Latins - Middle Ages

Middle Ages

Further information: Latin Rite and Western Christianity

After the fall of the Roman Empire, many Europeans clung to the Latin identity, more specifically, in the sense of the Romans, as members of the Empire.

In the Byzantine Empire or East Roman Empire, and the broader Greek-Orthodox world, Latins was a synonym for all people who followed Roman Catholic Christianity. It was generally a negative characterization, especially after the 1054 schism. Latins is still used by the Orthodox church communities, but only in a theological context.

The Holy Roman Empire was founded after the fall of Rome but brandished the name of the Roman people and honoured the king with the title "King of the Romans". Despite this, the Holy Roman Empire was largely a Germanic affair with German kings, although its territory was considerably greater than present day Germany. At times, the Holy Roman Empire did not even include the city of Rome.

The term was later borrowed, in various variants, by several languages of the Middle East and southern Asia, sometimes referring to any European.

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Famous quotes containing the words middle ages, middle and/or ages:

    “Of all the barbarous middle ages, that
    Which is most barbarous is the middle age
    Of man! it is—I really scarce know what;
    But when we hover between fool and sage,
    And don’t know justly what we would be at—
    A period something like a printed page,
    Black letter upon foolscap, while our hair
    Grows grizzled, and we are not what we were.”
    —George Gordon Noel Byron (1788–1824)

    “On the Coast of Coromandel
    Where the early pumpkins blow,
    In the middle of the woods
    Lived the Yonghy-Bonghy-Bo.
    Two old chairs, and half a candle,—
    One old jug without a handle,—
    These were all his worldly goods:
    In the middle of the woods,”
    —Edward Lear (1812–1888)

    “If in that Syrian garden, ages slain,
    You sleep, and know not you are dead in vain,
    Nor even in dreams behold how dark and bright
    Ascends in smoke and fire by day and night
    The hate you died to quench and could but fan,
    Sleep well and see no morning, son of man.”
    —A.E. (Alfred Edward)