Revitalizing UK History: Enriching Wikidata for Diverse Historical Figures

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Promoting diversity in UK historical knowledge through structured data

History is often told through narrow lenses—but through Wikidata, we can change that.

In June 2025, we launched Revitalizing UK History: Enriching Wikidata for Diverse Historical Figures, a project focused on improving the representation of underrepresented UK figures on Wikidata. From overlooked Black and Racialized communities in UK history, LGBTQ+ individuals, disabled people and disability rights advocates, to women across all fields—this initiative aimed to surface voices often missing from structured data.

Community at the Core

Proudly hosted from Nigeria, the project engaged over 100 participants through a live training and edit-a-thon held on 7 June 2025. Participants received hands-on instruction in Wikidata editing, including how to identify data gaps, verify notability, and cite reliable sources. Follow-up sessions via Zoom and Telegram ensured ongoing support..

participants for Revitalizing UK History

Training session in progress during the Revitalizing UK History edit-a-thon.

“I never knew I could contribute to UK history from Nigeria,” said one participant during the live training. “Now I’m editing Wikidata like a pro.”

What We Achieved

Our efforts were tracked on the Outreach Dashboard, and by the project’s close in July 2025, we had:

  • 🧾 Created 103 new items
  • 🛠️ Improved 1,360+ items
  • ✍️ Logged over 8,600 edits
  • 👥 Engaged 75 active contributors
  • Among the new items was one for Nikita Parris, an english association football player whose contributions had previously gone unrecorded on Wikidata.

A Collaborative Effort

This project wouldn’t have been possible without the support of Wikimedia UK, especially Rupal Karia, Karla Marte, Ian Watt, and Dr. Sara Thomas. Their coordination and encouragement were crucial in bringing this to life.

We also shared progress in the Wikidata Weekly Summary, amplifying the work to the wider Wikidata community.

Success Story

The project has also led to further opportunities. I’m honoured to be attending the GLAM Wiki 2025 Conference in Lisbon, where I’ll be delivering a lightning talk about our experience and outcomes.

Looking Ahead

While this first phase has wrapped up, the momentum continues. Revitalizing UK History – Series 2 is already in development, with a renewed focus on diaspora histories and deeper collaboration.

Let’s keep rewriting history—together.

📄 Explore the project page: Revitalizing UK History

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