Legal Definitions - quarantine

Definition: Quarantine refers to the isolation of a person or animal who has a communicable disease or the prevention of such a person or animal from entering a particular area to prevent the spread of the disease.

For example, during the COVID-19 pandemic, many countries imposed quarantine measures on travelers coming from high-risk areas to prevent the spread of the virus.

Quarantine can also refer to a place where such isolation measures are in place. In history, quarantine referred to a period of 40 days during which ships suspected of carrying dangerous communicable diseases were isolated to prevent the spread of the disease.

Another historical example of quarantine is the widow's quarantine, which was a widow's right to remain in her husband's house for 40 days after his death while her dower was being assigned.

Overall, quarantine is a measure taken to prevent the spread of communicable diseases and has been used throughout history to protect public health.