We often hear talk about the “Dark Ages.” However, it is a misconception that a thousand-year period of stagnation and obscurity ever existed. Where did the term originate and how did it come to infiltrate the global vernacular?

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References: 

Captivating History (2019). The Misconception of the Dark Ages. In The Dark Ages: A Captivating Guide to the Period Between the Fall of the Roman Empire and the Renaissance.

Falk, S. (2020). Prologue: The Mystery Manuscript. In The Light Ages: The Surprising Story of Medieval Science. New York, NY : W.W. Norton & Company.

Mommsen, T.E. (1942). Petrarch’s Conception of the 'Dark Ages.' Speculum, 17(2). 226-242.

Nelson, J.L. (2007). The Dark Ages. History Workshop Journal, 63, 191-201.