How to make a colored time traveler survive in the middle ages











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The story centers around a group of people that get lost during in the woods and -for no apparent reason- suddenly find themselves in 13th century Europe (the Netherlands, to be precise). They don't know how they got there and there doesn't seem to be much they can do about it, so they stay in a small town for at least year till they figure out what has happened to them. In the meantime they try and make a living for themselves. Some of them find work, some use their skills and knowledge from the future to make a living.
One of them is a woman who has a dark skin.



My questions are:



-How would people in the middle ages react to a dark-skinned person? There is no harbor in town and it's quite small, so chances are they've never seen someone with a dark skin. However, they might know of their existence because of the crusades: the story is placed at the start of the 13th century in the middle of the 5th crusade (not that the protagonists were involved, but a lot of dutch people participated in it so it must have been a thing at the time).



-What would be a good occupation for my character? The original idea was to have her take on some medicinal activities, maybe even in disguise, but this was also at the time of witch burnings and such and I'm not sure how well people would've reacted to that.



Any recommendations for research literature are also welcome!










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  • 1




    Hi, I presume you have already checked out en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moors ? Apparently they could do quite well.
    – pojo-guy
    2 hours ago










  • Hi! Yes, the moors were more in the south of Europe though and I can't imagine a small city in the swamps of the low lands saw/knew a lot of them. I find it very difficult to imagine the world view of a normal villager at the time though; how someone who hadn't seen much more than the next village imagined the rest of the world to be
    – canelaguila
    2 hours ago






  • 3




    Why stay in a small town? Larger cities are pretty much always more friendly to strangers, and have more opportunities to work in a cash economy like your time travelers are presumably used to. And it's not like the Netherlands is especially hard to travel through.
    – Cadence
    2 hours ago















up vote
2
down vote

favorite












The story centers around a group of people that get lost during in the woods and -for no apparent reason- suddenly find themselves in 13th century Europe (the Netherlands, to be precise). They don't know how they got there and there doesn't seem to be much they can do about it, so they stay in a small town for at least year till they figure out what has happened to them. In the meantime they try and make a living for themselves. Some of them find work, some use their skills and knowledge from the future to make a living.
One of them is a woman who has a dark skin.



My questions are:



-How would people in the middle ages react to a dark-skinned person? There is no harbor in town and it's quite small, so chances are they've never seen someone with a dark skin. However, they might know of their existence because of the crusades: the story is placed at the start of the 13th century in the middle of the 5th crusade (not that the protagonists were involved, but a lot of dutch people participated in it so it must have been a thing at the time).



-What would be a good occupation for my character? The original idea was to have her take on some medicinal activities, maybe even in disguise, but this was also at the time of witch burnings and such and I'm not sure how well people would've reacted to that.



Any recommendations for research literature are also welcome!










share|improve this question







New contributor




canelaguila is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
















  • 1




    Hi, I presume you have already checked out en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moors ? Apparently they could do quite well.
    – pojo-guy
    2 hours ago










  • Hi! Yes, the moors were more in the south of Europe though and I can't imagine a small city in the swamps of the low lands saw/knew a lot of them. I find it very difficult to imagine the world view of a normal villager at the time though; how someone who hadn't seen much more than the next village imagined the rest of the world to be
    – canelaguila
    2 hours ago






  • 3




    Why stay in a small town? Larger cities are pretty much always more friendly to strangers, and have more opportunities to work in a cash economy like your time travelers are presumably used to. And it's not like the Netherlands is especially hard to travel through.
    – Cadence
    2 hours ago













up vote
2
down vote

favorite









up vote
2
down vote

favorite











The story centers around a group of people that get lost during in the woods and -for no apparent reason- suddenly find themselves in 13th century Europe (the Netherlands, to be precise). They don't know how they got there and there doesn't seem to be much they can do about it, so they stay in a small town for at least year till they figure out what has happened to them. In the meantime they try and make a living for themselves. Some of them find work, some use their skills and knowledge from the future to make a living.
One of them is a woman who has a dark skin.



