Okuzeka
History vocabulary · Periods and Eras

Medieval

Meaning in history, with examples

/ˌmediˈiːvl/adjectiveCore term

In history, medieval means: Belonging to or typical of the Middle Ages, roughly the period from the fifth to the late fifteenth century.

In Turkish: Orta Çağ'a ait, Orta Çağ

How it is used

Used before nouns: medieval history, a medieval castle, medieval Anatolia, medieval manuscripts. Historians use it neutrally, but in everyday English medieval can also mean cruel or hopelessly old-fashioned, a sense scholars avoid.

Example sentences

  1. She specialises in medieval Anatolia and the Seljuk period.

  2. The medieval walls of the city were partly restored in the 1990s.

Common collocations

  • medieval history
  • medieval Europe
  • medieval manuscripts
  • a medieval castle
  • medieval studies
  • Middle AgesThe period of European history between the end of the Western Roman Empire in the fifth century and roughly the late fifteenth century.
  • feudalismA term for the social and political order of medieval Europe in which lords granted land to vassals in return for loyalty and military service, while peasants worked the land.
  • manuscriptA book or document written by hand, especially one produced before printing became common; also an author's text before it is published.
  • chronicleA written account of historical events arranged in the order in which they happened, usually composed during or soon after the period it describes.

More terms: Periods and Eras

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