Intangible Cultural Heritage

Intangible Cultural Heritage

The notion of intangible cultural heritage (ICH) emerged in the 90s, as a counter part to the World Heritage that focusses mainly on tangible aspects of culture. In 2001, UNESCO made a survey [cite web
url=http://www.unesco.org/culture/ich/index.php?lg=EN&meeting_id=00057#meet_00057
title=Meeting of 2001
publisher=UNESCO
accessdate=2007-06-20 ] among States and NGOs to try to agree on a definition, and a Convention [cite web
url=http://www.unesco.org/culture/ich/index.php?lg=EN&pg=home
title=Official website
publisher=UNESCO
accessdate=2007-06-20 ] was adopted in 2003 for its protection.

Definition

According to the 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage, the intangible cultural heritage (ICH) – or living heritage – is the mainspring of our cultural diversity and its maintenance a guarantee for continuing creativity. It is defined as follows:

Intangible Cultural Heritage means the practices, representations, expressions, knowledge, skills – as well as the instruments, objects, artefacts and cultural spaces associated therewith – that communities, groups and, in some cases, individuals recognize as part of their cultural heritage. This intangible cultural heritage, transmitted from generation to generation, is constantly recreated by communities and groups in response to their environment, their interaction with nature and their history, and provides them with a sense of identity and continuity, thus promoting respect for cultural diversity and human creativity. For the purposes of this Convention, consideration will be given solely to such intangible cultural heritage as is compatible with existing international human rights instruments, as well as with the requirements of mutual respect among communities, groups and individuals, and of sustainable development.

This Convention - like the World Heritage Convention - developed a listing system (Representative list and Endangered list). The Intergovernmental Committee is currently working on criteria and procedures, and first inscriptions will be made in 2008 or 2009.

Oral history

Intangible cultural heritage is slightly different from the discipline of oral history, the recording, preservation and interpretation of historical information (specifically, oral tradition), based on the personal experiences and opinions of the speaker. ICH attempts to preserve cultural heritage 'with' the people or community by protecting the processes that allow traditions and shared knowledge to be passed on while oral history seeks to collect and preserve historical information obtained from individuals and groups.

Oral continuity

Intangible cultural heritage is passed orally within a community, and while there may be individuals who are known tradition bearers, ICH is often broader than one individual's own skills or knowledge.

Material culture

Traditional music

Reference notes

See also

*Concrete examples of Intangible Cultural Heritage: Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity
*Living human treasure
*Intangible culture
*oral history
*oral tradition
*heritage

External links

* [http://www.unesco.org/culture/ich/doc/src/00078-EN.pdf Definitions of Intangible Cultural Heritage] as of States, IGOs and NGOs in 2001
* [http://www.unesco.org/culture/ich/index.php?lg=EN&pg=home Official website of the Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage]
* [http://www.unesco.org/culture/ich/index.php?lg=EN&pg=00022 Full text of the Convention]
* [http://www.mun.ca/ich/ Intangible Cultural Heritage website for Newfoundland and Labrador]


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать курсовую

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage — The Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage is an international agreement among some UNESCO members that seeks to aid states in preserving elements of intangible cultural heritage. The Convention was originally written in… …   Wikipedia

  • Cultural heritage management — (CHM) is the vocation and practice of managing cultural heritage. It is a branch of cultural resources management (CRM), although it also draws on the practices of conservation, restoration, museology, archaeology, history and architecture. While …   Wikipedia

  • Cultural heritage — Roman ruins with a prophet, by Giovanni Pannini, 1751. The artistic cultural heritage of the Roman Empire served as a foundation for later Western culture, particularly via the Renaissance and Neoclassicism (as exemplified here). Cultural… …   Wikipedia

  • Cultural Heritage Administration of Korea — Hangul 문화재청 Hanja 文化 …   Wikipedia

  • UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Lists — plural noun two lists compiled by UNESCO under its program of safeguarding aspects of human cultural activity that can be recorded but do not have a permanent physical form, such as performing arts, social practices, rituals, knowledge and… …  

  • Cultural Heritage Administration — Infobox Korean name hangul=문화재청 hanja=linktext|文|化|財|廳 rr=Munhwajaecheong mr=Munhwajaech ŏng The Cultural Heritage Administration or CHA, formerly the Cultural Properties Administration, is an agency of the South Korean government charged with… …   Wikipedia

  • Important Intangible Cultural Properties — The Important Intangible Cultural Properties (Ko hhrm|hangul=중요무형문화재) are aspects of intangible culture that the government of South Korea has officially designated for preservation since the inception of the program in 1964. They are proclaimed… …   Wikipedia

  • Intangible culture — is the opposite of culture which is tangible or touchable such as a castle, a statue, or a painting. Intangible culture includes song, music, drama, skills, crafts, and the other parts of culture that can be recorded but cannot be touched and… …   Wikipedia

  • Cultural diversity — is having different cultures respect each other s differences. It could also mean the variety of human societies or cultures in a specific region, or in the world as a whole. It differs from multiculturalism in that multiculturalism is usually… …   Wikipedia

  • Norwegian Year of Cultural Heritage 2009 — Centre of Røros, Norway The Norwegian Year of Cultural Heritage 2009 or (in Norwegian) Kulturminneåret 2009 is aimed at highlighting the diversity and importance of Norway s cultural heritage for all sectors of the community. Under the theme of… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
… Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”