My questions are:



-How would people in the middle ages react to a dark-skinned person? There is no harbor in town and it's quite small, so chances are they've never seen someone with a dark skin. However, they might know of their existence because of the crusades: the story is placed at the start of the 13th century in the middle of the 5th crusade (not that the protagonists were involved, but a lot of dutch people participated in it so it must have been a thing at the time).



-What would be a good occupation for my character? The original idea was to have her take on some medicinal activities, maybe even in disguise, but this was also at the time of witch burnings and such and I'm not sure how well people would've reacted to that.



Any recommendations for research literature are also welcome!










share|improve this question







New contributor




canelaguila is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.











The story centers around a group of people that get lost during in the woods and -for no apparent reason- suddenly find themselves in 13th century Europe (the Netherlands, to be precise). They don't know how they got there and there doesn't seem to be much they can do about it, so they stay in a small town for at least year till they figure out what has happened to them. In the meantime they try and make a living for themselves. Some of them find work, some use their skills and knowledge from the future to make a living.
One of them is a woman who has a dark skin.



My questions are:



-How would people in the middle ages react to a dark-skinned person? There is no harbor in town and it's quite small, so chances are they've never seen someone with a dark skin. However, they might know of their existence because of the crusades: the story is placed at the start of the 13th century in the middle of the 5th crusade (not that the protagonists were involved, but a lot of dutch people participated in it so it must have been a thing at the time).



-What would be a good occupation for my character? The original idea was to have her take on some medicinal activities, maybe even in disguise, but this was also at the time of witch burnings and such and I'm not sure how well people would've reacted to that.



Any recommendations for research literature are also welcome!







reality-check society medieval middle-ages






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asked 2 hours ago









canelaguila

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112




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  • 1




    Hi, I presume you have already checked out en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moors ? Apparently they could do quite well.
    – pojo-guy
    2 hours ago










  • Hi! Yes, the moors were more in the south of Europe though and I can't imagine a small city in the swamps of the low lands saw/knew a lot of them. I find it very difficult to imagine the world view of a normal villager at the time though; how someone who hadn't seen much more than the next village imagined the rest of the world to be
    – canelaguila
    2 hours ago






  • 3




    Why stay in a small town? Larger cities are pretty much always more friendly to strangers, and have more opportunities to work in a cash economy like your time travelers are presumably used to. And it's not like the Netherlands is especially hard to travel through.
    – Cadence
    2 hours ago














  • 1




    Hi, I presume you have already checked out en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moors ? Apparently they could do quite well.
    – pojo-guy
    2 hours ago










  • Hi! Yes, the moors were more in the south of Europe though and I can't imagine a small city in the swamps of the low lands saw/knew a lot of them. I find it very difficult to imagine the world view of a normal villager at the time though; how someone who hadn't seen much more than the next village imagined the rest of the world to be
    – canelaguila
    2 hours ago






  • 3




    Why stay in a small town? Larger cities are pretty much always more friendly to strangers, and have more opportunities to work in a cash economy like your time travelers are presumably used to. And it's not like the Netherlands is especially hard to travel through.
    – Cadence
    2 hours ago








1




1




Hi, I presume you have already checked out en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moors ? Apparently they could do quite well.
– pojo-guy
2 hours ago




Hi, I presume you have already checked out en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moors ? Apparently they could do quite well.
– pojo-guy
2 hours ago












Hi! Yes, the moors were more in the south of Europe though and I can't imagine a small city in the swamps of the low lands saw/knew a lot of them. I find it very difficult to imagine the world view of a normal villager at the time though; how someone who hadn't seen much more than the next village imagined the rest of the world to be
– canelaguila
2 hours ago




Hi! Yes, the moors were more in the south of Europe though and I can't imagine a small city in the swamps of the low lands saw/knew a lot of them. I find it very difficult to imagine the world view of a normal villager at the time though; how someone who hadn't seen much more than the next village imagined the rest of the world to be
– canelaguila
2 hours ago




3




3




Why stay in a small town? Larger cities are pretty much always more friendly to strangers, and have more opportunities to work in a cash economy like your time travelers are presumably used to. And it's not like the Netherlands is especially hard to travel through.
– Cadence
2 hours ago




