The study of archeology is the study of past cultures and the art, tools, documents and other artifacts they have left behind. An archeology major concentrates on reconstructing the past and understanding human societal organization and may deal with both history and prehistory. In many cases, an archeology major may require courses in other disciplines, especially anthropology, history, and languages.
Anthropology is the study of culture throughout history and across the globe. Anthropology majors often learn about world religions and mythology, systems of social order and justice, and daily life based on what we know from artifacts, art and documents. The discipline includes the study of human origins and ancient cultures, human and primate relationships, linguistic history and human society across time and cultures. Surprisingly, perhaps, anthropology is not limited to the study of dead civilizations, but may include contemporary world culture as well.
The courses offered in most history majors can be both broad or tightly focused, but if you want to study archeology, you should take as many classes as possible in ancient history. This would include history courses about Egypt, Greece, Rome, Mesopotamia, and China. Good history courses will be about more than memorizing dates and names, but will instead concentrate on the significance of actual people and events and the way historical events have shaped culture.
Most universities have at least a one year requirement for foreign language courses, but if you are considering the study of archeology, Greek and Latin are probably the most useful languages to pursue. However, Spanish might be useful in studying South American cultures, and Chinese or Japanese would have value in Asian archeology studies. A major may not be strictly necessary in this case, but a minor or double minor would prepare you for studying archeology at a more advanced level.
If you take up a major in the classics, you will definitely be studying Greek and Latin. A classics major concentrates on the literature and history of Greek and Roman civilizations, allows you to read ancient texts in their original language. Many of these works were integral to the societies archaeologists study and seek to uncover.
Art history is an important field of study for a budding archeologist because much of what we know about the past is based on the art left behind by cultures that have now passed into history. Consider for instance the wealth of information in Egyptian tomb paintings or Mayan sculptures about the beliefs, values and structure of these societies and you begin to see the value of this major for an archeologist.