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Intangible Cultural Heritage as Defined in the 2003 UNESCO Convention

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Abstract

According to the 2003 UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage, the essential components of such heritage are a manifestation (objective component), a community of people (subjective or social component) and a cultural space (spatial component). The heritage can be manifested in the domains of oral traditions and expressions including language, performing arts, social practices, rituals and festive events, knowledge and practices concerning nature and the universe, and traditional craftsmanship. The social component of heritage, that is, the communities, groups and individuals who share it, is linked to a number of questions, such as the identification of the community of practitioners or the transmission and recreation of heritage, as well as the commercialisation, modernisation and revitalisation of it. The cultural space must be intended more for social practices than for its geographical character. The Convention clearly states that its scope of application does not cover the manifestations of heritage that are incompatible with existing international human rights instruments or with the requirements of mutual respect among communities, groups and individuals and of sustainable development.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Hereinafter: the Convention. It entered into force on 20 April 2006 and is now (May 2014) binding on 158 states. See in general Blake 2006; Kono 2007, p. 237; Sola 2008, p. 487; Srinivas 2008, p. 529; Zagato 2008, p. 27; Kono 2010; Scovazzi 2010, p. 301; Bortolotto 2011; Scovazzi et al. 2012; Lixinski 2013.

  2. 2.

    For the third and last sentence of Art. 2, para. 1, see Sect. 5. On the definition in an anthropological perspective see Bortolotto 2008.

  3. 3.

    Among the many definitions that can be envisaged, see the definition of culture provided by van Zanten 2002, p. 4: “The set of distinctive spiritual, material, intellectual and emotional features of a society or a social group, encompassing, in addition to art and literature, lifestyles, ways of living together, value systems, traditions and beliefs”. This definition is based on the definition suggested at the UNESCO World Conference on Cultural Policies (Mexico City, 1982).

  4. 4.

    Hereinafter: the Committee.

  5. 5.

    Hereinafter: the Representative List. As required by Art. 31, para. 1, the Committee has incorporated in this list the items previously proclaimed as the Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity and inscribed in the relevant list established by UNESCO in 1998. Consequently, it is implied that all of the masterpieces qualify for the definition provided by Art. 2, para. 1.

  6. 6.

    Hereinafter: the Safeguarding List. This study will not consider the conditions for inscription on this list.

  7. 7.

    The items inscribed on the two lists are called “elements” in the practice of the Committee. In this sense the term element will be used in this study.

  8. 8.

    Under Art. 31, para. 3, b, of the 1969 Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties for the interpretation of a treaty account shall be taken inter alia of “any subsequent practice in the application of the treaty which establishes the agreement of the parties regarding its interpretation”.

  9. 9.

    See Compte-rendu des journées de Vitré sur les pratiques alimentaires, 3 avril 2009: “Les experts ont estimé que, dans le cadre de la Convention, les pratiques alimentaires ont une dimension transversale vis-à-vis des domaines explicités à l’article 2 alinéa 2 en tant qu’elles s’intègrent à des systèmes articulés de relations sociales et de significations collectivement partagées. Les pratiques alimentaires concernent donc aussi bien les traditions et expressions orales, les arts du spectacle, les pratiques sociales, rituels et événements festifs, les connaissances et pratiques concernant la nature, ainsi que les savoir-faire liés à l’artisanat traditionnel”.

  10. 10.

    Van Zanten 2002, p. 5.

  11. 11.

    Ibidem.

  12. 12.

    UNESCO 2008, Element No. 80 (this book, which has interesting content, is a rare example of books without page numbers). Regarding the elements inscribed on the lists see also Freland 2009.

  13. 13.

    UNESCO 2008, Element No. 67. It is remarked that “the Hudhud is linked to the manual harvesting of rice, which is now mechanised”. However, it is difficult to sing with the noise of the rice harvesting machines. Regarding the question of modernisation see Sect. 4.3.3.

  14. 14.

    UNESCO 2008, Element No. 8.

  15. 15.

    UNESCO 2008, Element No. 30.

  16. 16.

    UNESCO 2009, Element No. 71.

  17. 17.

    Van Zanten 2002, p. 5.