Why stay in a small town? Larger cities are pretty much always more friendly to strangers, and have more opportunities to work in a cash economy like your time travelers are presumably used to. And it's not like the Netherlands is especially hard to travel through.
– Cadence
2 hours ago










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She can be an Ethiopian Christian Pilgrim.



council of florence
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Council_of_Florence



https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christianity_in_Ethiopia




In 1441 some Ethiopian monks travelled from Jerusalem to attend the
Council in Florence which discussed possible union between the Roman
Catholic and Greek Orthodox churches. The arrival of
the Christian monks caused something of a sensation. It began two
centuries of contact in which there were hopes to bring the Ethiopians
into the Catholic fold...




Would a small town in the Netherlands be aware that there might be a distant foreign Christian kingdom? Yes they would!



https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prester_John




Prester John (Latin: Presbyter Johannes) was a legendary Christian
patriarch, presbyter (elder) and king who was popular in European
chronicles and tradition from the 12th through the 17th centuries. He
was said to rule over a Nestorian (Church of the East) Christian
nation lost amid the Muslims and pagans of the Orient, in which the
Patriarch of the Saint Thomas Christians resided.




Your traveler can say she is on a pilgrimage to visit some Christian site and get a blessing to take back to her ill husband. The people will be interested in her because of her exotic provenance but more comfortable because she is christian and also interested in the local holy site. She can make her living telling stories of distant lands and peoples. Probably no-one will pay her gold for stories, but they will put her up and feed her.






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    up vote
    2
    down vote













    Be a leper.



    Good excuse to cover up. Nobody will touch you and in fact will give you stuff to leave. If the woman has the assistance of the group, she should be able to survive without too much hassle



    Another other option is a pilgrim. The group can speak for her and with extensive robes remain hidden.



    Final option is to be blatant and open by being a travelling merchant from a far away land.






    share|improve this answer




























      up vote
      1
      down vote













      If it's only the woman who is dark skinned, the easiest solution is to pretend she's a war booty. One of her male colleagues will pretend he captured her in war in the south. If her actual boyfriend is part of the group that's even better. An independent woman if middle-ages was more suspicious than a dark skinned person. Most women had three choices - marriage, monastery or prostitution. Whether your character is actually married to her "captor" or just a concubine doesn't really matter.
      As a bonus, being a captive from faraway lands she can explain some of her knowledge. People can be bit more forgiving of her exotic wisdom, as long as she's under control of her white man. Medicine is a good idea, but don't push it too far. Being a Moorish witch is not much better than local witch.






      share|improve this answer








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        down vote













        The link to the Moors on Wikipedia is already provided in comments so I won't put it in here again, but it's important to note 2 things that are germane to your question;



        1) The first 'Re-conquest' of the Moors in Spain occurred in the 13th Century

        2) It was the sacking of the Moors that led to many of the developments in mathematics and science within the Christian worlds from that time through a couple of centuries because the Moors had been spending considerably more effort in enlightening themselves than the Christians of the time.



        As an educated guess, your dark skinned time refugee would struggle socially, but the people of the Netherlands would express little concern or surprise at the technological or mathematical expertise of your traveler, assuming that she was a Moor. This would actually be a benefit to her because it's a convenient excuse as to why her language, customs, and occasional gaffes (like using Okay instead of All Right) may be forgiven.



        To be blunt, in that era she's going to get more resistance from being a woman than she is being black but if she knows what she's doing she could easily set herself up in midwifery. That wouldn't be seen as that big a leap for women at the time, she'd already know more than the women of the day in many respects, and perhaps most importantly, if she saves mother and child from some awkward situations a couple of times over, all thoughts of witchcraft will probably go away on the grounds that there's no deodorant quite like success in this field.



