5vY91iU.webp 640w, https://assets.weforum.org/editor/responsive_small_webp_80wkF6PHoyqqMJXtVnwVV5jiBstx5kIHrdZgpgGDVg4.webp 320w" data-sizes="100vw" srcset="https://assets.weforum.org/editor/responsive_large_webp_yR5BqQThhT3PXjThCnHJ6dSjagtLvBPYQEx_9XAIEQE.webp 850w, https://assets.weforum.org/editor/responsive_medium_webp_9JUWGgQ3d0kQq24KsT4O9ITSRYV2Kds6lCO_5vY91iU.webp 640w, https://assets.weforum.org/editor/responsive_small_webp_80wkF6PHoyqqMJXtVnwVV5jiBstx5kIHrdZgpgGDVg4.webp 320w"><img alt="A chart showing how many people each disease will infect." src="https://assets.weforum.org/editor/RiZDgu4TWMUOYuorzQ7Zr1RafgTFZjvmUYNv4ZqpfaY.jpg"></picture></figure><p>Measles tops the list, being the most contagious with a R0 range of 12-18. This means a single person can infect, on average, 12 to 18 people in an unvaccinated population.</p><p dir="ltr">While measles may be the most virulent, vaccination efforts and <a href="https://imgur.com/a/8M7q8" rel="noopener" dir="ltr">herd immunity</a> can curb its spread. The more people are immune to a disease, the less likely it is to proliferate, making vaccinations critical to prevent the resurgence of known and treatable diseases.</p><p>It’s hard to calculate and forecast the true impact of COVID-19, as the outbreak is still ongoing and researchers are still learning about this new form of coronavirus.</p><h2>
  Urbanization and the Spread of Disease
</h2><p>We arrive at where we began, with rising global connections and interactions as a driving force behind pandemics. From small hunting and gathering tribes to the metropolis, humanity’s reliance on one another has also sparked opportunities for disease to spread.</p><p>Urbanization in the developing world is bringing more and more rural residents into denser neighborhoods, while population increases are putting greater pressure on the environment. At the same time, passenger air traffic nearly doubled in the past decade. These macro trends are having a profound impact on the spread of infectious disease.</p><p>As organizations and governments around the world ask for citizens to practice social distancing to help reduce the rate of infection, the digital world is allowing people to maintain connections and commerce like never before.</p><p>Editor’s Note: The COVID-19 pandemic is in its early stages and it is obviously impossible to predict its future impact. This post and infographic are meant to provide historical context, and we will continue to update it as time goes on to maintain its accuracy.</p><div>Share</div>

As humans have spread across the world, so have infectious diseases. Even in this modern era, outbreaks are nearly constant, though not every outbreak reaches pandemic level as the COVID-19 has.

Bite‑sized knowledge
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your career

A visual history of pandemics

A History Of Pandemics

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Pandemics That Changed History: Timeline

The 10 deadliest epidemics throughout history

10 misconceptions about the 1918 flu, the 'greatest pandemic in history'

Bite‑sized knowledgeto upgradeyour career

A visual history of pandemics

A History Of Pandemics

Quarantined

Pandemics That Changed History: Timeline

The 10 deadliest epidemics throughout history

10 misconceptions about the 1918 flu, the 'greatest pandemic in history'

Bite‑sized knowledge
to upgrade
your career