The Middle Ages lasted for roughly a millennium, commonly dated from the fall of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century to the beginning of the Early Modern Period in the 16th century, marked by the division of Western Christianity in the Reformation, the rise of humanism in the Italian Renaissance, and the beginnings of European overseas expansion which allowed for the Columbian Exchange. There is some variation in the dating of the edges of these periods which is due mainly to differences in specialization and focus of individual scholars. Commonly seen periodization ranges span the years ca. 400–476 AD (the sackings of Rome by the Visigoths to the deposing of Romulus Augustus) to ca. 1453–1517 (the Fall of Constantinople to the Protestant Reformation begun with Martin Luther's Ninety-Five Theses). Dates are approximate, and are based upon nuanced arguments; for other dating schemes and the reasoning behind them, see "periodization issues]]", below.

The Middle Ages witnessed the first sustained urbanization of northern and western Europe. Many modern European states owe their origins to events unfolding in the Middle Ages; present European political boundaries are, in many regards, the result of the military and dynastic achievements during this tumultuous period.

Etymology

Middle Ages in history

main: Middle Ages in history see: Dark Ages After the Middle Ages ended, subsequent generations imagined, portrayed and interpreted the Middle Ages in very different ways. Every century has created its own vision of the Middle Ages; the 16th century view of the Middle Ages was entirely different from the 19th century which was different from the 20th century view. The different perceptions of the Middle Ages remain with us today in the form of literature, art, revival styles of architecture, film and popular conception.

Terminology

Until the Renaissance (and for some time after) the standard scheme of history was to divide history into six ages, inspired by the biblical six days of creation, or four monarchies based on Daniel 2:40. The early Renaissance historians, in their glorification of all things classical, declared two periods in history, that of Ancient times and that of the period referred to as the "Dark Age". Filippo Villani first mentioned a "middle period" between Antiquity and his present when he observed in a treatise of 1382 that the islands in the Mediterranean Sea were called by different names in priscis mediis modernisque temporibus ("primitive, middle and modern times"). In the early 15th century it was believed history had evolved from the Dark Age to a new period with its revival of things classical so some scholars, such as Flavio Biondo, began to write about a middle period between the Ancient and Modern, which became known as the Middle Age. It was not until the late 17th century when German scholar Christoph Cellarius' published Universal History Divided into an Ancient, Medieval, and New Period that the tripartite periodization scheme began to be used more systemically.