        Personally, I'd keep her away from technical or engineering fields - don't let her be a blacksmith or design buildings or do accounts for the local businesses. Their math was very different to modern mathematics for a start, and standing out in such fields, especially as a woman, is an ideal way to attract said unwanted attention of witch hunters.






        share|improve this answer





















        • Witch-hunt as popularly depicted, involving death penalty and burning started after the 13th century and peaked around the 16th-17th centuries
          – Rafael
          48 mins ago










        • your dark skinned time refugee would struggle socially Any time traveler would have this problem as they would have extreme difficulty even understanding old local speech (and idioms) as well as understanding social norms and attitudes and taboos. The dark skinned woman might even have an advantage in the sense she looks foreign and may (or may not) have more allowances made for her strange behavior and problems fitting in.
          – StephenG
          5 mins ago











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        4 Answers
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        4 Answers
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        active

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        up vote
        4
        down vote













        She can be an Ethiopian Christian Pilgrim.



        council of florence
        https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Council_of_Florence



        https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christianity_in_Ethiopia




        In 1441 some Ethiopian monks travelled from Jerusalem to attend the
        Council in Florence which discussed possible union between the Roman
        Catholic and Greek Orthodox churches. The arrival of
        the Christian monks caused something of a sensation. It began two
        centuries of contact in which there were hopes to bring the Ethiopians
        into the Catholic fold...




        Would a small town in the Netherlands be aware that there might be a distant foreign Christian kingdom? Yes they would!



        https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prester_John




        Prester John (Latin: Presbyter Johannes) was a legendary Christian
        patriarch, presbyter (elder) and king who was popular in European
        chronicles and tradition from the 12th through the 17th centuries. He
        was said to rule over a Nestorian (Church of the East) Christian
        nation lost amid the Muslims and pagans of the Orient, in which the
        Patriarch of the Saint Thomas Christians resided.




        Your traveler can say she is on a pilgrimage to visit some Christian site and get a blessing to take back to her ill husband. The people will be interested in her because of her exotic provenance but more comfortable because she is christian and also interested in the local holy site. She can make her living telling stories of distant lands and peoples. Probably no-one will pay her gold for stories, but they will put her up and feed her.






        share|improve this answer



























          up vote
          4
          down vote













          She can be an Ethiopian Christian Pilgrim.



          council of florence
          https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Council_of_Florence



          https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christianity_in_Ethiopia




          In 1441 some Ethiopian monks travelled from Jerusalem to attend the
          Council in Florence which discussed possible union between the Roman
          Catholic and Greek Orthodox churches. The arrival of
          the Christian monks caused something of a sensation. It began two
          centuries of contact in which there were hopes to bring the Ethiopians
          into the Catholic fold...




          Would a small town in the Netherlands be aware that there might be a distant foreign Christian kingdom? Yes they would!



          https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prester_John




          Prester John (Latin: Presbyter Johannes) was a legendary Christian
          patriarch, presbyter (elder) and king who was popular in European
          chronicles and tradition from the 12th through the 17th centuries. He
          was said to rule over a Nestorian (Church of the East) Christian
          nation lost amid the Muslims and pagans of the Orient, in which the
          Patriarch of the Saint Thomas Christians resided.




          Your traveler can say she is on a pilgrimage to visit some Christian site and get a blessing to take back to her ill husband. The people will be interested in her because of her exotic provenance but more comfortable because she is christian and also interested in the local holy site. She can make her living telling stories of distant lands and peoples. Probably no-one will pay her gold for stories, but they will put her up and feed her.






          share|improve this answer

























            up vote
            4
            down vote










            up vote
            4
            down vote









            She can be an Ethiopian Christian Pilgrim.



            council of florence
            https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Council_of_Florence



            https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christianity_in_Ethiopia




            In 1441 some Ethiopian monks travelled from Jerusalem to attend the
            Council in Florence which discussed possible union between the Roman
            Catholic and Greek Orthodox churches. The arrival of
            the Christian monks caused something of a sensation. It began two
            centuries of contact in which there were hopes to bring the Ethiopians
            into the Catholic fold...




            Would a small town in the Netherlands be aware that there might be a distant foreign Christian kingdom? Yes they would!



            https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prester_John




            Prester John (Latin: Presbyter Johannes) was a legendary Christian
            patriarch, presbyter (elder) and king who was popular in European
            chronicles and tradition from the 12th through the 17th centuries. He
            was said to rule over a Nestorian (Church of the East) Christian
            nation lost amid the Muslims and pagans of the Orient, in which the
            Patriarch of the Saint Thomas Christians resided.




