The term Gothic was coined by classicizing Italian writers of the Renaissance, who attributed the invention (and what to them was the nonclassical ugliness) of medieval architecture to the barbarian Gothic tribes that had destroyed the Roman Empire and its classical culture in the 5th century ce.

What is the origin of the word Gothic?

Gothic fiction began as a sophisticated joke. ... Horace Walpole first applied the word 'Gothic' to a novel in the subtitle – 'A Gothic Story' – of The Castle of Otranto, published in 1764. When he used the word it meant something like 'barbarous', as well as 'deriving from the Middle Ages'.

Where does the term goth Gothic originate?

The term "Gothic" was used in the Renaissance to describe certain types of art and architecture in the Middle Ages. This art was considered inferior, just as the Romans had held themselves superior to the barbarians. In the 18th century, the term "Gothic" morphed into a genre of literature that had elements of horror.