The word maiden is the one used to designate those young women who have not lost their purity, that is, who remain virgins, and who have not yet married. With this term young women were called during the Middle Ages, having fallen into disuse later despite the fact that women of that type continue to exist. Maidens are also a typical historical character in many stories and legends of medieval times in which they always played an important role in love and romantic stories.
The term maiden is then used especially to designate that type of young women who remain virgins. Normally, in the Middle Ages, it was the young women who belonged to royal or important families who bore this name, the same being uncommon among young peasant women or those of less economic or political power. The maidens have always been represented in a special way and that is why the mental image we have of them is always similar: young girls with very long hair, dressed in luxurious and delicate dresses, decorated with fine jewelry and footwear, showing innocence and beauty in their expressions and movements.
The word can also refer to women who served as servants or as part of the court of a powerful woman both in medieval times and in later centuries. Thus, the maidens were the girls who were always at the service of the important woman to assist her in all her daily chores as well as to share with her their different life experiences. In this case, the maidens always dressed in a simpler and less conspicuous way than that of the central woman since their place in the bond was secondary and not main.