Browse the Lists of Intangible Cultural Heritage and the Register of good safeguarding practices

The Committee meets annually to evaluate nominations proposed by States Parties to the 2003 Convention and decide whether or not to inscribe those cultural practices and expressions of intangible heritage on the Convention’s Lists.

By clicking on the inscribed elements listed below, you can discover the nominations, photos and videos, together with Committee decisions and evidence of community consent.

You may also experience a conceptual, visual and interactive navigation through ‘Dive into Intangible Cultural Heritage’ interfaces which demonstrate the thematic interconnectedness between all the elements inscribed and their relation to nature or to threats.


The nomination files submitted by the States Parties are published by the Secretariat of the 2003 Convention on its website in compliance with paragraph 54 of the Operational Directives regarding the nomination procedure; moreover, the information included in the nominations is reflected in working documents of the Committee in order to ensure transparency and access to information.


The sole responsibility for the content of each nomination file lies with the submitting States Parties concerned. The designations employed in the texts and documents presented by the submitting States Parties do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Committee nor UNESCO concerning a) the legal status of any country, territory, city or area, b) the legal status of its authorities, c) the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries, or d) references to specific historical events.







More criteria

Results : 90 elements corresponding to 5 regions and 70 countries

2008

Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity

Ahellil of GouraraAlgeria
Al-Sirah Al-Hilaliyyah epicEgypt
Albanian folk iso-polyphonyAlbania
Andean cosmovision of the KallawayaBolivia (Plurinational State of)
Art of Akyns, Kyrgyz epic tellersKyrgyzstan
Arts of the Meddah, public storytellersTürkiye
Azerbaijani MughamAzerbaijan
Baltic song and dance celebrationsEstonia – Latvia – Lithuania
Barkcloth making in UgandaUganda
Baul songsBangladesh
Bistritsa Babi, archaic polyphony, dances and rituals from the Shoplouk regionBulgaria
Căluş ritualRomania
Canto a tenore, Sardinian pastoral songsItaly
Carnival of BarranquillaColombia
Carnival of BincheBelgium
Carnival of OruroBolivia (Plurinational State of)
Chopi TimbilaMozambique
Cocolo dance drama traditionDominican Republic
Cross-crafting and its symbolismLithuania
Cultural space and oral culture of the SemeiskieRussian Federation
Cultural space of Boysun DistrictUzbekistan
Cultural space of Jemaa el-Fna SquareMorocco
Cultural space of Palenque de San BasilioColombia
Cultural space of Sosso-BalaGuinea
Cultural space of the Bedu in Petra and Wadi RumJordan
Cultural space of the Brotherhood of the Holy Spirit of the Congos of Villa MellaDominican Republic
Cultural space of the Yaaral and DegalMali
Darangen epic of the Maranao people of Lake LanaoPhilippines
Duduk and its musicArmenia
El GüegüenseNicaragua
Fujara and its musicSlovakia
Gangneung Danoje festivalRepublic of Korea
Gbofe of Afounkaha, the music of the transverse trumps of the Tagbana communityCôte d'Ivoire
Georgian polyphonic singingGeorgia
Gule WamkuluMalawi – Mozambique – Zambia
Guqin and its musicChina
Hudhud chants of the IfugaoPhilippines
Ifa divination systemNigeria
Indigenous festivity dedicated to the deadMexico
Indonesian KrisIndonesia
Iraqi MaqamIraq
Kabuki theatreJapan
Kankurang, Manding initiatory riteGambia – Senegal
Kihnu cultural spaceEstonia
Kun Qu operaChina
Kutiyattam, Sanskrit theatreIndia
La Tumba FrancesaCuba
Lakalaka, dances and sung speeches of TongaTonga
Language, dance and music of the GarifunaBelize – Guatemala – Honduras – Nicaragua
Mak Yong theatreMalaysia
Makishi masqueradeZambia
Maroon heritage of Moore TownJamaica
Mask dance of the drums from DrametseBhutan
Mbende Jerusarema danceZimbabwe
Mevlevi Sema ceremonyTürkiye
Moussem of Tan-TanMorocco
Mystery play of ElcheSpain
Nha Nhac, Vietnamese court musicViet Nam
Ningyo Johruri Bunraku puppet theatreJapan
Nôgaku theatreJapan
Olonkho, Yakut heroic eposRussian Federation
Opera dei Pupi, Sicilian puppet theatreItaly
Oral and graphic expressions of the WajapiBrazil
Oral heritage and cultural manifestations of the Zápara peopleEcuador – Peru
Oral heritage of GeledeBenin – Nigeria – Togo
Oxherding and oxcart traditions in Costa RicaCosta Rica
Palestinian HikayeState of Palestine
Pansori epic chantRepublic of Korea
Patum of BergaSpain
Polyphonic singing of the Aka Pygmies of Central AfricaCentral African Republic
Processional giants and dragons in Belgium and FranceBelgium – France
Rabinal Achí dance drama traditionGuatemala
Ramlila, the traditional performance of the RamayanaIndia
Royal ancestral ritual in the Jongmyo shrine and its musicRepublic of Korea
Royal ballet of CambodiaCambodia
Samba de Roda of the Recôncavo of BahiaBrazil
Sbek Thom, Khmer shadow theatreCambodia
Shashmaqom musicUzbekistan – Tajikistan
Slovácko Verbuňk, recruit dancesCzechia
Song of Sana’aYemen
Space of gong cultureViet Nam
Taquile and its textile artPeru
Tradition of Vedic chantingIndia
Traditional music of the Morin KhuurMongolia
Urtiin Duu, traditional folk long songChina – Mongolia
Uyghur Muqam of XinjiangChina
Vanuatu sand drawingsVanuatu
Vimbuza healing danceMalawi
Wayang puppet theatreIndonesia
Woodcrafting knowledge of the ZafimaniryMadagascar
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