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I have spent a fair amount of time investigating education in the Middle Ages, and I have no reason to believe learning was more widespread under the ancient Roman Empire.
More people were educated in Western Europe of the Renaissance, perhaps, than in the Middle Ages, but I doubt Western Europe of the Renaissance had a higher literacy rate than was achieved in most of the history of the medieval Byzantine Empire, even given the effects of the printing press.
Certainly, there were medieval periods when the literary output was well below that of the best years of the Roman Empire or Renaissance. Nevertheless, there were times of similar low literary output in the history of the Roman Empire. And there were periods of the Middle Ages when literary output possibly exceeded that of the height of the ancient Roman Civilization.
Our view of the Middle Ages has been very skewed by disparaging commentaries written about the Middle Ages by Renaissance writers, and it was further damaged by later modern historians who were enthralled with the Renaissance and willing to accept their views without doing further research.
There is a link below to a related question on medieval education. You might also look at the question on medieval culture, checking the links from that question.
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DevinThe Middle Ages were a dark time for learning because of the vast economic and political upheavals that followed the collapse of the Roman Empire both immediately and in the ensuing centuries. There were also numerous invasions and wars. People had to focus more on basic survival.
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Is there a better name for the Dark Ages?
It is probably better to refer to the Dark Ages as the Early Middle Ages, if the time intended is 476 to 1000 AD. Otherwise, it is better to refer to the time as the Middle Ages, or part of the Middle Ages. The term dark ages is based on the idea that this was a time of ignorance and lack of intellectual development, which is not the case. The decline in intellectual activity began in the second or third century, and was largely complete by the year 476. During the so-called Dark Ages, there was a slow growth in learning. Schools were being opened during the entire period, architecture was developing, things were being invented, at least one encyclopedia was written, and commerce was slowly improving.
What is a more appropriate historical title for the medieval time period AD 500 to 1500 the Middle Ages or the Dark Ages?
The Middle Ages. "Dark Ages" was invented by people living in the later Renaissance period, because they thought that living in a time without the benefit of the knowledge and full appreciation of the art and philosophiy of ancient Rome an Greece meant that you were 'living in the dark'. In reality, there was nothing 'dark' about the middle ages. It was a period full of development and discovery. "Middle" Ages simply indicates that this was the period between Antiquity and Renaissance.
What was another name for middle ages?
Medieval PeriodDark Age?Medieval times or the medieval era.
By what other name is the medieval period also known?
The simple answer is that the medieval period is also called the Middle Ages. There is some complexity, however. The period from the 5th through 10th centuries was called the Dark Ages, but the term Early Middle Ages is more common now. What used to be called the Middle Ages, a time from the 11th to 15th centuries, is now often counted as the High Middle Ages (1000 to 1300) and Late Middle Ages (1300 to some time in the 15th century).
What was the era before the dark ages?
The Renaissance time period came after the Dark Ages. ----- It seems most people who use the term Dark Ages are talking about the Early Middle Ages, which is a period from about 450 AD to 1000 AD. They call the following period the Middle Ages. Some people would have the Dark Ages coincide with the Age of Migration, from about 300 to 700, and this would mean it was followed by the second half of the Early Middle Ages, which began with a time called the Carolingian Renaissance. Other people would have the Dark Ages be equal to the entire Middle Ages, so it would be followed by the European Renaissance. I think most historians do not use the term Dark Ages.
