List of epidemics


This is a list of the biggest known epidemics caused by an infectious disease. Widespread non-communicable diseases such as cardiovascular disease and cancer are not included.
An epidemic is the rapid spread of disease to a large number of people in a given population within a short period of time. For example, in meningococcal infections, an attack rate in excess of 15 cases per 100,000 people for two consecutive weeks is considered an epidemic.
|alt=Emergency hospital during Spanish Influenza epidemic, Camp Funston, Kansas
EventDateLocationDiseaseDeath toll Ref.
Influenza epidemic1200 BCBabylon, or Babirus of the Persians, Central Asia, Mesopotamia and Southern AsiaSanskrit scholars found records of a disease resembling the FluUnknown
Plague of Athens429–426 BCGreece, Libya, Egypt, EthiopiaUnknown, possibly typhus, typhoid fever or viral hemorrhagic fever75,000–100,000
412 BC epidemic412 BCGreece Unknown, possibly influenzaUnknown
Antonine Plague165–180 Roman EmpireUnknown, possibly smallpox5–10 million
Plague of Cyprian250–266EuropeUnknown, possibly smallpox1 million+
Plague of Justinian541–542Europe and West AsiaBubonic plague 25–100 million
Roman Plague of 590590Rome, Byzantine EmpireBubonic plague Unknown
Plague of Sheroe627–628MesopotamiaBubonic plague Unknown
Plague of 664664–689British IslesBubonic plague Unknown
Plague of 698–701698–701Byzantine Empire, West Asia, Syria, MesopotamiaBubonic plague Unknown
735–737 Japanese smallpox epidemic735–737JapanSmallpox2 million
Plague of 746–747746–747Byzantine Empire, West Asia, AfricaBubonic plague Unknown
Black Death 1346–1353Europe, Asia and North AfricaBubonic plague bacterium75–200 million
Sweating sickness 1485–1551Britain and later continental EuropeUnknown, possibly an unknown species of hantavirus10,000+
1489 Spain typhus epidemic1489SpainTyphus17,000
1510 influenza pandemic1510Asia, North Africa, EuropeInfluenzaUnknown, around 1% of those infected
1520 Mexico smallpox epidemic1519–1520MexicoSmallpox5–8 million
Cocoliztli Epidemic of 1545–15481545–1548MexicoPossibly Salmonella enterica5–15 million
1561 Chile smallpox epidemic1561–1562ChileSmallpoxUnknown
1563 London plague1563–1564London, EnglandBubonic plague20,100+
Cocoliztli epidemic of 15761576–1580MexicoPossibly Salmonella enterica2–2.5 million
1582 Tenerife plague epidemic1582–1583Tenerife, SpainBubonic plague5,000–9,000
1592–1596 Seneca nation measles epidemic1592–1596Seneca nation, United States and CanadaMeaslesUnknown
1592–93 Malta plague epidemic1592–1593MaltaBubonic plague3,000
1592–93 London plague1592–1593London, EnglandBubonic plague19,900+
1596–1602 Spain plague epidemic1596–1602SpainBubonic plague600,000–700,000
1600–1650 South America malaria epidemic1600–1650South AmericaMalariaUnknown
1603 London plague epidemic1603London, EnglandBubonic plague40,000
1609 Egyptian plague epidemic1609EgyptBubonic plague1 million
1616 New England infections epidemic1616–1620Southern New England, United States, especially the Wampanoag peopleUnknown, possibly leptospirosis with Weil syndrome. Classic explanations include yellow fever, bubonic plague, influenza, smallpox, chickenpox, typhus, and syndemic infection of hepatitis B and hepatitis DUnknown