            Your traveler can say she is on a pilgrimage to visit some Christian site and get a blessing to take back to her ill husband. The people will be interested in her because of her exotic provenance but more comfortable because she is christian and also interested in the local holy site. She can make her living telling stories of distant lands and peoples. Probably no-one will pay her gold for stories, but they will put her up and feed her.






            share|improve this answer














            She can be an Ethiopian Christian Pilgrim.



            council of florence
            https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Council_of_Florence



            https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christianity_in_Ethiopia




            In 1441 some Ethiopian monks travelled from Jerusalem to attend the
            Council in Florence which discussed possible union between the Roman
            Catholic and Greek Orthodox churches. The arrival of
            the Christian monks caused something of a sensation. It began two
            centuries of contact in which there were hopes to bring the Ethiopians
            into the Catholic fold...




            Would a small town in the Netherlands be aware that there might be a distant foreign Christian kingdom? Yes they would!



            https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prester_John




            Prester John (Latin: Presbyter Johannes) was a legendary Christian
            patriarch, presbyter (elder) and king who was popular in European
            chronicles and tradition from the 12th through the 17th centuries. He
            was said to rule over a Nestorian (Church of the East) Christian
            nation lost amid the Muslims and pagans of the Orient, in which the
            Patriarch of the Saint Thomas Christians resided.




            Your traveler can say she is on a pilgrimage to visit some Christian site and get a blessing to take back to her ill husband. The people will be interested in her because of her exotic provenance but more comfortable because she is christian and also interested in the local holy site. She can make her living telling stories of distant lands and peoples. Probably no-one will pay her gold for stories, but they will put her up and feed her.







            share|improve this answer














            share|improve this answer



            share|improve this answer








            edited 48 mins ago

























            answered 54 mins ago









            Willk

            99.2k25190416




            99.2k25190416






















                up vote
                2
                down vote













                Be a leper.



                Good excuse to cover up. Nobody will touch you and in fact will give you stuff to leave. If the woman has the assistance of the group, she should be able to survive without too much hassle



                Another other option is a pilgrim. The group can speak for her and with extensive robes remain hidden.



                Final option is to be blatant and open by being a travelling merchant from a far away land.






                share|improve this answer

























                  up vote
                  2
                  down vote













                  Be a leper.



                  Good excuse to cover up. Nobody will touch you and in fact will give you stuff to leave. If the woman has the assistance of the group, she should be able to survive without too much hassle



                  Another other option is a pilgrim. The group can speak for her and with extensive robes remain hidden.



                  Final option is to be blatant and open by being a travelling merchant from a far away land.






                  share|improve this answer























                    up vote
                    2
                    down vote










                    up vote
                    2
                    down vote









                    Be a leper.



                    Good excuse to cover up. Nobody will touch you and in fact will give you stuff to leave. If the woman has the assistance of the group, she should be able to survive without too much hassle



                    Another other option is a pilgrim. The group can speak for her and with extensive robes remain hidden.



                    Final option is to be blatant and open by being a travelling merchant from a far away land.






                    share|improve this answer












                    Be a leper.



                    Good excuse to cover up. Nobody will touch you and in fact will give you stuff to leave. If the woman has the assistance of the group, she should be able to survive without too much hassle



                    Another other option is a pilgrim. The group can speak for her and with extensive robes remain hidden.



                    Final option is to be blatant and open by being a travelling merchant from a far away land.







                    share|improve this answer












                    share|improve this answer



                    share|improve this answer










                    answered 1 hour ago









                    Thorne

                    14k42040




                    14k42040






















                        up vote
                        1
                        down vote













                        If it's only the woman who is dark skinned, the easiest solution is to pretend she's a war booty. One of her male colleagues will pretend he captured her in war in the south. If her actual boyfriend is part of the group that's even better. An independent woman if middle-ages was more suspicious than a dark skinned person. Most women had three choices - marriage, monastery or prostitution. Whether your character is actually married to her "captor" or just a concubine doesn't really matter.
                        As a bonus, being a captive from faraway lands she can explain some of her knowledge. People can be bit more forgiving of her exotic wisdom, as long as she's under control of her white man. Medicine is a good idea, but don't push it too far. Being a Moorish witch is not much better than local witch.






