text: how did the name "medieval" come about to name an era? also, why do they call it the middle ages?  what is it the middle of?  just wondering. comes from the latin, "medium aevum" which translated to "middle ages".   the "middle ages" formed the middle period in a traditional schematic division of european history into three "ages": the classical civilization of antiquity, the middle ages, and modern times. the middle ages of western europe are commonly dated from the end of the western roman empire (5th century) until the rise of national monarchies, the start of european overseas exploration, the humanist revival, and the protestant reformation starting in 1517. these various changes all mark the beginning of the early modern period that preceded the industrial revolution.