archaeology, also spelled archeology, the scientific study of the material remains of past human life and activities. ... Archaeological investigations are a principal source of knowledge of prehistoric, ancient, and extinct culture.

Why is archaeology not a science?

Archaeology would not by this definition be a social science, because, although much of archaeology does aim to understand past human society, there are many archaeologists, such as environmental archaeologists, specialists on ancient technology, and on survey techniques (for example, geophysical survey), whose work is ...

Is archaeology a science career?

Archaeology is one of the main sources we have to unearth history and to piece together the people and cultures that make us who we are today. It is the scientific study of the human past, and is one of the four sub-fields of anthropology.