                        share|improve this answer








                        New contributor




                        Maiki Bodhisattva is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                        Check out our Code of Conduct.






















                          up vote
                          1
                          down vote













                          If it's only the woman who is dark skinned, the easiest solution is to pretend she's a war booty. One of her male colleagues will pretend he captured her in war in the south. If her actual boyfriend is part of the group that's even better. An independent woman if middle-ages was more suspicious than a dark skinned person. Most women had three choices - marriage, monastery or prostitution. Whether your character is actually married to her "captor" or just a concubine doesn't really matter.
                          As a bonus, being a captive from faraway lands she can explain some of her knowledge. People can be bit more forgiving of her exotic wisdom, as long as she's under control of her white man. Medicine is a good idea, but don't push it too far. Being a Moorish witch is not much better than local witch.






                          share|improve this answer








                          New contributor




                          Maiki Bodhisattva is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                          Check out our Code of Conduct.




















                            up vote
                            1
                            down vote










                            up vote
                            1
                            down vote









                            If it's only the woman who is dark skinned, the easiest solution is to pretend she's a war booty. One of her male colleagues will pretend he captured her in war in the south. If her actual boyfriend is part of the group that's even better. An independent woman if middle-ages was more suspicious than a dark skinned person. Most women had three choices - marriage, monastery or prostitution. Whether your character is actually married to her "captor" or just a concubine doesn't really matter.
                            As a bonus, being a captive from faraway lands she can explain some of her knowledge. People can be bit more forgiving of her exotic wisdom, as long as she's under control of her white man. Medicine is a good idea, but don't push it too far. Being a Moorish witch is not much better than local witch.






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                            If it's only the woman who is dark skinned, the easiest solution is to pretend she's a war booty. One of her male colleagues will pretend he captured her in war in the south. If her actual boyfriend is part of the group that's even better. An independent woman if middle-ages was more suspicious than a dark skinned person. Most women had three choices - marriage, monastery or prostitution. Whether your character is actually married to her "captor" or just a concubine doesn't really matter.
                            As a bonus, being a captive from faraway lands she can explain some of her knowledge. People can be bit more forgiving of her exotic wisdom, as long as she's under control of her white man. Medicine is a good idea, but don't push it too far. Being a Moorish witch is not much better than local witch.







                            share|improve this answer








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                            answered 57 mins ago









                            Maiki Bodhisattva

                            113




                            113




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                                up vote
                                0
                                down vote













                                The link to the Moors on Wikipedia is already provided in comments so I won't put it in here again, but it's important to note 2 things that are germane to your question;



                                1) The first 'Re-conquest' of the Moors in Spain occurred in the 13th Century

                                2) It was the sacking of the Moors that led to many of the developments in mathematics and science within the Christian worlds from that time through a couple of centuries because the Moors had been spending considerably more effort in enlightening themselves than the Christians of the time.



                                As an educated guess, your dark skinned time refugee would struggle socially, but the people of the Netherlands would express little concern or surprise at the technological or mathematical expertise of your traveler, assuming that she was a Moor. This would actually be a benefit to her because it's a convenient excuse as to why her language, customs, and occasional gaffes (like using Okay instead of All Right) may be forgiven.



                                To be blunt, in that era she's going to get more resistance from being a woman than she is being black but if she knows what she's doing she could easily set herself up in midwifery. That wouldn't be seen as that big a leap for women at the time, she'd already know more than the women of the day in many respects, and perhaps most importantly, if she saves mother and child from some awkward situations a couple of times over, all thoughts of witchcraft will probably go away on the grounds that there's no deodorant quite like success in this field.