1629–1631 Italian plague1629–1631ItalyBubonic plague280,000
1632–1635 Augsburg plague epidemic1632–1635Augsburg, GermanyBubonic plague13,712
Massachusetts smallpox epidemic1633–1634Massachusetts Bay Colony, Thirteen ColoniesSmallpox1,000
1634–1640 Wyandot people epidemic of infections1634–1640Wyandot people, United States and CanadaSmallpox and Influenza15,000–25,000
1637 London plague epidemic1636–1637London and Westminster, EnglandBubonic plague10,400
1641–1644 China plague epidemic1641–1644ChinaBubonic plagueUnknown
Great Plague of Seville1647–1652SpainBubonic plague500,000
1648 Central America yellow fever epidemic1648Central AmericaYellow feverUnknown
Naples Plague1656ItalyBubonic plague1,250,000
1663–1664 Amsterdam plague epidemic1663–1664Amsterdam, NetherlandsBubonic plague24,148
Great Plague of London1665–1666EnglandBubonic plague100,000
1668 France plague1668FranceBubonic plague40,000
1675–76 Malta plague epidemic1675–1676MaltaBubonic plague11,300
1676–1685 Spain plague1676–1685SpainBubonic plagueUnknown
1677–1678 Boston smallpox epidemic1677–1678Massachusetts Bay Colony, United StatesSmallpox750–1000
Great Plague of Vienna1679Vienna, AustriaBubonic plague76,000
1681 Prague plague epidemic1681Prague, Czech KingdomBubonic plague83,000
1687 South Africa Influenza outbreak1687South AfricaUnknown, possibly InfluenzaUnknown
1693 Boston yellow fever epidemic1693Boston, United StatesYellow fever3,100+
1699 Charleston and Philadelphia yellow fever epidemic1699Charleston and Philadelphia, United StatesYellow fever520
1702 New York City yellow fever epidemic1702New York City, United StatesYellow fever500
1702–1703 St. Lawrence Valley smallpox epidemic1702–1703New France, CanadaSmallpox1,300
1707–1709 Iceland smallpox epidemic1707–1709IcelandSmallpox18,000+
Great Northern War plague outbreak1710–1712Denmark, Sweden, LithuaniaBubonic plague164,000
1713–1715 North America measles epidemic1713–1715Thirteen Colonies and New France, CanadaMeaslesUnknown
Great Plague of Marseille1720–1722FranceBubonic plague100,000+
1721 Boston smallpox outbreak1721–1722Massachusetts Bay ColonySmallpox844
1730 Cádiz yellow fever epidemic1730Cádiz, SpainYellow fever2,200
1732–1733 Thirteen Colonies influenza epidemic1732–1733Thirteen ColoniesInfluenzaUnknown
1733 New France smallpox epidemic1733New France, CanadaSmallpoxUnknown
1735–1741 Diphtheria epidemic1735–1741New England, New York, New Jersey, United StatesDiphtheria20,000
Great Plague of 17381738BalkansBubonic plague50,000
1738–1739 North Carolina smallpox epidemic1738–1739North Carolina, United StatesSmallpox7,700–11,700
1739–1740 Thirteen Colonies measles epidemic1739–1740Thirteen ColoniesMeaslesUnknown
1741 Cartagena yellow fever epidemic1741Cartagena, ColombiaYellow fever20,000
1743 Sicily plague epidemic1743Messina, Sicily, ItalyBubonic plague40,000–50,000
1747 Thirteen Colonies measles outbreak1747Thirteen ColoniesMeaslesUnknown
1759 North America measles outbreak1759North AmericaMeaslesUnknown
1760 Charleston smallpox epidemic1760Charleston, United StatesSmallpox730–940
1761 North America and West Indies influenza epidemic1761North America, West IndiesInfluenzaUnknown
1762 Havana yellow fever epidemic1762Havana, CubaYellow fever8,000
