What’s in a Name? Discussions of Terminology, Theory and Infrastructure of Citizen Science in Maritime Archaeology

This collection contains the abstracts of the papers presented in the session entitled "What’s in a Name? Discussions of Terminology, Theory and Infrastructure of Citizen Science in Maritime Archaeology," at the 2022 annual meeting of the Society for Historical Archaeology.

With an infrastructure based on avocational training and engagement, maritime archaeology provides an avenue to utilize community members and volunteers to gather data and support stewardship, especially as heritage managers see increasing administrative constraints. Previous research has focused on the potential contributions of “non-professionals” in maritime archaeology through case studies, programming, and future development. However, recent discussions have turned to questions of what relationships exist between the terms citizen science, citizen monitoring, community archaeology, public archaeology, and crowdsourcing as they relate to maritime archaeology. As various entities and agencies work to create a space for communities and volunteers to contribute to goals and agendas, the contributions of these groups take on new meanings and directions. This symposium explores the theoretical debate between the terms, as well as how current case studies fit within the various categories of community-, public-, and citizen science-driven maritime archaeology.