what is the origion of the word 'CURFEW'?

Question

used by police or army during any RIOTS or war etc.

Answer 1

The word CURFEW comes from Anglo-Norman via Middle English, originally an instruction to cover and damp down the fires before retiring, "couvre feu": a very necessary precaution when cities were filled with wooden houses having thatched roofs.

Curfew means an order by the government for certain persons to return home daily before a certain time. It can either be to maintain public order (such as those after the 2003 North America blackout and 2005 civil unrest in France), or to suppress targeted groups (such as the one Adolf Hitler enacted on Jewish people in Nazi Germany). Curfews have long been directed at certain groups in many cities or states, such as Japanese-American university students on the West Coast during World War II, African-Americans in many towns during the time of Jim Crow laws, or people younger than a certain age (usually within a few years either side of 18) in many towns of the U.S. since the 1980s; see below. Some jurisdictions have also introduced "daytime curfews" that would prevent high school-age youth from visiting public places during school hours or even during immediate after-school hours.

Answer 2

The word comes from the Old French "cuevrefeu" which meant to cover the fire. In the middle ages it was shouted around the town at night to tell people to put a metal cover over their open fires to prevent sparks causing fire during the night. It later came to mean a time at which everyone must be in their homes.

Answer 3

It comes from the French 'couvre feu', meaning 'cover fire'. In medieval days they used to ring a bell at night to tell people to put out their fires and lower their lamps before going to bed - untended fires being a major issue in towns where all the houses are made of wood!
Over time obviously it has come to mean any official order given at night.

Answer 4

From the French "coeverfeu", meaning "cover fire". The word developed in the middle ages when every evening bells would ring, signaling everyone to bank the hearths and prepare for sleep.