IJIH

IJIH volumes Vol.

Christmas cribs: traditions of szopka art and craft in Cracow

Author : Samanta Kowalska

Intangible cultural heritage plays an immeasurable
role in the existence, continuation and development of
communities. Intergenerational transmission helps to
strengthen the bond between people. The first legally
binding act of international law concerning this issue is
the UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible
Cultural Heritage of 2003. This article discusses the role
and the significance of Cracovian nativity scenes for
the local community, for whom they represent a ‘living’
tradition. Cracovian nativity scenes, inscribed on the
UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural
Heritage of Humanity in 2018, are the first Polish entry on
the List. The issues discussed include perspectives on the
principle of sustainable development in the cultural sector
and present the challenges of safeguarding intangible
heritage in the context of increasing commercialisation
and globalisation.

IJIH volumes Vol.

Hot Stones and Cool Digitals: Sustainable Contact Zones for Intangible Cultural Heritage in Finland

Author : Samir Bhowmik & Lily Díaz

A combination of community participation and ICT (Information and Communications Technology) could be an effective way of promoting communities as on-site contexts for intangible cultural heritage (ICH). James Clifford’s Museums as Contact Zones (1997) serves as a theoretical and practical basis for this approach. Two community-based museum projects were conducted in Finland between 2012
and 2014: a community-based digitisation project with the Gallen-Kallela Museum in Espoo, and a museum installation in the Hakaniemi Market Square in Helsinki to which members of the local community were the major contributors. Both projects demonstrated that it is possible for a community to foster ICH through participation,
collaboration, borrowing from museum practices and by the application of emerging digital technologies.

IJIH volumes Vol.

Chuskor: Traditional Water Mills of the Dirang Monpas of Arunachal Pradesh

Author : Rashmirekha Sarma

The indigenous knowledge of any community covers the relationship of that community with nature as well as the social, cultural and economic practices of the community. This knowledge is the product of centuries of experience acquired and developed into a spectrum of information, skills and technology. The traditional water mill system is one such skill and technology that was developed by indigenous people interacting with nature. This paper explores the nature of the traditional water mill system, locally known as chuskor, of the Dirang Monpa group of West Kameng district, and its existence and sustainability for the near future. Will this traditional technology disappear with time’s flow or regenerate itself in a new form?

IJIH volumes Vol.

The Fiesta of the Patios: Intangible Cultural Heritage and Tourism in Cordoba, Spain

Author : Tomás López-Guzmán & Francisco Gonzalez Santa Cruz

The inscription of Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) by UNESCO has a broad reflection on the cultural and tourism industry, and it occasionally involves a significant economic development in the area that houses that heritage. In this
paper we present a study of the Fiesta of the Patios (Festival of the Courtyards) in Cordoba, Spain, recognised as ICH by UNESCO, and its relationship to tourism development in the city. The methodology used in this research involved conducting a survey of tourists who attended the Festival in order to know their profile, knowledge thereof, their rating on it and degree of satisfaction. This research shows the significant economic impact of this ICH in the city, mostly
related to cultural heritage and tourism. The study highlights the relationship between culture and tourism, the significant economic impact, the positive opinion of the tourists surveyed with the Fiesta of the Patios and the high level of
satisfaction of the visitors.

IJIH volumes Vol.

Indigenising Intangible Cultural Heritage: Comparison and Interpretation of the Concept of ICH in China

Author : Zhuang Liu

Understanding the concept of intangible cultural heritage is a theme currently attracting a lot of attention in academic circles. Based on the definitions in UNESCO’s Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage and on the Interim Measures for Applying for the National Representative Works of Intangible Cultural Heritage issued by the Chinese State Council, this article attempts to give an in-depth interpretation of the primary meaning and localised transformation of intangible cultural heritage. On the basis of this analysis, the concept of intangible cultural heritage is placed in a Chinese context and a comparison is made with the present academic conceptual framework so as to attempt an understanding of the validity of the concept of intangible cultural heritage in a Chinese context.

IJIH volumes Vol.

An Integrated Methodology for the Conservation of Traditional Craftsmanship in Historic Buildings

Author : Özlem Karakul

The aim of conservation is to sustain both the physical and intangible aspects of historical buildings and to transfer them to the future. Conservation needs to consider the intangible aspects of historic buildings as well as their physical and visible characteristics. It is as important to conserve and document traditional craftsmanship, the know-how, techniques and skills of the builders, as it is to preserve traditional architecture. Traditional craftsmanship is one of the domains of intangible cultural heritage to be safeguarded as defined in the UNESCO 2003 Convention. In the field of architecture, traditional craftsmanship is especially embodied in construction techniques and architectural ornamentation in historic buildings.