  18. 18.

    Van Zanten 2002, p. 6.

  19. 19.

    Van Zanten 2002, p. 5.

  20. 20.

    UNESCO 2010, p. 46.

  21. 21.

    Ivi, p. 37.

  22. 22.

    UNESCO 2009, Element No. 70.

  23. 23.

    UNESCO 2010, p. 17.

  24. 24.

    UNESCO 2009, Element No. 59.

  25. 25.

    UNESCO 2010, p. 14.

  26. 26.

    See in general Ardolino 2010, p. 35.

  27. 27.

    For an analysis of these three elements with regard to the community of people involved see Sect. 4.3.1.

  28. 28.

    UNESCO 2010, p. 21.

  29. 29.

    UNESCO 2010, p. 35.

  30. 30.

    UNESCO 2010, p. 45.

  31. 31.

    See Compte rendu cit. (supra, note 9): “(…) Si les pratiques alimentaires ne sont pas explicitement mentionnées à l’article 2 (‘Définitions’) de la Convention, celles-ci sont néanmoins parties intégrantes du patrimoine culturel immatériel. (…) Il a été souligné d’emblée que les pratiques alimentaires ne devraient pas être considérées uniquement comme une réponse aux besoins biologiques, mais comme des expériences culturellement élaborées par les groupes humains tout au long de leur histoire. (…)”.

  32. 32.

    In this sense see also Maffei 2012, p. 245.

  33. 33.

    In this list only the entry of olive oil seems sufficiently specific.

  34. 34.

    Hereinafter: the Subsidiary Body.

  35. 35.

    UNESCO 2009, p. 6.

  36. 36.

    UNESCO 2009, Element No. 4.

  37. 37.

    UNESCO 2009, Element No. 68.

  38. 38.

    UNESCO 2008, Element No. 77.

  39. 39.

    UNESCO 2008, Element No. 11.

  40. 40.

    UNESCO 2008, Element No. 90.

  41. 41.

    UNESCO 2009, Element No. 12. The dragon is not an existing animal, but is created by human imagination.

  42. 42.

    UNESCO 2009, Element No. 62. The voladores cannot fly, but they behave as if they could.

  43. 43.

    UNESCO 2008, Element No. 12.

  44. 44.

    UNESCO 2008, Element No. 52.

  45. 45.

    UNESCO 2010, p. 5.

  46. 46.

    UNESCO 2010, p. 11.

  47. 47.

    UNESCO 2010, p. 28.

  48. 48.

    UNESCO 2008, Element No. 40.

  49. 49.

    UNESCO 2008, Element No. 42.

  50. 50.

    UNESCO 2008, Element No. 39.

  51. 51.

    UNESCO 2008, Element No. 10.

  52. 52.

    Instances could perhaps be the “Canto a Tenore, Sardinian Pastoral Songs” (Italy) (UNESCO 2008, Element No. 43) and the already quoted (supra, note 16) “Whistled Language of the Island of La Gomera (Canary Islands), the Silbo Gomero”.

  53. 53.

    Namely, monuments, groups of buildings and sites, as regards the cultural heritage (Art. 1), and natural features, geological and physiographical formations and natural sites, as regards the natural heritage (Art. 2).

  54. 54.

    This is explicitly provided in Art. 16 of the Convention but is also implied in Art. 17, relating to the Safeguarding List.

  55. 55.

    Namely, the World Heritage List and the List of World Heritage in Danger.

  56. 56.

    “Each State Party shall: (…) among the safeguarding measures referred to in Art. 2, para. 3, identify and define the various elements of the intangible cultural heritage present in its territory, with the participation of communities, groups and relevant non-governmental organizations.”.

  57. 57.

    “Within the framework of its safeguarding activities of the intangible cultural heritage, each State Party shall endeavour to ensure the widest possible participation of communities, groups and, where appropriate, individuals that create, maintain and transmit such heritage, and to involve them actively in its management”.

  58. 58.

    A community has been defined as “people who share a self-ascribed sense of connectedness. This may be manifested, for example, in a feeling of identity in a common behaviour, as well as in activities and territory. Individuals can belong to more than one community” (van Zanten 2002, p. 4).

