It is called medieval literature to all those works written mainly in Europe during the Middle Ages, that is to say, during the approximately thousand years passed from the fall of the Roman Empire of the Occident until the beginnings of the Renaissance at the end of century XV. The literature of this time was composed basically of religious writings, a broad and complex concept, ranging from the most sacred to the most profane. Because of the great spatial and temporal amplitude of this period, it is difficult to speak of medieval literature in general terms without falling into simplifications. For this reason, it is more appropriate to characterize literary works by their place of origin, language or genre