As with the physical and architectural features of historic buildings, the means of safeguarding of their intangible aspects needs to be transmitted to the next generation. Historically, the transmission process used to be through the master-apprentice relationship. Nowadays, together with the loss of traditional building methods and drastic changes in building technology, the knowledge and skills of local builders and the related cultural expressions have been virtually forgotten by the present generation. This study therefore proposes an integrated conservation methodology to re-constitute master-apprentice relationships for the sustainability of traditional craftsmanship, considering both the intangible and tangible aspects. Such a methodology includes both the documentation of physical structures and of the related cultural expressions, the practising and transferring of the knowledge of building methods and the skills and techniques of builders to a new generation. This methodology is illustrated by means of a workshop which had been organised in the Fine Arts Faculty in Selçuk University for one week in May 2013 which focused on the intergenerational transmission of the skills of ‘living human treasures’ of traditional architecture.

IJIH volumes Vol.

Why Local Governments Matters in Implementing the UNESCO 2003 Convention: the Case for ICCN

Author : Heekyung Choi & Sumi Nam

Since the adoption of the UNESCO 2003 Convention, the safeguarding of intangible cultural heritage has become more systematic and more active. The Convention stressed the role of local communities, and more local governments around the world now actively participate in safeguarding and promoting their local intangible culture for various purposes. The Inter-City Intangible Cultural Cooperation Network (ICCN) was established in 2008 on the initiative of Gangneung City in the Republic of Korea to help local governments around the world make a concerted effort to safeguard their ICH while developing their cities. There are two notable achievements of the ICCN; firstly, the empowerment of local governments and communities through the ICCN conferences, and secondly, a positive impact on local development through the hosting of the ICCN Festival. Holding ICCN conferences gives local governments a forum where all information can be shared and local challenges discussed. The ICCN conferences empower local communities and government in the safeguarding of local ICH as they not only raise awareness of issues but also set priorities and draw attention and support from the international community and central governments. The ICCN Festivals are key cultural events for celebrating world ICH, and have had a positive effect on the local economic, tourism and socio-cultural sectors of those local governments hosting them. The ICCN Festivals are increasingly significant as they uphold the spirit of the UNESCO Convention - safeguarding and respecting intangible cultural heritage, recognising the importance of ICH, increasing mutual understanding on an international level and realising international cooperation.

IJIH volumes Vol.

The Role of Intellectual Property in Safeguarding Intangible Cultural Heritage in Museums

Author : Caroline Joelle Nwabueze

The current rate of cultural and technological globalization has been recognised as an international threat to the cultural diversity of many nations. The insubstantial nature of intangible cultural heritage (ICH) has made it more vulnerable to the forces of globalisation than other aspects of cultural diversity and could lead to the disappearance of some forms of ICH. Museums have on several occasions committed themselves to the safeguarding of ICH as part of their institutional mandate. However, the integration of ICH into museum activities raises numerous intellectual property (IP) concerns in relation to the use and ownership of ICH resources. The present article first reviews the integration of ICH in museums as suggested by the 2012 International Conference on Museums and ICH. Second, it examines the related risks of misuse and incompatibility associated with ICH exposure in museums in the field of IP rights. Finally, the article suggests some effective IP mechanisms that could ensure that museums act ethically when dealing with ICH issues, and do respect ICH holders’ rights.

IJIH volumes Vol.

Contemporary Falconry in Altai-Kazakh in Western Mongolia

Author : Takuya Soma

A classical form of ‘eagle falconry’ is still practiced in the Altai-Kazakh community of Bayan-Ölgii (Баян-Өлгий) Prefecture in western Mongolia. Their form of falconry is unique in that they use female golden eagles, they hunt on horseback and foxes are the main prey. This makes it different from any other type of falconry in Asia or Europe and for this reason it is regarded as a form of intangible cultural heritage. However, little is known about the specific cultural context in which this activity is practiced and no serious scientific research has hitherto been conducted into it. The author carried out anthropological research in the Altai-Kazakh community from July 2011 to January 2012 with financial support from the Takanashi Foundation for Arts and Archaeology. This research was based on close observation of the hunters, interviews, and the author’s own experience of taming a golden eagle at Sagsai (Сагсаи) Village. The findings support the view that this type of falconry is indeed a unique form of intangible cultural heritage. In addition, the fact that the practice of hunting foxes with eagles has declined in recent years, suggests that we should now take action to safeguard the practice and preserve it for the future. This paper reports the preliminary results of research undertaken in the summer of 2011.

IJIH volumes Vol.

