ABSTRACT
Astronomy in the early Middle Ages of Western Europe can also be called Romano-medieval astronomy, because the institutional and textual roots of the tradition lie deep in Roman history, both Christian and non-Christian. In the Roman period, astronomy served the institutions of state, religion, and education. However, by the middle of the sixth century in the West it is not clear that any state, or political, function remained for astronomy, given the disarray of the successor kingdoms to Rome from that time onward in the early Middle Ages. If the late ancient Roman state was concerned to maintain an adequate calendar, this function became primarily an ecclesiastical interest in the following, early medieval age.
