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  What’s the difference between anthropology, archaeology, and paleontology? Anthropology is the scientific and humanistic study of humankind’s present and past cultural, social, and biological variations. Anthropologists study people and the cultures they create. The major subfields that fall under the larger heading of anthropology are archaeology, physical (biological) anthropology, cultural anthropology, and anthropological linguistics. Archaeology, a subfield of anthropology, is the scientific study of the human past and present through material remains—the things that people made, used, or modified. When archaeologists investigate an area where people left evidence of their presence (such as garbage, building foundations, cemeteries, and an assortment of other everyday things commonly left behind) they attempt to answer specific research questions about the early people who used the area. In fact, archaeology is the only scientific tool we have that can be used to study people from the past who did not leave written descriptions about their every day lives. Paleontology is the study of extinct animals and plants. Oftentimes people confuse paleontology with archaeology, but the two fields of study are very different. Unlike archaeologists who study things made and modified by humans, paleontologists study fossils, or evidence for formerly living animals and plants, including trilobites, dinosaurs, and our own extended human family. Continue to How to archaeologists know what daily life was like? >> back >> |
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