The Documentation of Endangered Altaic Languages and the Creation of a Digital Archive to safeguard linguistic diversity

Author : Woonho Choi & Hyun-Jo You & Juwon Kim

Language is a vehicle of intangible heritage and transmits many social and cultural concepts from generation to generation. Half of the world's languages, including most of the Altaic languages, are now in danger of extinction. The loss of a language means the loss of cultural and intellectual diversity. This paper describes a linguistic project which aims to preserve the endangered Altaic languages. The ASK REAL (Altaic Society of Korea, Researches on Endangered Altaic Languages) team has gathered linguistic resources from thirty-eight Altaic languages and plans to build an extensive digital archive of all fifty-five of them. Through field research in minority language communities spread over a vast area of Eurasia, we acquired nearly three thousand lexical items of multimedia data, a few hundred grammatical constructions and another few hundred examples of daily conversation for each language. The data is converted into a standard digital format and managed in a database. A small part of the collection is currently available to the public via an easily accessible web interface with multilingual annotations for international users.

IJIH volumes Vol.

Exhibiting Arirang

Author : Kunwook Lee (Vanya)

Arirang is best known as a type of Korean folk song. But it is more than just a simple folk song. It is a kind of cultural phenomenon that embodies people’s lives and everyday activities. The National Folk Museum of Korea recently curated a special exhibition about Arirang to reconsider the meaning of this song which so many Koreans take for granted. In the exhibition we presented both historical materials and everyday products related to Arirang, and we also introduced sound resources. These were not only recordings of the songs performed by professional singers, but also recordings of Arirang songs sung by ordinary people, documented region by region. We collected personal stories and accounts of what Arirang means, and these too were edited into audio-visual forms to be exhibited. Certain regional groups that co-operated in collecting materials for the exhibition were invited to give performances themselves. The performances by people who put their own experiences into the Arirang lyrics were especially popular with audiences. The exhibition was important for the future in that we gained new experience in utilising tangible and intangible materials possessed by communities which are transmitting a certain kind of intangible heritage.

IJIH volumes Vol.

Heritage and Creative Enterprise

Author : Ananya Bhattacharya

Culture is the expression of a society's aesthetic, moral and spiritual values. It transmits the heritage of the past and creates the heritage of the future. Although cultures themselves are dynamic, vibrant and evolving, they are fragile in the face of political, social and economic changes. Oral traditions and performing arts, which live on in the memory and daily life of rural and indigenous people are being obliterated by changes in lifestyle due to factors like industrialisation, globalisation, urbanisation and so on.

IJIH volumes Vol.

Seeking tangible benefits from linking culture, developemnt and intellectul property

Author : Wend B. Wendland

Culture is a tool for development as well as part of the process of development. Taking this proposition as its starting point, WIPO’s Creative Heritage Project provides practical training to local communities and museums and archives in developing countries on recording, digitizing and disseminating their creative cultural expressions and in managing IP issues.
In partnership with the American Folklife Center/Library of Congress and the Center for Documentary Studies at Duke University, WIPO ran a pilot training programme for the Maasai community of Laikipia, Kenya and the National Museums of Kenya in September 2008. The intensive, hands-on curriculum included project planning, research ethics, photography, sound and audio-visual recording techniques, digital archiving methods and database and website development. In cooperation with the US Copyright Office, WIPO staff provided the IP component of the training. WIPO will purchase a basic kit of recording equipment and knowledge management software for the community, help the community and museum to develop their own IP protocols, continue to foster a mutually beneficial working relationship between the community and the museum and further develop links established between the community, the museum and the national IP offices in Kenya. Lying at the interface between the safeguarding of living heritage and its legal protection, the programme seeks to advance a range of valuable policy goals - promoting cultural diversity, fostering economic development, using culture as a communications tool in development, bridging the ‘digital divide’, promoting responsible tourism and creating local cultural content.
Early results from evaluation of the pilot are encouraging, and WIPO and its partners have received several requests from other communities and museums and archives to participate in such a programme. However, something so ambitious presents many challenges and it remains an unpredictable cultural and legal experiment. This article will describe how and why the programme was conceived, its various objectives, the challenges, expected results and lessons learned so far.

IJIH volumes Vol.

Drwawing-up a nation-wide inventory of intangible heritage in Portugal

Author : Paulo Ferreira da Costa

The Institute for Museums and Conservation is the body of the Ministry of Culture which is responsible for promoting the study, documentation, recording and safeguarding of Portuguese intangible heritage by developing standards, guidelines and information systems for inventorying and providing public access to IH. The drawing up of the National Inventory of Intangible Heritage is a task to which the Institute of Museums and Conservation is presently committed according to both its mission statement and to the legal framework soon to be implemented under Portuguese Heritage Law. The text discusses the main legislative, institutional and scientific issues that must be taken into consideration in order to implement this inventory and that must be considered as opportunities and/or strengths in the implementation of the National Inventory of IH and, simultaneously, as key factors for the success of the Portuguese administration’s strategy for the safeguarding of IH.

IJIH volumes Vol.