1763 Pittsburgh area smallpox outbreak1763North America, present-day Pittsburgh areaSmallpoxUnknown
Russian plague of 1770–17721770–1772RussiaBubonic plague50,000
1772 North America measles epidemic1772North AmericaMeaslesUnknown
1772–1773 Persian Plague1772–1773PersiaBubonic plague2 million+
1775–1776 England influenza outbreak1775–1776EnglandInfluenzaUnknown
1775–1782 North American smallpox epidemic1775–1782Pacific Northwest, United StatesSmallpox11,000+
1778 Spain dengue fever outbreak1778SpainDengue feverUnknown
1788 Pueblo Indians smallpox epidemic1788Pueblo Indians, Southwestern United StatesSmallpoxUnknown
1788 United States measles epidemic1788United StatesMeaslesUnknown
1789–1790 New South Wales smallpox epidemic1789–1790New South Wales, AustraliaSmallpoxUnknown
1793 United States influenza and typhus epidemic1793United StatesInfluenza and epidemic typhusUnknown
1793 Philadelphia yellow fever epidemic1793Philadelphia, United StatesYellow fever5,000+
1800–1803 Spain yellow fever epidemic1800–1803SpainYellow fever60,000+
1801 Ottoman Empire and Egypt bubonic plague epidemic1801Ottoman Empire, EgyptBubonic plagueUnknown
1802–1803 Saint-Domingue yellow fever epidemic1802–1803Saint-DomingueYellow fever29,000–55,000
1812 Egypt bubonic plague epidemic1812EgyptBubonic plagueUnknown
1812 Russia Typhus epidemic1812RussiaTyphus300,000
1812–19 Ottoman plague epidemic1812–1819Ottoman EmpireBubonic plague300,000+
1813–14 Malta plague epidemic1813–1814MaltaBubonic plague4,500
Caragea's plague1813RomaniaBubonic plague60,000
1817–1819 Ireland typhus epidemic1817–1819IrelandTyphus65,000
First cholera pandemic1817–1824Asia, EuropeCholera100,000+
1820 Savannah yellow fever epidemic1820Savannah, Georgia, United StatesYellow fever700
1821 Barcelona yellow fever epidemic1821Barcelona, SpainYellow fever5,000–20,000
Second cholera pandemic1826–1837Asia, Europe, North AmericaCholera100,000+
1828–1829 New South Wales smallpox epidemic1828–1829New South Wales, AustraliaSmallpox19,000
Groningen epidemic1829NetherlandsMalaria2,800
1829–1833 Pacific Northwest malaria epidemic1829–1833Pacific Northwest, United StatesMalaria, possibly other diseases too150,000
1829–1835 Iran plague outbreak1829–1835IranBubonic plagueUnknown
1831–1834 Plains Indians smallpox epidemic1831–1834Plains IndiansSmallpoxUnknown
1834–1836 Egypt plague epidemic1834–1836EgyptBubonic plagueUnknown
1837 Great Plains smallpox epidemic1837–1838Great Plains, United States and CanadaSmallpox17,000+
1840 South Africa smallpox epidemic1840South AfricaSmallpoxUnknown
1841 Southern United States yellow fever epidemic1841Southern United States Yellow fever3,498
1847 North American typhus epidemic1847–1848CanadaTyphus20,000+
1847 Southern United States yellow fever epidemic1847Southern United States Yellow fever3,400
1847–1848 influenza epidemic1847–1848WorldwideInfluenzaUnknown
1848–1849 Hawaii epidemic of infections1848–1849Hawaiian KingdomMeasles, whooping cough, dysentery and influenza10,000
1850–1851 North America influenza epidemic1850–1851North AmericaInfluenzaUnknown
1853 New Orleans yellow fever epidemic1853New Orleans, United StatesYellow fever7,970
Third cholera pandemic1846–1860RussiaCholera1 million+
1853 Ottoman Empire plague epidemic1853Ottoman EmpireBubonic plagueUnknown
