medievalism

Or me·di·ae·val·ism

[mee-dee-ee-vuh-liz-uhm, med-ee-, mid-ee-, mid-ee-vuh-]

noun

1. the spirit, practices, or methods of the Middle Ages.

2. devotion to or adoption of medieval ideals or practices.

3. a medieval belief, practice, or the like.

medievalism

/ ˌmɛdɪˈiːvəˌlɪzəm /

noun

1. the beliefs, life, or style of the Middle Ages or devotion to those

2. a belief, custom, or point of style copied or surviving from the Middle Ages

Other Word Forms

• antimediaevalism noun
• antimedievalism noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of medievalism¹

First recorded in 1850–55; medieval + -ism

Example Sentences

It was a performance of “camp medievalism,” wrote scholar Megan L. Cook, one that emphasized the adventure and danger implied by the lyrics of the song.

Read more on Slate

The medievalism of castlecore offers people, especially women, a way to critique this tech-bro futurism without directly engaging the politics of the moment, which not everyone wants to do, especially on social media.

Read more on Slate

Scratch the surface of American politics or culture, and medievalism seems to always be lurking just beneath.

Read more on Slate

For those unfamiliar, castlecore is a sort of Romantic medievalism marked by sumptuous wealth—think windswept fens, lots of metalwork, richly colored fabrics, and stone keeps haunted by desperate lovers.

Read more on Slate

It’s a kind of medievalism, in other words, that seems to have passed through a sieve of Jane Austen or Emily Brontë; now you can see it in the works of medieval-themed romantasy novels.

Read more on Slate