eli5: did people living in the past, eg. the 1500s, know they were living in the 1500s like we know we’re living in 2023 and the 2000s?

Question

eli5: did people living in the past, eg. the 1500s, know they were living in the 1500s like we know we’re living in 2023 and the 2000s?

In: 1

Answer 1

Yes, the people that were using (roughly) the same calendar as we use today knew it was the 1500s. Specifically these people mostly lived in Western Europe. Other people used different calendars and weren’t necessarily aware what calendar Europeans were using.