Quarantine and curfew: origins and history of these measures
Where do the terms "quarantine" and "curfew" come from? Explanation of these terms, which do not date today ...
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This year 2020 is widely marked by the COVVI-19 pandemic. In March, then recently for the month of November, the government imposed on the French a period of containment.
Si quelqu’un présente des symptômes, il doit respecter une période de 14 jours d’isolement (aussi appelée « quatorzaine »), période réduite à 7 jours en septembre. Cette période de quarantaine est également imposée dans de nombreux pays voisins pour limiter la propagation du virus.
Also, on October 14, the president announced the establishment of a curfew in several metropolises. Back on the origin and history of these terms, which do not date from today ...
The various origins of the forties
Plusieurs explications peuvent être données quant à l’origine du terme « quarantaine ».
A Catholic origin first, while the number forty refers to the period of Lent. This useful period of fasting to prepare for new beginnings to the Easter festival lasts forty days (excluding Sundays), a duration supposed to recall the forty years spent in the desert by the people of Israel.
Au Moyen-Age ensuite, on parle de « quarantaine » pour la période de quarante jours durant laquelle un seigneur ne peut se venger. On l’appelle aussi « quarantaine-le-roi ». Si à l’époque déjà, on isole les malades pour éviter les contagions, on ne parle pas encore de « quarantaine ».
Forty days is also the period of convalescence necessary for women who had just given birth, before the relevant ceremony, or amusement, within the Catholic Church to reintegrate them with God and the faithful.
Indeed, it was not until the 17th century to use this term to designate the period of isolation during the epidemic period. For forty days, patients must remain isolate to limit the spread of diseases.
The curfew as a protective measurement
The origin of the curfew differs according to the origin of historians. In England, it dates back to 1068 when Guillaume the conqueror imposed it as a repressive measure on the English to avoid rebellions and frequent fires. For other researchers, this origin is myth because this custom would be for use for even longer.
The story of the curfew therefore wants a bell that a bell sounded every evening in the 11th century to ask the population to cover their fire with a cover to avoid a fire but also to keep it by means of a copper, iron or terrestrial utensil.
Il s’agit surtout aujourd’hui, d’après le Larousse, d’une « mesure de police ou ordre militaire interdisant temporairement de sortir des maisons », valable en temps de guerre ou de pandémie mondiale.