Definition of Contemporary | What is Contemporary

Concept and Meaning of Contemporary

Contemporary, from the latin coaetanĕus, is an adjective that allows to designate something or someone of the same age and the same time. Examples: 'both thinkers were contemporaneous, but lived thousands of miles away', 'John is contemporary of Mariano, but he looks much older","researchers believe that fossils found are contemporary."
Considering that the contemporary things have in common the fact of having the same age or to be of the same era. Two men aged 43 are contemporary since they have the same age. In addition, a group of animals having disappeared millions of years previously there but who lived in the same historical period are considered contemporary.
Contemporary individuals form what is called the age group. Taking into account the difference made above (on the fact of having the same age or to be of the same era), it is possible to distinguish between a generation (people with the same age) and people who are contemporary (time shared).
All men and women born in 1982 are part of the same generation. In some cases, the sociologists call generations based on certain common characteristics observed in people (like Generation X). It should be noted, however, that the concept of generation is usually wider than the limitation to persons born in the same year.
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791) and Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827), for their part, had not the same age (Beethoven is born fourteen years after Mozart), but they were contemporary (though Beethoven died 36 years later than Mozart).

Published for educational purposes