York researcher named UK Wikimedian of the Year
York researcher Dr Fran Allfrey has been named UK Wikimedian of the Year, an annual award that honors Wikipedia editors.
Dr Allfrey, from the Department of Archaeology, was recognised for her co-written research paper, ‘Forging the medieval on Wikipedia’, which addressed Wikipedia’s impact on public understanding of the past, particularly our medieval pasts.
The award also acknowledged the ongoing project, the Avebury Papers, a UKRI-funded study that aims to bring 5,000 years of history to life through digitising the archives of the Avebury World Heritage Site and making it open access for the first time.
Dr Allfrey said: “It was a very pleasant surprise to be awarded this title, and it is exciting that there is much more to come with our work regarding Wikipedia and the Avebury Papers. Creating the digital Avebury archives is a work in progress, and so we won’t see the impact on Wikipedia information until after the archive goes live with the Archaeology Data Service. For now, we have made improvements to existing Wikipedia entries, adding both text and images, and used Wikidata to help make the collection searchable, and to link with collections around the country”
UK Wikimedian of the Year is an annual award decided by judges from Wikimedia UK that honors Wikipedia editors and other contributors to Wikimedia projects to highlight major achievements within the Wikimedia movement, established in August 2011 by Wikipedia's co-founder Jimmy Wales.
More details about the Avebury Papers project - funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) - can be found via the website.