Anthropology, Law, Ethic and Health Department, Medicine Faculty of Marseille, UMR 6578 Aix-Marseille University, CNRS-EFS, Marseille, France.
Clin Microbiol Infect. 2012 Mar;18(3):218-23. doi: 10.1111/j.1469-0691.2012.03787.x.
Drawing its etymology from the Latin pestis (curse), plague, over the centuries, has been more dreaded by humankind than any other epidemic. The Apocalypse had recognized plague as the archetypal divine curse, 'the power to kill over a fourth of the earth'. Plague is thus a particular topic of study, insofar that it is one of the rare epidemics that has had recurrent major consequences on demography and human societies. Its highly transmissible nature, the brutality of its action, its high pathogenicity, marked by strong lethality and great swiftness, and the complete absence of treatment options before the 20th century conferred on it a sinister aspect. Generating a series of severe demographic crises, well known in the Western world, it has necessarily influenced the evolution of societies at both the biological and cultural levels.
从拉丁语 pestis（诅咒）的词源来看，瘟疫在几个世纪以来一直比其他任何传染病都更令人类恐惧。《启示录》将瘟疫视为典型的神圣诅咒，“有能力杀死地球上超过四分之一的人”。因此，瘟疫是一个特别的研究课题，因为它是少数几种对人口和人类社会产生反复重大影响的传染病之一。它具有很强的传染性、行动的残酷性、高致病性，死亡率高，速度快，而且在 20 世纪之前没有治疗方法，这使它具有险恶的一面。它引发了一系列严重的人口危机，在西方世界广为人知，必然影响了社会在生物和文化层面的发展。
