In the

early Middle Ages The Early Middle Ages (or early medieval period), sometimes controversially referred to as the Dark Ages (historiography), Dark Ages, is typically regarded by historians as lasting from the late 5th to the 10th century. They marked the start o ...

, a xenodochium or (from

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek (, ; ) includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the classical antiquity, ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Greek ...

, or ''xenodocheion''; place for strangers, inn, guesthouse) was either a

hostel A hostel is a form of low-cost, short-term shared sociable lodging where guests can rent a bed, usually a bunk bed in a dormitory sleeping 4–20 people, with shared use of a lounge and usually a kitchen. Rooms can be private or shared - mixe ...

hospital A hospital is a healthcare institution providing patient treatment with specialized Medical Science, health science and auxiliary healthcare staff and medical equipment. The best-known type of hospital is the general hospital, which typically ...

, usually specifically for foreigners or

pilgrim The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , , "little star", is a typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a heraldic star. Computer scientists and mathematicians often vocalize it as ...

s, although the term could refer to charitable institutions in general. The xenodochium was a church institution that first appeared in the

Byzantine world The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived the events that caused the fall of the Western Roman E ...

.Guenter B. Risse, ''Mending Bodies, Saving Souls: A History of Hospitals'' (Oxford University Press, 1999), 82. The xenodochium was a more common institution than any of its more-specific counterparts, such as the ''gerocomium'' (from , ; place for the old), ''nosocomium'' (from , ; place for the sick) or ''orphanotrophium'' (for orphans). A hospital for victims of plague was called a (guesthouse of the plague-carriers).

References

Further reading