A quite interesting article from 2022. It makes some strong points, including the point that to claim that the entire period of the 500s to 1500s is the Dark Ages is not only inaccurate but also deliberately ignores the many advances in scholarship, architecture, science, government, etc., that took place during the majority of that period.
The article also points out that the term “Dark Ages” is found mainly in English and Scandinavian languages but not often found in the other languages. In Italian, the term “Dark Ages” almost never appeared prior to the 1960s. In two countries, “Early Middle Ages” was the original term, which was changed to “Late Antiquity” post-WWII as being the more accurate term. More recent scholarship has followed that lead, doing away with the term “Dark Ages” as being both inaccurate and expressing a particular regional bias.
Finally, the article further argues that even if one could use the term “Dark Ages” for a three-century period following the fall of Rome, that would be the historical limit for the term. It heavily critiques Hollywood for its Game of Thrones series, as it portrays a Europe-like Late Medieval setting with unremitting violence, darkness, torture, and war.
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