Unit 1: Definitions

Key Words and Definition

1. Middle Ages: Period of time which began with the Fall of the Roman Empire in 476 A.D. and finished with the Fall of Constantinople in 1453. It’s divided in three stages: Early Middle Ages, High Middle Ages and Late Middle Ages.

2.  Byzantine Empire: Former Eastern Roman Empire, capital Constantinople. It was created in the year 395, and it disappeared in 1453 after the attack of Ottoman Turks.

3. Charlemagne: Emperor of the Carolingian Empire from 800 to 814 who expanded the territories to the north-east of the Iberian Peninsula and through the centre and south of Europe.

4.  Muslims: Followers of the Islam, the religion preached by Muhammad, and based on the belief in one God, Allah.

5. Muhammad: Islamic prophet born in Mecca around 570. His teachings are written in the Koran.

6.  Caliph: Highest Islamic religious and political authority.

7. Arch: A usually curved structure forming the upper edge of an open space and supporting the weight above it.

8. Bourgeoisie: Urban population with economic power and social influence because they controlled banking and trade on a large scale, and earned big profits from these activities.

9.  Dome: A rounded roof on a building or a room, or a building with such a roof.

10. Carolingian Empire: Empire formed by Charlemagne in the 9th century that covered the north-east of the Iberian Peninsula and the centre and south of Europe.