muzeologia

Muzeologia, in Romanian, refers to the discipline and professional practice concerned with museums and other cultural heritage institutions. It encompasses the study of museums as institutions, their history, theories, and social roles, as well as the management of collections, exhibitions, education, and preservation of artifacts. The field integrates approaches from history, anthropology, archaeology, art history, conservation science, and information science to understand how museums produce knowledge and engage the public.

Core activities include collection development, cataloguing and provenance research, conservation planning, storage, and documentation; curatorial decision-making; museography and exhibition design; audience research and education programs; and digital initiatives such as online catalogs and virtual exhibits.

Education and professionalization: Muzeologia is studied in university programs under museum studies or museology. Graduates work as curators, collection managers, conservators, registrars, educators, museum technicians, administrators, and researchers. Professional codes of ethics emphasize provenance, repatriation, deaccession policies, inclusivity, accessibility, and transparency. International bodies such as ICOM provide standards and guidance.

History and scope: The discipline emerged in the 19th century with the modern museum and has evolved to emphasize audience engagement, cultural heritage protection, and decolonization of museum practices. It covers national and local museums, archaeology and ethnography museums, science centers, and heritage institutions.

Contemporary issues: digitization, open access, community involvement, decolonizing exhibits, sustainability, risk management, and disaster preparedness.