Why are Romance languages called "romance"?

Romance languages are a group of languages that originated from Vulgar Latin, the common spoken language of the Roman Empire. Today, Romance languages are spoken by nearly a billion people worldwide and include some of the most widely spoken languages such as Spanish, French, Italian, Portuguese, and Romanian. But have you ever wondered why these languages are specifically called "romance"? The answer lies in their history, linguistic evolution, and connection to the Roman Empire.