Definition of archaeology
1 : the scientific study of material remains (such as fossil relics, artifacts, and monuments) of past human life and activities
2 : remains of the culture of a people : antiquities the archaeology of the Incas
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Recent Examples of archaeology from the Web
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Corrigan earned a bachelor's of arts degree and majored in archaeology.
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The archaeology of the Middle East and North Africa is exceptionally rich and diverse, giving insight into some of the earliest and most significant cultures in human history.
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Fall-out for fraternizing with Communists leads to guilt by Red Scare association and Indy gets fired from his day job as an archaeology professor.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'archaeology'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Origin and Etymology of archaeology
French archéologie, from Late Latin archaeologia antiquarian lore, from Greek archaiologia, from archaio- + -logia -logy
First Known Use: 1837
ARCHAEOLOGY Defined for English Language Learners
archaeology
playDefinition of archaeology for English Language Learners
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: a science that deals with past human life and activities by studying the bones, tools, etc., of ancient people
ARCHAEOLOGY Defined for Kids
archaeology
playarcheology
\ˌär-kē-ˈä-lə-jē\Definition of archaeology for Students
: a science that deals with past human life and activities as shown by objects (as pottery, tools, and statues) left by ancient peoples
Learn More about archaeology
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Spanish Central: Translation of archaeology Nglish: Translation of archaeology for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of archaeology for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about archaeology
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