Geographies of Plague Pandemics ─ The Spatial-temporal Behavior of Plague to the Modern Day

Geographies of Plague Pandemics syntheses our current understanding of the spatial and temporal dynamics of plague, Yersinia pestis. The environmental, political, economic, and social impacts of the plague from Ancient Greece to the modern day are examined. Chapters explore the identity of plague DNA, its human mortality, and the source of ancient and modern plagues. This book also discusses the role plague has played in shifting power from Mediterranean Europe to Northwestern Europe during the 500 years that plague raged across the continent. The book demonstrates how recent colonial structures influenced the spread and mortality of plague while changing colonial histories. In addition, this book provides critical insight into how plague has shaped modern medicine, public health, and disease monitoring, and what role, if any, it might play as a terror weapon.

The scope and breath of Geographies of Plague Pandemics offers geographers, historians, biologists, and public health educators the opportunity to explore the deep connections among disease and human existence.

Mark Welford is a nature-society geographer at Georgia Southern University. His research interests include: environmental change in, and conservation of, tropical montane environments; hurricanes and climate change; and the spatial dynamics of historical pandemics. He has taught at Georgia Southern for since 1993. He has also directed Study Abroad Trips to the Ecuador, India, the Czech Republic, Poland and Italy.