  59. 59.

    An indigenous community has been defined as “a community whose members consider themselves to have originated in a certain territory. This does not exclude the existence of more than one indigenous community in the same territory” (van Zanten 2002, p. 5).

  60. 60.

    Minorities are not mentioned either. Instead, the Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions (Paris, 2005) clearly provides that “the protection and promotion of the diversity of cultural expressions presuppose the recognition of equal dignity of, and respect of, all cultures, including the cultures of people belonging to minorities and indigenous peoples” (Art. 3).

  61. 61.

    The Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilization to the Convention on Biological Diversity (Nagoya, 2010) recognises the relevance of traditional knowledge associated with genetic resources and aims to ensure the sharing in an equitable and fair way of the benefits arising from the utilisation of such resources with the indigenous and local communities concerned.

  62. 62.

    Quoted supra, note 43.

  63. 63.

    UNESCO 2008, Element No. 13.

  64. 64.

    Quoted supra, note 15.

  65. 65.

    “The impact of armed conflict especially in the departamentos of Rabinal and K’iche has almost led to the disappearance of this dance” (UNESCO 2008, Element No. 34). In fact, as found by the Inter-American Court of Human Rights in the decisions No. 105 of 29 April 2004 (merit) and No. 116 of 19 November 2004 (reparations) in the case Masacre de Plan de Sánchez v. Guatemala, “el Ejército de Guatemala, con fundamento en la ‘Doctrina de Seguridad Nacional’, identificó a los miembros del pueblo indígena maya como ‘enemigos internos’, por considerar que constituían o podían constituir la base social de la guerrilla. Estos pueblos fueran víctimas de masacres y ‘operaciones de tierra arrasada’ que significaron la destrucción completa de sus comunidades, viviendas, ganado, cosechas y otros elementos de supervivencia, su cultura, el uso de sus propios símbolos culturales, sus instituciones sociales, económicas y políticas, sus valores y prácticas culturales y religiosas” (para. 42.7 of decision No 105). “Con la muerte de las mujeres y los ancianos, transmisores orales de la cultura maya achí, sus conocimientos no pudieron ser transmitidos a las nuevas generaciones, lo que ha producido un vacío cultural. Los huérfanos no recibieron la formación tradicional heredada de sus ancestros. A su vez, la militarización y represión a la que fueron sometidos los sobrevivientes de la masacre, especialmente los jóvenes, ocasionó la pérdida de la fe en las tradiciones y conocimientos de sus antepasados. Las víctimas no pudieron realizar libremente ceremonias y ritos según su cultura maya, ya que las autoridades controlaban todas sus actividades” (paras 49.12 and 49.13 of decision No. 116).

  66. 66.

    However, the Convention does not specify in which cases the individuals could share the same intangible heritage; the second sentence of Art. 2, para. 1, does not mention individuals, referring only to “communities and groups”.

  67. 67.

    UNESCO 2010, p. 49.

  68. 68.

    The practitioner has been defined as “a member of a community who actively reproduces, transmits, transforms, creates and forms culture in and for the community by performing and otherwise maintaining social practices based on specialised knowledge and skills” (van Zanten 2002, p. 5).

  69. 69.

    UNESCO 2009, p. 6. Elements related to a broad cultural sphere are, for instance, the “Chinese Traditional Architectural Craftsmanship for Timber-framed Structures” (China) or “Chinese Calligraphy” (China) (UNESCO 2009, Elements No. 8 and 10).

  70. 70.

    UNESCO 2009, p. 7.

  71. 71.

    In addition to conceptual obstacles, there are also practical ones. How is it possible to prove that a community has participated in the submission of a nomination for the lists and in the safeguarding measures, as required by the Operational Directives, if the community includes hundreds of millions of individuals?

  72. 72.

    Supra, note 29.

  73. 73.

