Most people know that Rome, Machu Picchu, and the Great Pyramids are enshrined as “World Heritage Sites” by the UN’s cultural and educational organ, UNESCO.
Far fewer will know that UNESCO maintains another ‘World Heritage’ list, one that’s far more important, arguably, than the task of ensuring the most famous monuments of the world survive through the centuries.
It’s called ‘Intangible Cultural Heritage’ and was first organized in 2008. It strives to recognize, honor, and therefore protect, all traditional activities that tell the story of the human experience: from Parisian baguette baking to Indian henna tattooing.
UNESCO’s 19th annual session of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage has recently concluded in Paraguay, adding 58 different forms of cultural traditions to its list of Intangible Cultural Heritage. It includes all manner of traditions, rare and common, threatened and thriving, enjoyed by humans around the globe.
The musical genre of Guarania in Paraguay; the Korean tradition of fermenting soybeans to make jang; Aleppo soap making, where giant ‘floors’ of soap are cut into bars by men wearing bladed sandals; Pysanka, the Ukrainian art of decorating easter eggs; K’cimi dancing of Tropojë, in Albania; the Festival of Bà Chúa Xứ Goddess at Sam Mountain,
Vietnam; and Ngondo, the worship of water oracles in the marshlands of Cameroon are just a few of this year’s inscriptions on the list of ways in which humans enrich their lives, cultures, and the world as a result, and which UNESCO strives to protect.
If you’ve never heard of these, maybe the concept of the list is better expressed with three of the most famous inscriptions from this year’s additions.
Henna tattooing has been going on since the Old Kingdom of Egypt, as traces of the henna plant have been identified on mummies’ skin. Practiced right the way across the belt of the world, from Morocco to Bangladesh, it is the most common non-permanent form of body decoration on Earth, and is used during holidays and family celebrations, or just for fun.
Sake is an alcoholic beverage made from grains and water that is deeply rooted in Japanese culture. Craftspeople use koji mold to convert the starch in the ingredients into sugar. They oversee the process to make sure the mold grows in optimal conditions, adjusting the temperature and humidity as needed. Their work determines the quality of the sake. Viewed as a sacred gift from deities, sake is indispensable in festivals and other occasions.
The art of dry stone construction refers to the practice of building with stone without using binding material. Traditionally practiced in 14 countries across Europe, it is achieved through the careful selection and arrangement of stones to ensure the long-term stability of the structure and its adaptation to the local terrain and climate. Structures include houses, bridges, and fortifications.
Last year, France saw the art of baking the classic baguette inscribed on this list, which it celebrated with a special postage stamp release.
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It’s extremely common for travelers to plan routes around visits to World Heritage Sites, but the Intangible Cultural Heritage list offers an alternative and fascinating way to organize a trip to a faraway country, as most travelers will tell you it’s always the human element of a trip that stands out the most in one’s memories.
UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay said it best in a statement upon the conclusion of the session; that World Heritage Sites may be the famous part of UNESCO’s work, but Intangible World Heritage is probably a much more important role for the organization.
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“With more than 700 inscriptions to date, this Convention has reinvented the very notion of heritage—to the extent that we can no longer separate the tangible from the intangible, the sites from the practices,” Azoulay, from Algeria, wrote.
“It is our great responsibility to promote this heritage, which—far from being mere folklore, far from being frozen in time and distanced from today’s reality—is very much alive and needed.”
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