The medieval forms in the history of Europe during the period between antiquity and the early modern period. Traditionally situated is done by Italian humanists introduced the period between the fall of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century and the Renaissance as from the 14th century in Italy began. Depending on the focus that historians use, however, there is quite some variation in the definition of this period. The period of the Middle Ages as seen by the French historian Jacques Le Goff spans almost a millennium, from the death of Justinian and the rise of Islam (622) until the eve of the French Revolution and the Industrial Revolution. Often, however, maintained a more traditional periodization.
Medieval society and civilization arose from three distinct sources: the Greco-Roman civilization, the Christian faith – both in the territory of the Roman Empire arose or developed – and Germanic traditions, which later brought invading peoples. Also had the Celt's impact on medieval culture, although this is more difficult to prove. These influences are expressed in many different fields: in agriculture practices, legal practices, and superstitions.
The Middle Agestheir name ( “Middle Ages” ) to the fact that the Renaissance humanists in this period as an interval considered, following the fall of the Roman Empire and the time they lived. Western Europe was in fact following the collapse of the Roman Empire cut off from the ancient culture and it was there again only come into contact during the Crusades. The Arabs had many writings of classical authors preserved. With the decline and the threat by the Turks from the Byzantine Empire, Byzantine scholars traveled to Italy and took the safer they have collected ancient knowledge with which Constantinople had been preserved. The sacking of Constantinople by the crusaders in 1204, during the Fourth Crusade, revealed besides a significant material much booty in the West lost knowledge, art, music, and culture back to Europe.
Through this renewed acquaintance with ancient literature, philosophy, art, music, and culture in general, Humanism and the Renaissance actually possible. Petrarca (ca. 1300) called this period the times of Tenebrae (darkness) and from 1469 was primarily the term media tempestas (split) is used.
Only in the 17th century ( Christoph Keller and Georg Horn ), the term Medium Aevum (‘Middle’) is common. This was an official status with the appearance of mediœ et infimœ latinitatis Glossary of Du Cange in 1678. In 1698 he published Christoph Cellarius the first history of the Middle Ages, Historia Medii Aevi .
Incidentally, the term “dark ages” applied mainly to the history of Western Europe after the fall of the Roman Empire. For example, in Eastern Europe, the term is not used for their own history: they are of the opinion that the Roman Empire only cases with the intake of Constantinople in the 15th century. Consequently, there is no time to be designated as “middle” between the demise of the empire and the ‘new era’. In other parts of the world such as China, India or the Arab world never speak about a “medieval era in its history.