Epidemic

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The epidemiological term, epidemic is defined for a condition that is normally rare in a population but in a short space of time has become widespread . It may refer to both infectious diseases (for example, Zika virus epidemic in Brazil ) but also other conditions, e.g. the obesity epidemic.

For example, when COVID-19 was first detected in Wuhan it was a new infection restricted to a few individuals, however it rapidly became epidemic as it spread throughout the city, the province and then China. As the epidemic went global it became a pandemic, which is - in essence - an extensive epidemic.

History and etymology

Epidemic is derived from the Classical Greek, ἐπί (epi) meaning "near/upon/above" and δῆμος (demos) meaning "people". From the same origin comes words like epidemiology.

Epidemics in literature
Classical literature
  • The Iliad by Homer
Italian literature
  • The Decameron by Giovanni Boccaccio
  • The Betrothed by Alessandro Manzoni
Modern Literature
  • The Scarlet plague by Jack London

See also