                                Personally, I'd keep her away from technical or engineering fields - don't let her be a blacksmith or design buildings or do accounts for the local businesses. Their math was very different to modern mathematics for a start, and standing out in such fields, especially as a woman, is an ideal way to attract said unwanted attention of witch hunters.






                                share|improve this answer





















                                • Witch-hunt as popularly depicted, involving death penalty and burning started after the 13th century and peaked around the 16th-17th centuries
                                  – Rafael
                                  48 mins ago










                                • your dark skinned time refugee would struggle socially Any time traveler would have this problem as they would have extreme difficulty even understanding old local speech (and idioms) as well as understanding social norms and attitudes and taboos. The dark skinned woman might even have an advantage in the sense she looks foreign and may (or may not) have more allowances made for her strange behavior and problems fitting in.
                                  – StephenG
                                  5 mins ago















                                up vote
                                0
                                down vote













                                The link to the Moors on Wikipedia is already provided in comments so I won't put it in here again, but it's important to note 2 things that are germane to your question;



                                1) The first 'Re-conquest' of the Moors in Spain occurred in the 13th Century

                                2) It was the sacking of the Moors that led to many of the developments in mathematics and science within the Christian worlds from that time through a couple of centuries because the Moors had been spending considerably more effort in enlightening themselves than the Christians of the time.



                                As an educated guess, your dark skinned time refugee would struggle socially, but the people of the Netherlands would express little concern or surprise at the technological or mathematical expertise of your traveler, assuming that she was a Moor. This would actually be a benefit to her because it's a convenient excuse as to why her language, customs, and occasional gaffes (like using Okay instead of All Right) may be forgiven.



                                To be blunt, in that era she's going to get more resistance from being a woman than she is being black but if she knows what she's doing she could easily set herself up in midwifery. That wouldn't be seen as that big a leap for women at the time, she'd already know more than the women of the day in many respects, and perhaps most importantly, if she saves mother and child from some awkward situations a couple of times over, all thoughts of witchcraft will probably go away on the grounds that there's no deodorant quite like success in this field.



                                Personally, I'd keep her away from technical or engineering fields - don't let her be a blacksmith or design buildings or do accounts for the local businesses. Their math was very different to modern mathematics for a start, and standing out in such fields, especially as a woman, is an ideal way to attract said unwanted attention of witch hunters.






                                share|improve this answer





















                                • Witch-hunt as popularly depicted, involving death penalty and burning started after the 13th century and peaked around the 16th-17th centuries
                                  – Rafael
                                  48 mins ago










                                • your dark skinned time refugee would struggle socially Any time traveler would have this problem as they would have extreme difficulty even understanding old local speech (and idioms) as well as understanding social norms and attitudes and taboos. The dark skinned woman might even have an advantage in the sense she looks foreign and may (or may not) have more allowances made for her strange behavior and problems fitting in.
                                  – StephenG
                                  5 mins ago













                                up vote
                                0
                                down vote










                                up vote
                                0
                                down vote









                                The link to the Moors on Wikipedia is already provided in comments so I won't put it in here again, but it's important to note 2 things that are germane to your question;



                                1) The first 'Re-conquest' of the Moors in Spain occurred in the 13th Century

                                2) It was the sacking of the Moors that led to many of the developments in mathematics and science within the Christian worlds from that time through a couple of centuries because the Moors had been spending considerably more effort in enlightening themselves than the Christians of the time.



                                As an educated guess, your dark skinned time refugee would struggle socially, but the people of the Netherlands would express little concern or surprise at the technological or mathematical expertise of your traveler, assuming that she was a Moor. This would actually be a benefit to her because it's a convenient excuse as to why her language, customs, and occasional gaffes (like using Okay instead of All Right) may be forgiven.



                                To be blunt, in that era she's going to get more resistance from being a woman than she is being black but if she knows what she's doing she could easily set herself up in midwifery. That wouldn't be seen as that big a leap for women at the time, she'd already know more than the women of the day in many respects, and perhaps most importantly, if she saves mother and child from some awkward situations a couple of times over, all thoughts of witchcraft will probably go away on the grounds that there's no deodorant quite like success in this field.



