Archaeology

Archaeology, or archeology (from Greek ἀρχαιολογία, archaiologia – ἀρχαῖος, arkhaīos, "ancient"; and -λογία, -logiā, "-logy"), is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture and environmental data which they have left behind, which includes artefacts, architecture, biofacts and cultural landscapes (the archaeological record). The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, and cultural landscapes. Archaeologists study human prehistory and history. In the United States it is thought of as a branch of anthropology, altho Archaeology, or archeology (from Greek ἀρχαιολογία, archaiologia – ἀρχαῖος, arkhaīos, "ancient"; and -λογία, -logiā, "-logy"), is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture and environmental data which they have left behind, which includes artefacts, architecture, biofacts and cultural landscapes (the archaeological record). The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, and cultural landscapes. Archaeologists study human prehistory and history. In the United States it is thought of as a branch of anthropology, although in Europe it is viewed as a separate discipline.

Archaeology studies human history from the development of the first stone tools in eastern Africa 3.4 million years ago up until recent decades. It is of most importance for learning about prehistoric societies, when there are no written records for historians to study, and which makes up over 99% of total human history, from the Palaeolithic until the advent of literacy in any given society. Archaeology has various different goals, which range from studying human evolution to cultural evolution and understanding culture history.

The discipline involves surveying, excavation and eventually analysis of data collected to learn more about the past. In broad scope, archaeology relies on cross-disciplinary research. It draws upon anthropology, history, art history, classics, ethnology, geography, geology, linguistics, physics, information sciences, chemistry, statistics, palaeoecology, palaeontology, palaeozoology, palaeoethnobotany, and palaeobotany.

Archaeology developed out of antiquarianism in Europe during the 19th century, and has since become a discipline practised across the world. Since its early development, various specific sub-disciplines of archaeology have developed, including maritime archaeology, feminist archaeology and archaeoastronomy, and numerous different scientific techniques have been developed to aid archaeological investigation. Nonetheless, today, archaeologists face many problems, ranging from dealing with pseudoarchaeology to the looting of artefacts and opposition to the excavation of human remains. ...more

New Releases Tagged "Archaeology"

Lost Worlds: How Humans Tried, Failed, Succeeded, and Built Our World

Most Read This Week Tagged "Archaeology"

Tomb of the Sun King (Raiders of the Arcana #2)

The Way of the Bear (Leaphorn, Chee & Manuelito #26)

A Grave in the Woods (Bruno, Chief of Police #17)

The Ark Files (Eden Black Archaeological Thrillers #1)

Neptune's Fortune: The Billion-Dollar Shipwreck and the Ghosts of the Spanish Empire

Dinner with King Tut: How Rogue Archaeologists Are Re-creating the Sights, Sounds, Smells, and Tastes of Lost Civilizations

The Buried City: Unearthing the Real Pompeii

More most read this week tagged "archaeology"...

Archaeology Books

Archaeology: Theories, Methods and Practice

The Horse, the Wheel, and Language: How Bronze-Age Riders from the Eurasian Steppes Shaped the Modern World

1177 B.C.: The Year Civilization Collapsed

Crocodile on the Sandbank (Amelia Peabody, #1)

Gods, Graves & Scholars: The Story of Archaeology

1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus

The Dawn of Everything: A New History of Humanity

Lives in Ruins: Archaeologists and the Seductive Lure of Human Rubble

The Bible Unearthed: Archaeology's New Vision of Ancient Israel and the Origin of Its Sacred Texts

Four Lost Cities: A Secret History of the Urban Age

More archaeology books...

Lists

Breaking the Maya Code by Michael D. Coe

Mesoamerica

135 books — 41 voters

The Illyrian Adventure by Lloyd Alexander

Archaeology in Middle Grade & YA Fiction

159 books — 13 voters

Crocodile on the Sandbank by Elizabeth Peters

The Curse of the Pharaohs by Elizabeth Peters

The Snake, the Crocodile and the Dog by Elizabeth Peters

Archaeology Romance, Mystery, Suspense

297 books — 201 voters

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie

Best Children's and Young Adult Books about Ancient Americas

162 books — 23 voters

The Horse, the Wheel, and Language by David W. Anthony

480 books — 173 voters

The Treasures of Islamic Art in the Museums of Cairo by Bernard O'Kane

House decoration in Nubia by Marian Wenzel

Electric Ancient Egyptians by James Ernest Brown

.. ..::..Misr .:.

106 books — 3 voters

Featured News & Interviews

Readers’ Hit New Books of the Year (So Far)

Read »

Quotes Tagged “Archaeology”

“ Tutte le note erano come a strati, un palinsesto di interpretazione in progresso. Feci archeologia. ”
― China Miéville, The City & the City

1 likes

“ In view of the years of careful study that have been devoted to Stonehenge it may seem unlikely that any more information could be extracted from the monument, or at least from that part of it above ground. ”
― Richard Brinckerhoff

2 likes

More quotes...