Intangible Heritage

Intangible Heritage
  • Sama Ceremony, Turkey © M. Taurus

Cultural heritage is not limited to material manifestations, such as monuments and objects that have been preserved over time. This notion also encompasses living expressions and the traditions that countless groups and communities worldwide have inherited from their ancestors and transmit to their descendants, in most cases orally.

  • Website of the Intangible Cultural Heritage
  • Safeguarding Endangered Languages
  • Many years of research undertaken by UNESCO on the functions and values of cultural expressions and practices have opened the door to new approaches to the understanding, protection and respect of the cultural heritage of humanity. This living heritage, known as intangible, provides each bearer of such expressions a sense of identity and continuity, insofar as he or she takes ownership of them and constantly recreates them.

    As a driving force of cultural diversity, living heritage is very fragile. In recent years, it has received international recognition and its safeguarding has become one of the priorities of international cooperation thanks to UNESCO's leading role in the adoption of the Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage.

     

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    • 29-05-2009
    Le Directeur général rend hommage à la diversité du patrimoine culturel immatériel de la Géorgie
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    • 05-11-2008
    Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity comes into being in Istanbul
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    • 03-11-2008
    Intangible cultural heritage: Third session of Intergovernmental Committee
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    • 04-09-2008
    Director-General addresses the 2008 UNESCO/UNU International Conference on “Globalization and Languages – Building on our Rich Heritage”
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    • 18-06-2008
    Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage: Second Session of the General Assembly
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    • 10-06-2008
    Second session of the General Assembly of States Parties to the Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage
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    UNESCO Capacity-Building Workshop on the Implementation of the Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage
    Pretoria - South Africa
    • 27-03-2008 - 
    • 29-03-2008
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    Kenyan National Meeting on the Implementation of the 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage
    Nairobi - Kenya
    • 05-03-2008 - 
    • 06-03-2008
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    Third International Conference of the UNESCO Memory of the World Programme
    Canberra - Australia
    • 19-02-2008 - 
    • 22-02-2008
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    Second Extraordinary Session of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage
    Sofia - Bulgaria
    • 18-02-2008 - 
    • 22-02-2008
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    First UNESCO/ILAM on-line workshop: Museums and Intangible Heritage
    Havana - Cuba
    • 07-01-2008 - 
    • 03-02-2008
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    Implementation of the 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage in the Pacific
    Nadi - Fiji
    • 12-12-2007 - 
    • 14-12-2007
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    Traditional meeting between the three towns practising La Tumba Francesa
    Santiago de Cuba - Cuba
    • 11-12-2007 - 
    • 11-12-2007
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    Safeguarding Intangible Heritage and Sustainable Cultural Tourism: Opportunities and Challenges
    Hue - Viet Nam
    • 10-12-2007 - 
    • 13-12-2007
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    Revitalisation of Bark Cloth-making in Uganda Project
    Kampala - Uganda
    • 05-12-2007 - 
    • 05-12-2007
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    Europe's intangible heritage: Inventing an inventory
    Paris - France
    • 30-11-2007 - 
    • 30-11-2007
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    Workshop for the bearers of the cacao traditions in Cuba
    Baracoa - Cuba
    • 23-11-2007 - 
    • 25-11-2007
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    Regional Centre for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Latin America (CRESPIAL)
    Quito - Ecuador
    • 19-11-2007 - 
    • 20-11-2007
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    Living Heritage: Exploring the Intangible at UNESCO Headquarters
    Paris - France
    • 12-04-2007 - 
    • 30-11-2007
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    Tell me about Living Heritage
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