1853 Copenhagen cholera outbreak1853Copenhagen, DenmarkCholera4,737
1854 Broad Street cholera outbreak1854London, EnglandCholera616
1855 Norfolk yellow fever epidemic1855Norfolk and Portsmouth, EnglandYellow fever3,000
Third plague pandemic1855–1960WorldwideBubonic plague12 million+ in India and China alone
1857 Lisbon yellow fever epidemic1857Lisbon, PortugalYellow fever6,000
1857 Victoria smallpox epidemic1857Victoria, AustraliaSmallpoxUnknown
1857–1859 Europe and the Americas influenza epidemic1857–1859Europe, North America, South AmericaInfluenzaUnknown
1862–1863 British Columbia Smallpox epidemic1862–1863British Columbia, CanadaSmallpox32,000
1861–1865 United States typhoid fever epidemic1861–1865United StatesTyphoid fever80,000
Fourth cholera pandemic1863–1875Middle EastCholera600,000
1867 Sydney measles epidemic1867Sydney, AustraliaMeasles748
1871 Buenos Aires yellow fever epidemic1871Buenos Aires, ArgentinaYellow fever13,500–26,200
1870–1875 Europe smallpox epidemic1870–1875EuropeSmallpox500,000
1875 Fiji measles outbreak1875FijiMeasles40,000
1875–1876 Australia scarlet fever epidemic1875–1876AustraliaScarlet fever8,000
1876 Ottoman Empire plague epidemic1876Ottoman EmpireBubonic plague20,000
1878 New Orleans yellow fever epidemic1878New Orleans, United StatesYellow fever4,046
1878 Mississippi Valley yellow fever epidemic1878Mississippi Valley, United StatesYellow fever13,000
Fifth cholera pandemic1881–1896Asia, Africa, Europe, South AmericaCholera298,600
1885 Montreal smallpox epidemic1885Montreal, CanadaSmallpox3,164
1889–1890 flu pandemic1889–1890WorldwideInfluenza1 million
Bombay plague epidemic1896–1905Bombay, IndiaBubonic plague20,788
1896–1906 Congo Basin African trypanosomiasis epidemic1896–1906Congo BasinAfrican trypanosomiasis500,000
1899 Porto plague outbreak1899Porto, PortugalBubonic plague132
Sixth cholera pandemic1899–1923Europe, Asia, AfricaCholera800,000+
San Francisco plague of 1900–19041900–1904San Francisco, United StatesBubonic plague119
1900 Sydney bubonic plague epidemic1900AustraliaBubonic plague103
1900–1920 Uganda African trypanosomiasis epidemic1900–1920UgandaAfrican trypanosomiasis200,000–300,000
Kuru epidemic1900's-2009Papua New Guinea Kuru2,700-3,000+
1903 India plague epidemic1903IndiaBubonic plague22
1903 Fremantle plague epidemic1903FremantleBubonic plague4
Manchurian plague1910–1911ChinaPneumonic plague60,000
1910 China plague1910–1912ChinaBubonic plague40,000
1915 Encephalitis lethargica pandemic1915–1926WorldwideEncephalitis lethargica1.5 million
1916 United States polio epidemic1916United StatesPoliomyelitis7,130
1918 influenza pandemic 1918–1920WorldwideInfluenza A virus subtype H1N1 17–100 million
1918–1922 Russia typhus epidemic1918–1922RussiaTyphus2.5 million
1924 Los Angeles pneumonic plague outbreak1924Los Angeles, United StatesPneumonic plague30
1924–1925 Minnesota smallpox epidemic1924–1925Minnesota, United StatesSmallpox500
1927 Montreal typhoid fever epidemic1927Montreal, CanadaTyphoid fever538
1929–1930 Psittacosis Pandemic1929-1930WorldwidePsittacosis100+
Croydon typhoid outbreak of 19371937Croydon, United KingdomTyphoid fever43
1937 Australia polio epidemic1937AustraliaPoliomyelitis
1940 Sudan yellow fever epidemic1940SudanYellow fever1,627
