Myths about the Middle Ages

Mention two myths/misconceptions about the Middle Ages

What part of the world does the term “Middle Ages” technically refer to?

• Eurasia

• The Mediterranean

• Europe

• Afro-Eurasia

What is usually considered the end point of the Middle Ages?

• The Scientific Revolution

• The fall of Muslim Spain

• The Age of Exploration

• The Italian Renaissance

True of false?

Medieval Europeans thought the Earth was flat.

• True

• False

True of false?

Greek and Roman texts were much less studied in the Middle Ages than in Antiquity.

• True

• False

When did the idea of a distinct, backwards “Middle Ages” become popular?

• In the 15^th and 16^th centuries

• After the fall of Rome

• In the 19th and 20th centuries

• During the Mongol conquests

Why did Enlightenment thinkers describe the Middle Ages as superstitious and irrational?

True or false?

The 1000 years of Middle Ages is a well-distinct, cohesive period in European history.

• True

• False