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Archaeology
The study of our human past through the objects left behind, such as tools, buildings, artifacts, and landscapes.
Overview
Archaeology is the study of the human past through the examination of material remains. This includes objects people made, used, or left behind—such as tools, buildings, pottery, bones, or trash.
Archaeologists analyze these materials to learn about how people lived, what they believed, how they organized their societies, and how they interacted with their environments.
Archaeology majors work in a wide range of fields, including museums and historical societies, universities and research institutes, federal agencies, and education.
Archaeologists work with NOAA (the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) to locate and study shipwrecks, submerged cities, and ancient coastlines using the same sonar, satellite mapping, and underwater robotics designed for ocean and climate research. Learn More
NOAA archaeologist documents the wheel and stern of the schooner FT Barney. Source: NOAA ONMS (Public Domain)
Archaeology Reference
Archaeology isn’t just about excavating artifacts—it involves interpreting human history across thousands of years and many world regions. Reference sources help researchers, students, and professionals make sense of this wide-ranging material.
Archaeology Databases
Searching general or multi-disciplinary databases can sometimes give you too many results. To narrow your focus, try using a database dedicated to subject research. The list below highlights the top databases for finding subject journals and articles. The following research databases specialize in subject, covering [subfields] and more.
Annual Review of Anthropology
The Annual Review of Anthropology is a peer-reviewed academic journal that publishes comprehensive literature review articles in anthropology. Each year, a new volume is released, consisting of articles written by leading experts in the field, providing overviews of the most important and influential research and scholarship in anthropology.
Anthropology Plus
Anthropology Plus combines the content of two prominent anthropology databases: Anthropological Index Online (AIO) and Anthropological Literature (AL). It provides access to a wide range of scholarly literature, including journal articles, books, book chapters, conference proceedings, and reports.
AnthroSource
Anthrosource is an online platform for anthropological research. Produced by the American Anthropological Association (AAA) it provides access to scholarly journals, newsletters, and bulletins published by the AAA and other affiliated organizations.
eHRAF World Cultures
Electronic Human Relations Area Files (eHRAF) is an online anthropological database that provides access to a large collection of ethnographic information about cultures from around the world. It is a unique resource that allows researchers to explore and compare cultural information across different societies and time periods. eHRAF contains ethnographic data from various sources, including books, articles, dissertations, and field reports.
GeoRef
GeoRef is a database for geoscience research, produced by the American Geosciences Institute. It indexes millions of references to journal articles, books, maps, conference papers, and reports covering geology and related fields from the 17th century to today. Topics span everything from earthquakes, volcanoes, and fossils to environmental geology, hydrogeology, and planetary science. GeoRef is available through several different vendors and platforms, including: EBSCO, Engineering Village, GeoScienceWorld, ProQuest, and Ovid.
L’Année Philologique
L’Année Philologique is the leading international index for classical studies, covering scholarship on the languages, literature, history, philosophy, art, archaeology, and culture of ancient Greece and Rome. It includes references to journal articles, books, reviews, and conference proceedings from 1924 to the present.
tDAR (the Digital Archaeological Record)
The Digital Archaeological Record (tDAR) is a digital repository and database designed to preserve and provide access to archaeological data. It hosts excavation reports, images, maps, datasets, and other research materials from projects around the world. tDAR stores original research data so that future scholars can reuse, compare, and build on past work.
Archaeology Journals
New researchers in studying archaeology often wonder how to identify high-quality, peer-reviewed journals for their papers. Journal Citation Reports (JCR) is widely regarded as the leading subscription-based resource for assessing the impact, influence, and quality of scholarly journals across disciplines, including archaeology.
Measuring Journal Impact
Journal impact is how influential a scholarly journal is in its field. Impact is usually measured by tracking how often a journal's articles are cited by other researchers. The more frequently a journal’s articles are cited, the more impact it is considered to have within its field.
The two main tools used to measure journal impact are Journal Citation Reports (JCR), which provides the well-known Impact Factor, and Google Scholar Metrics, which ranks journals based on citation data from Google Scholar.
Journal Citation Reports
Journal Citation Reports (JCR) is a subscription resource that evaluates journals that meet strict selection standards, such as peer review, editorial quality, and citation integrity. Because of this careful selection, JCR is often used by universities and libraries to judge the quality and influence of a journal. Its best-known metric, the impact factor (IF), is calculated using a standardized method, with current coverage from 1997 to 2024.Google Scholar Metrics
Google Scholar Metrics is a free tool for measuring journal impact. It is a five-year index of citations of journal articles, preprints, conference papers, and institutional repositories. However, it may also include sources that are not peer-reviewed or considered scholarly. Google Scholar provides an h-index, which tells you how often a journal is cited. It currently only covers articles published between 2020 and 2024.
Most Cited Journals
Journal Citation Reports ranks the Journal of Archaeological Science as the most-cited anthropology journal for 2024. To review the JCR list of highly cited anthropology journals, go to Journal Citation Reports and choose Categories > Social Sciences, General > Anthropology. Listed below are the 10 most cited anthropology journals for 2024.
Journal of Archaeological Science
The Journal of Archaeological Science is a peer-reviewed academic journal that publishes articles on the scientific methods used to study archaeological materials. Research includes the analyzation of stone tools, bones, metals, ceramics, soil, plant remains, and residues. Articles include the discussion of techniques from chemistry, biology, physics, and geology, including radiocarbon dating, isotope analysis, microscopy, DNA analysis, and materials testing.
Journal of Cultural Heritage
Journal of Cultural Heritage is a peer-reviewed academic journal focused on the care, preservation, and scientific study of cultural heritage. The journal publishes research on how museums, conservators, archaeologists, and heritage professionals analyze, protect, restore, and manage cultural objects and sites. This includes artworks, historic buildings, archaeological materials, manuscripts, monuments, and museum collections.
Journal of Archaeological Science-Reports
Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports is a peer-reviewed academic journal that publishes research focused on archaeological scientific methods. Articles cover archaeology techniques in fields such as chemistry, biology, geology, and materials science. The journal covers topics such as artifact analysis, dating methods, ancient diets, environmental reconstruction, and new laboratory or analytical approaches.
Antiquity
Antiquity is a leading peer-reviewed archaeology journal publishing global research across all time periods, from the earliest human origins to contemporary archaeological theory.
Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences
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American Antiquity
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Archaeometry
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Journal of Anthropological Archaeology
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International Journal of Osteoarchaeology
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World Archaeology
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Archaeology News
[subject] news sources and magazines highlight the emerging research topics and trends in the field of [subject], sparking ideas for research questions and assignments. Remember that magazines are written for the general public and lack peer review, while scholarly articles are written by experts and reviewed by other scholars for accuracy and research quality.
Archaeology Methods
Research methods are how researchers gather and study information to help answer questions. Research methods are the specific strategies, tools, and techniques researchers use to collect and analyze information to answer questions or solve problems.
Research methods can be qualitative (like interviews or observations) or quantitative (numerical and statistical). As a student, you’ll likely take a research methods course that introduces you to the basics of how social science research works. Below are some of the most helpful resources available that explain different types of research methods and discuss how to collect and analyze both qualitative and quantitative data.
Sage Research Methods is a major subscription database that guides users in understanding research methodologies across different academic disciplines. It provides electronic access to reference books, journal articles, instructional videos, and other qualitative methods resources.
The following resources provide in-depth information on various research design concepts, methodologies, and techniques specific to [subject].