Investigating the impact of World Heritage site tourism on the intangible heritage of a community: Tsodilo Hills World Hertage site, Botswana

Author : Susan Keitumetse & Olivia Nthoi

In places that are not World Heritage sites, communities produce material culture continuously as a form of interaction between themselves and their environments. In the Okavango Delta region, crafts are a good example of such material culture. Today, the concept of ‘World Heritage’ is led by socio-economic needs – through tourism - rather than socio-cultural interactions. In this process, the indigenous systems of knowledge that create intangible heritage are modified, usually in a negative way, and this affects the social networks that sustain the practices of craft production. The results of research projects conducted in June-August 2003 and June-July 2007 are used to illuminate this discussion. The paper concludes that while in the developing world, giving a site World Heritage status is likely to encourage tourism, the impact on the resident community’s intangible heritage must be considered and safeguarded.

IJIH volumes Vol.

The role of cultural and heritage education at Bakoni Malapa Open Air Museum: demonstrations of cultural practices and craftwork techniques

Author : Dan Musinguzi & Israel Kibirige

Open air museums are of vital importance in preserving and safeguarding culture and intangible heritage. This paper explores how Bakoni Malapa Open Air Museum preserves the culture of the Bakoni people by showcasing their cultural heritage and educating visitors about it. Although various methods are used to preserve the culture of the Bakoni people, this paper’s analyses are based on just two of the museum’s main activities in connection with intangible heritage – putting on demonstrations of traditional cultural practices and demonstrating craft techniques. We also discuss what other cultures around the globe can learn from the way Bakoni cultural heritage is presented at Bakoni Malapa.

IJIH volumes Vol.

Safeguarding Intangible Cultural Heritage in the Pacific: a Brief Report on Recent Progress at the Australian Museum

Author : Paul Monaghan & Leslie Christidis

This paper reports on an intangible cultural heritage forum held at the Australian Museum, Sydney, in 2007. Forum participants, including representatives from Fiji, Guam, New Zealand, Norfolk Island, Palau, Samoa, Tonga, Vanuatu, and Yap as well as members of Sydney’s heritage community, contributed to a debate on the question of what the UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage 2003 means in practical terms to Pacific countries and how the Australian Museum might work in partnership with them in their safeguarding efforts. Importantly, the forum allowed the interests of traditional knowledge holders to be considered and for a number of concerns to be noted. These concerns are also of significance for those working more broadly in the field of intangible cultural heritage and are reported below.

IJIH volumes Vol.

A Major Advance towards a Holistic Approach to Heritage Conservation: the 2003 Intangible Heritage Convention

Author : Mounir Bouchenaki

By adopting the Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage, the October 2003 General Conference of UNESCO of 190 Member States, signaled a historic turning point in the comprehension of the concept and definition of heritage within contemporary societies, and of related actions for its safeguarding and preservation.
Only two decades following the adoption of the World Heritage Convention in 1972 were needed to progress to a new stage in the analysis of heritage on an international scale. For some, this was an indication of the extreme mobility of ideas; for others it restored the cultural balance or simply reflected the rapid acceleration of ideas through time, among the actors of the international community of heritage. However, it really represented the achievement of an idea born in 1946 with the coming into being of UNESCO itself: that of the universal nature of cultures.

IJIH volumes Vol.

Project Report:the National 'Human Living Treasures' Programme of the Astra Museum, Sibiu, Romania

Author : Corneliu Ioan Bucur

IJIH volumes Vol.

2007: the Year of Jeju Folklore Project-Reviving the Cultural Heritage of Nature's Paradise

Author : Minho Han

In 2006, the National Folk Museum of Korea (NFMK) initiated the project The Year of Local Folklore. The project is to be carried out by both NFMK and local governments. Extending over 10 years, the project is scheduled to cover the whole nation, focusing on specific regions, one by one, each for two years. For the first year, intensive research will conducted on the folklore of the chosen region. In the second year, exhibitions, performances, and academic conferences, based on the results of the first year’s research, will be held. In short, the projects will lay the foundations on which local governments and residents will further promote their culture.
Jeju Island was selected as the project’s first target because its folklore has been conserved relatively well due to the island’s separation from the mainland, but, because of rapid development in recent years, it is now at risk of extinction.

IJIH volumes Vol.

Conference Report: Tangible-Intangible Cultural Heritage: A Sustainable Dichotomy? the 7th Annual Cambridge Heritage Seminar

Author : Charlotte Andrews & Dacia Viejo-Rose & Britt Baillie & Benjamin Morris

IJIH volumes Vol.

Symposium Report: Only in America? Ethnographic Archives, Communities of Orinin and Intangible Cultural Heritage

Author : Martin Skrydstrup

IJIH volumes Vol.

Project Report: Born in Europe: an International Programme on Representing Migrant Experiences in European Museums

Author : Udo Gößwald

IJIH

Short Papers