    Supra, note 30. In a letter read at the 2010 session of the Committee, the president of the Chamber of Heraklion, Greece, on behalf of eighteen associations of Crete, argued that “undoubtedly, there are similarities among the food products of the Mediterranean countries. However, this is not enough to justify the adoption of a generalized ‘Mediterranean’ term. There is no common dietary culture, only common products. (…) If the term ‘Mediterranean diet’ was accepted as valid, then why not accepting a term such as the ‘Balkan diet’? In this geographic unity there are several common products, but there are also important differences in the procedures of harvesting and processing, in the composition and consumption of food, as well as in the traditions and customs related to the diet”.

  74. 74.

    Supra, note 28.

  75. 75.

    UNESCO 2009, Element No. 1.

  76. 76.

    UNESCO 2009, p. 7.

  77. 77.

    UNESCO 2009, p. 6. Regarding the question of commercialisation, see also Operational Directives 116 and 117.

  78. 78.

    Decision, 2010, p. 9. The Convention does not enter into the question of intellectual property rights on intangible cultural heritage: “Nothing in this Convention may be interpreted as: (…) (b) affecting the rights and obligations of States Parties deriving from any international instrument relating to intellectual property rights or to the use of biological and ecological resources to which they are parties” (Art. 3, sub-para. b). See Kono 2009.

  79. 79.

    UNESCO 2010, p. 21.

  80. 80.

    UNESCO 2010, p. 20.

  81. 81.

    UNESCO 2008, Element No. 13.

  82. 82.

    UNESCO 2010, p. 11.

  83. 83.

    UNESCO 2009, Element No. 35.

  84. 84.

    UNESCO 2008, Element No. 54.

  85. 85.

    UNESCO 2009, p. 6.

  86. 86.

    Van Zanten 2002, p. 6.

  87. 87.

    UNESCO 2009, p. 6.

  88. 88.

    UNESCO 2008, Element No. 81.

  89. 89.

    See Scovazzi 2009, p. 7.

  90. 90.

    According to para. 132 of the Operational Guidelines for the Implementation of the World Heritage Convention, “for a nomination to be considered as ‘complete’, the following requirements are to be met: 1. Identification of the Property. The boundaries of the property being proposed shall be clearly defined, unambiguously distinguishing between the nominated property and any buffer zone (when present) (…). Maps shall be sufficiently detailed to determine precisely which area of land and/or water is nominated. Officially up-to-date published topographic maps of the State Party annotated to show the property boundaries shall be provided if available. A nomination shall be considered ‘incomplete’ if it does not include clearly defined boundaries. (…)”.

  91. 91.

    Van Zanten 2002, p. 4.

  92. 92.

    UNESCO 2008, Element No. 60.

  93. 93.

    UNESCO 2008, Element No. 73.

  94. 94.

    “The human towers are formed by castellers standing on the shoulders of one another in a succession of stages (between six and ten). Each level of the tronc, the name given to the second level upwards, generally comprises two to five heavier built men supporting younger, lighter-weight boys or girls. The pom de dalt—the three uppermost levels of the tower—is composed of young children” (UNESCO 2010, p. 44).

  95. 95.

    As written in the letter, “(…) los ‘Castellers’ son torres humanas que simbolizan edificios o ‘castells’. Esta forma de festividad tradicional en Cataluña sufrió el pasado 23 de julio de 2006 un duro golpe, Mariona Galindo una niña catalana de 12 años falleció por traumatismo cráneo encefálico al caerse de un castell de nueve pisos, en una exhibición durante la fiesta mayor de Mataró. La niña, que participaba en los castillos en la posición de ‘dosos’, en el antepenúltimo piso de la torre, se lesionó la espalda al caer al vacío cuando el grupo estaba a punto de coronar la construcción. No fue la primera victima infantil de esta peligrosa tradición, ya en 1983, otro niño falleció cuando cayó al suelo en Barbera del Vallés”. The letter did not prevent the inscription of the element in the Representative List.

  96. 96.

    Decision 5.COM 6 (UNESCO 2010, p. 10).

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  1. University of Milano-Bicocca, Piazza dell′Ateneo Nuovo 1, 20126, Milan, Italy

    Tullio Scovazzi

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    Gaetano M. Golinelli

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Scovazzi, T. (2015). Intangible Cultural Heritage as Defined in the 2003 UNESCO Convention. In: Golinelli, G. (eds) Cultural Heritage and Value Creation. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-08527-2_4

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