1942–1944 Egypt malaria epidemic1942–1944EgyptMalariaUnknown
1946 China plague epidemic1946ChinaBubonic plagueUnknown
1946 Egypt relapsing fever epidemic1946EgyptRelapsing feverUnknown
1947 Egypt cholera epidemic1947EgyptCholera10,277
1948–1952 United States polio epidemic1948–1952United StatesPoliomyelitis9,000
1957–1958 influenza pandemic 1957–1958WorldwideInfluenza A virus subtype H2N21–4 million
1960–1962 Ethiopia yellow fever epidemic1960–1962EthiopiaYellow fever30,000
Seventh cholera pandemic1961–1975WorldwideCholera Unknown
Hong Kong flu1968–1970WorldwideInfluenza A virus subtype H3N2 1–4 million
1971 Staphorst polio epidemic1971Staphorst, NetherlandsPoliomyelitis5
1972 Yugoslav smallpox outbreak1972YugoslaviaSmallpox35
London flu1972–1973United StatesInfluenza A virus subtype H3N21,027
1973 Italy Cholera El Tor epidemic1973ItalyCholera 24
1974 smallpox epidemic of India1974IndiaSmallpox15,000
Soviet flu1977-78WorldwideInfluenza A virus subtype H1N110,000 - 30,000
Sverdlovsk anthrax leak1979RussiaAnthrax105
HIV/AIDS pandemic1981–present WorldwideHIV/AIDS32 million+
1984 Western Sahara plague1984Western SaharaBubonic plague64
1986 Oju yellow fever epidemic1986Oju, NigeriaYellow fever5,600+
1987 Mali yellow fever epidemic1987MaliYellow fever145
1991 Bangladesh cholera epidemic1991BangladeshCholera8,410–9,432
1994 plague in India1994IndiaBubonic plague and Pneumonic plague56
United Kingdom BSE outbreak1996–2001United KingdomvCJD178
1996 West Africa meningitus epidemic1996West AfricaMeningitis10,000
1998–99 Malaysia Nipah virus outbreak1998–1999MalaysiaNipah virus infection105
2000 Central America dengue epidemic2000Central AmericaDengue fever40+
2001 Nigeria cholera epidemic2001NigeriaCholera400+
2001 South Africa cholera epidemic2001South AfricaCholera139
2002–04 SARS outbreak2002–2004WorldwideSevere acute respiratory syndrome 774
2003 Algeria plague outbreak2003AlgeriaBubonic plague1
Avian influenza outbreaks in the 2000s2003–Southeast Asia and EgyptInfluenza A virus subtype H5N1455
2004 Afghanistan leishmaniasis epidemic2004AfghanistanLeishmaniasis0
2004 Indonesia dengue epidemic2004IndonesiaDengue fever658
2004 Senegal cholera outbreak2004SenegalCholera2
2004 Sudan ebola outbreak2004SudanEbola7
2005 dengue outbreak in Singapore2005SingaporeDengue fever27
2006 Luanda cholera epidemic2006Luanda, AngolaCholera1,200+
2006 Ituri Province plague epidemic2006Ituri Province, Democratic Republic of the CongoBubonic plague61
2006 India malaria outbreak2006IndiaMalaria17
2006 dengue outbreak in India2006IndiaDengue fever50+
Chikungunya outbreaks2006IndiaChikungunya virusUnknown
2006 dengue outbreak in Pakistan2006PakistanDengue fever50+
2006 Philippines dengue epidemic2006PhilippinesDengue fever1,000
2006–07 East Africa Rift Valley fever outbreak2006–2007East AfricaRift Valley fever394
Mweka ebola epidemic2007Democratic Republic of the CongoEbola187
2007 Ethiopia cholera epidemic2007EthiopiaCholera684
2007 Iraq cholera outbreak2007IraqCholera10
2007 Nigeria polio outbreak2007NigeriaPoliomyelitisUnknown
2007 Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, and Mexico dengue fever epidemic2007Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, MexicoDengue fever183
