1620s, from Medieval Latin modernitatem, noun of quality from modernus (see modern).

n. The state or character of being modern.

The state of being modern, usually associated with industrial and hyperindustrial societies.

Modernity is a term used by sociologists to refer to the post-medieval, post traditional period of history that is marked by the rise of capitalism, industrialization, secularization (move away from r [..]

The period in which modernism was the dominant mode of thinking beginning in the late eighteenth century (the Age of Enlightenment) and lasting until the late twentieth century.

(n) the quality of being current or of the present

a term used for philosophical, political and social outlooks originating in the Enlightenment, which have in common a commitment to science and its methods, to rationalism, and an expectation of conti [..]

The condition of society from the Enlightenment of the seventeenth century to the middle of the twentieth century. It includes a rational outlook on social issues and highlights the role of science as a basis for understanding.

According to postmodern theorists, the Enlightenment-inspired, invented tradition of dispassionate scientific inquiry.

An historical era in which urbanization and industrialization play key roles.

Western art produced from the late nineteenth to the mid-twentieth centuries that rejected tradition and the rule of reason, and took artistic innovation as its highest aim. Modernist art drew on scientific innovations and political discourse and assumed the power of the artistic avant-garde to influence social change.

A term used to describe the current modern era.