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==Origin==
[http://nordan.daynal.org/wiki/index.php?title=English#ca._1100-1500_.09THE_MIDDLE_ENGLISH_PERIOD Middle English] cowardise, from Anglo-French coardise, from cuard
*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/14th_century 14th Century]
According to the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Online_Etymology_Dictionary Online Etymology Dictionary], the word coward came into [[English]] from the Old French word coart (modern French [http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/couard couard]), a combination of the word for "tail" (Modern French queue, [[Latin]] cauda) and an agent noun suffix. It would therefore have meant "one with a tail" — perhaps from the [[habit]] of [[animals]] displaying their tails in flight ("turning tail"), or from a dog's [[habit]] of putting its tail between its legs when it is afraid. Like many other [[English]] words of French [[origin]], this [[word]] was introduced in the [[English]] language by the French-speaking Normans, after the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norman_conquest_of_England Norman conquest of England] in 1066.
The [[English]] surname Coward (as in Noël Coward), however, has the same [[origin]] and [[meaning]] as the word "cowherd".
==Definition==
* lack of [[courage]] or resolution
==Description==
'''Cowardice''' is the [[perceived]] failure to [[demonstrate]] sufficient robustness and [[courage]] in the face of a [[challenge]]. Under many [[military]] codes of [[justice]], cowardice in the face of combat is a [[crime]] punishable by [[death]] (cf. [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shot_at_dawn shot at dawn]). The term describes a [[personality]] trait which is viewed as a [[negative]] characteristic and has been frowned upon (see norms) within most, if not all global [[cultures]], while [[courage]], typically viewed as its direct [[opposite]], is generally rewarded and encouraged.
Cowards are usually seen to have avoided or refused to [[engage]] in a [[confrontation]] or [[struggle]] which has been deemed [[good]] or [[righteous]] by the wider [[culture]] in which they live. On a more mundane level, the label may be applied to those who are regarded as too frightened or overwhelmed to defend their rights or those of others from aggressors in their lives.
Acts of cowardice have long been punishable by [[military]] [[law]], which defines a wide range of cowardly offenses including desertion in face of the enemy and [[surrender]]ing to the enemy against orders. The [[punishment]] for such acts is typically severe, ranging from [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corporal_punishment corporal punishment] to the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_sentence death sentence]. Cowardly [[conduct]] is specifically mentioned within the United States [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uniform_Code_of_Military_Justice Uniform Code of Military Justice].
[[Category: Law]]
[[Category: Psychology]]
==Origin==
[http://nordan.daynal.org/wiki/index.php?title=English#ca._1100-1500_.09THE_MIDDLE_ENGLISH_PERIOD Middle English] cowardise, from Anglo-French coardise, from cuard
*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/14th_century 14th Century]
According to the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Online_Etymology_Dictionary Online Etymology Dictionary], the word coward came into [[English]] from the Old French word coart (modern French [http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/couard couard]), a combination of the word for "tail" (Modern French queue, [[Latin]] cauda) and an agent noun suffix. It would therefore have meant "one with a tail" — perhaps from the [[habit]] of [[animals]] displaying their tails in flight ("turning tail"), or from a dog's [[habit]] of putting its tail between its legs when it is afraid. Like many other [[English]] words of French [[origin]], this [[word]] was introduced in the [[English]] language by the French-speaking Normans, after the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norman_conquest_of_England Norman conquest of England] in 1066.
The [[English]] surname Coward (as in Noël Coward), however, has the same [[origin]] and [[meaning]] as the word "cowherd".
==Definition==
* lack of [[courage]] or resolution
==Description==
'''Cowardice''' is the [[perceived]] failure to [[demonstrate]] sufficient robustness and [[courage]] in the face of a [[challenge]]. Under many [[military]] codes of [[justice]], cowardice in the face of combat is a [[crime]] punishable by [[death]] (cf. [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shot_at_dawn shot at dawn]). The term describes a [[personality]] trait which is viewed as a [[negative]] characteristic and has been frowned upon (see norms) within most, if not all global [[cultures]], while [[courage]], typically viewed as its direct [[opposite]], is generally rewarded and encouraged.
Cowards are usually seen to have avoided or refused to [[engage]] in a [[confrontation]] or [[struggle]] which has been deemed [[good]] or [[righteous]] by the wider [[culture]] in which they live. On a more mundane level, the label may be applied to those who are regarded as too frightened or overwhelmed to defend their rights or those of others from aggressors in their lives.
Acts of cowardice have long been punishable by [[military]] [[law]], which defines a wide range of cowardly offenses including desertion in face of the enemy and [[surrender]]ing to the enemy against orders. The [[punishment]] for such acts is typically severe, ranging from [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corporal_punishment corporal punishment] to the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_sentence death sentence]. Cowardly [[conduct]] is specifically mentioned within the United States [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uniform_Code_of_Military_Justice Uniform Code of Military Justice].
[[Category: Law]]
[[Category: Psychology]]