2007 Uganda ebola outbreak2007UgandaEbola37
2007 Vietnam cholera outbreak2007VietnamCholera2
2008 Brazil dengue epidemic2008BrazilDengue fever67
2008 Cambodia dengue epidemic2008CambodiaDengue fever407
2008 Chad cholera epidemic2008ChadCholera123
2008–2017 China hand, foot, and mouth disease epidemic2008–2017ChinaHand, foot, and mouth disease3,322+
2008 India cholera epidemic2008IndiaCholera115
2008 Madagascar plague outbreak2008MadagascarBubonic plague18+
2008 Philippines dengue epidemic2008PhilippinesDengue fever172
2008–09 Zimbabwean cholera outbreak2008–2009ZimbabweCholera4,293
2009 Bolivian dengue fever epidemic2009BoliviaDengue fever18
2009 Gujarat hepatitis outbreak2009IndiaHepatitis B49
Queensland 2009 dengue outbreak2009Queensland, AustraliaDengue fever1+
Mumps outbreaks in the 2000s2009WorldwideMumpsUnknown
2009–10 West African meningitis outbreak2009–2010West AfricaMeningitis1,100
2009 swine flu pandemic2009–2010WorldwideInfluenza A virus subtype H1N1284,000
2010s Haiti cholera outbreak2010–2019HaitiCholera 10,075
2010–2014 Democratic Republic of the Congo measles outbreak2010–2014Democratic Republic of the CongoMeasles4,500+
2011 Vietnam hand, foot and mouth disease epidemic2011VietnamHand, foot and mouth disease170
2011 dengue outbreak in Pakistan2011PakistanDengue fever350+
2012 yellow fever outbreak in Darfur, Sudan2012Darfur, SudanYellow fever171
2012 Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus outbreak2012–presentWorldwideMiddle East respiratory syndrome / MERS-CoV862
2013 dengue outbreak in Singapore2013SingaporeDengue fever8
2013 Vietnam Measles outbreak2013–2014VietnamMeasles142
Western African Ebola virus epidemic2013–2016Worldwide, primarily concentrated in Guinea, Liberia, Sierra LeoneEbola virus disease 11,323+
2013–14 chikungunya outbreak2013–2015AmericasChikungunya183
2013–19 Avian influenza epidemic2013–2019ChinaInfluenza A virus subtype H7N9616
2014 Madagascar plague outbreak2014–2017MadagascarBubonic plague292
2014 Odisha jaundice outbreak2014–2015IndiaPrimarily Hepatitis E, but also Hepatitis A36
2015 Indian swine flu outbreak2015IndiaInfluenza A virus subtype H1N12,035
2015–16 Zika virus epidemic2015–2016WorldwideZika virus53
2016 Angola and DR Congo yellow fever outbreak2016Angola and DR CongoYellow fever498
2016–20 Yemen cholera outbreak2016–presentYemenCholera3,886
2017 dengue outbreak in Peshawar2017Peshawar, PakistanDengue fever69
2017 Gorakhpur Japanese encephalitis outbreak2017IndiaJapanese encephalitis1,317
2017–18 United States flu season2017–2018United StatesSeasonal influenza61,000
2018 Nipah virus outbreak in Kerala2018IndiaNipah virus infection17
Kivu Ebola epidemic2018–2020Democratic Republic of the Congo and UgandaEbola virus disease2,272
2019 measles outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo2019–presentDemocratic Republic of the CongoMeasles6,400+
2019–2020 New Zealand measles outbreak2019–presentNew ZealandMeasles2
2019 Philippines measles outbreak2019–presentPhilippinesMeasles415
2019 Kuala Koh measles outbreak2019Kuala Koh, MalaysiaMeasles15
2019 Samoa measles outbreak2019–presentSamoaMeasles83
2019–20 dengue fever epidemic2019–presentAsia-Pacific, Latin AmericaDengue fever3,930
COVID-19 pandemic2019–presentWorldwideCOVID-19 682,044