                                Personally, I'd keep her away from technical or engineering fields - don't let her be a blacksmith or design buildings or do accounts for the local businesses. Their math was very different to modern mathematics for a start, and standing out in such fields, especially as a woman, is an ideal way to attract said unwanted attention of witch hunters.






                                share|improve this answer












                                The link to the Moors on Wikipedia is already provided in comments so I won't put it in here again, but it's important to note 2 things that are germane to your question;



                                1) The first 'Re-conquest' of the Moors in Spain occurred in the 13th Century

                                2) It was the sacking of the Moors that led to many of the developments in mathematics and science within the Christian worlds from that time through a couple of centuries because the Moors had been spending considerably more effort in enlightening themselves than the Christians of the time.



                                As an educated guess, your dark skinned time refugee would struggle socially, but the people of the Netherlands would express little concern or surprise at the technological or mathematical expertise of your traveler, assuming that she was a Moor. This would actually be a benefit to her because it's a convenient excuse as to why her language, customs, and occasional gaffes (like using Okay instead of All Right) may be forgiven.



                                To be blunt, in that era she's going to get more resistance from being a woman than she is being black but if she knows what she's doing she could easily set herself up in midwifery. That wouldn't be seen as that big a leap for women at the time, she'd already know more than the women of the day in many respects, and perhaps most importantly, if she saves mother and child from some awkward situations a couple of times over, all thoughts of witchcraft will probably go away on the grounds that there's no deodorant quite like success in this field.



                                Personally, I'd keep her away from technical or engineering fields - don't let her be a blacksmith or design buildings or do accounts for the local businesses. Their math was very different to modern mathematics for a start, and standing out in such fields, especially as a woman, is an ideal way to attract said unwanted attention of witch hunters.







                                share|improve this answer












                                share|improve this answer



                                share|improve this answer










                                answered 1 hour ago









                                Tim B II

                                24.4k653104




                                24.4k653104












                                • Witch-hunt as popularly depicted, involving death penalty and burning started after the 13th century and peaked around the 16th-17th centuries
                                  – Rafael
                                  48 mins ago










                                • your dark skinned time refugee would struggle socially Any time traveler would have this problem as they would have extreme difficulty even understanding old local speech (and idioms) as well as understanding social norms and attitudes and taboos. The dark skinned woman might even have an advantage in the sense she looks foreign and may (or may not) have more allowances made for her strange behavior and problems fitting in.
                                  – StephenG
                                  5 mins ago


















                                • Witch-hunt as popularly depicted, involving death penalty and burning started after the 13th century and peaked around the 16th-17th centuries
                                  – Rafael
                                  48 mins ago










                                • your dark skinned time refugee would struggle socially Any time traveler would have this problem as they would have extreme difficulty even understanding old local speech (and idioms) as well as understanding social norms and attitudes and taboos. The dark skinned woman might even have an advantage in the sense she looks foreign and may (or may not) have more allowances made for her strange behavior and problems fitting in.
                                  – StephenG
                                  5 mins ago
















                                Witch-hunt as popularly depicted, involving death penalty and burning started after the 13th century and peaked around the 16th-17th centuries
                                – Rafael
                                48 mins ago




                                Witch-hunt as popularly depicted, involving death penalty and burning started after the 13th century and peaked around the 16th-17th centuries
                                – Rafael
                                48 mins ago












                                your dark skinned time refugee would struggle socially Any time traveler would have this problem as they would have extreme difficulty even understanding old local speech (and idioms) as well as understanding social norms and attitudes and taboos. The dark skinned woman might even have an advantage in the sense she looks foreign and may (or may not) have more allowances made for her strange behavior and problems fitting in.
                                – StephenG
                                5 mins ago




                                your dark skinned time refugee would struggle socially Any time traveler would have this problem as they would have extreme difficulty even understanding old local speech (and idioms) as well as understanding social norms and attitudes and taboos. The dark skinned woman might even have an advantage in the sense she looks foreign and may (or may not) have more allowances made for her strange behavior and problems fitting in.
                                – StephenG
                                5 mins ago










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