Cultural heritage is an integral part of human life. It is a rich source of information and knowledge.
It can be tangible, like an object or location, or intangible, such as a tradition or belief. It can also be a blend of both.
It is important to recognize our cultural heritage and be proud of it. However, we should also be brave enough to let go of traditions or beliefs that are harmful or false.
Defining Cultural Heritage
Cultural heritage encompasses the physical and intangible attributes of a society that are considered to be important. It can consist of art, literature, music, archaeological and historical artifacts, buildings and historic sites, as well as social customs, traditions and practices that characterize the distinctiveness of a culture.
What’s more, heritage is constantly redefined – what one generation considers to be a part of its cultural identity may not be recognized by the next. For this reason, it’s crucial that a community takes ownership of its own cultural heritage if it wishes to preserve it.
The protection of cultural heritage aims to prevent damage to monuments, sites and objects through natural disasters, illicit trafficking, and terrorist attacks. It also aims to promote global awareness of cultural heritage and foster international cooperation in its preservation. Sustainable cultural heritage involves communities becoming stewards of their own monuments, languages, and traditions, while allowing other people to experience it as well.
Intangible Cultural Heritage
Intangible cultural heritage is the traditions and living expressions that are part of a culture and transmitted from generation to generation. It’s about practices and representations of culture that are “traditional, contemporary and living at the same time” (UNESCO, 2003).
UNESCO’s mission involves the preservation of this diverse tapestry of human cultures, with a special emphasis on intangible cultural heritage. In addition to preserving elements of ICH, they also provide support for communities through funding and training programs.
ICH is community-based, meaning that it can only be considered cultural heritage when recognized by the communities, groups or individuals who create, maintain and transmit it. This includes determining whether an element should be included in a national inventory, and what safeguarding measures are required. Examples of this include identifying the element, cataloging it, and developing educational materials for its promotion and transmission. These are essential for ensuring that ICH is maintained in the future, without becoming extinct or disappearing.
Physical Cultural Heritage
The etymological roots of the term ‘heritage’ suggest that it relates to inheritance from the past, or more generally, to inherited values and traditions. This is reflected in the way that heritage is a dynamic entity which changes over time. For instance, what a group or individual considers to be cultural heritage may change as a result of changes in political systems, economic structures, war and conflict or social values.
Physical cultural heritage refers to movable or immovable objects, sites, buildings and structures, groups of structures and natural features and landscapes that have archaeological, paleontological, historical, architectural, artistic, religious or aesthetic significance. These can be located in any setting and environment, above or below ground. In order to protect physical cultural heritage, it is important that it be managed properly through the identification and registration processes, conservation and documentation. Any project that envisages the integration and/or utilization of physical cultural heritage must ensure that it involves meaningful consultation with affected communities.
Cultural Landscapes
Cultural landscapes are complex, large-scale locations that represent a long and intimate relationship between humans and the natural environment. Their preservation preserves a legacy of human creativity, social development, and spiritual vitality.
They can be designed, like the towns of Djenne in Mali, or natural, such as the migration corridors of the Grand Canyon. They may be a historic district or site within the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) or a cultural resource in the State of Colorado.
The NRHP and other heritage conservation agencies often use the term “cultural landscape” to describe the relationship between a historic property and the community for which it was significant. The concept can also be used to express indigenous worldviews, whose broad interconnections transcend categories of heritage such as ruins and sites. This approach is a powerful tool for communities that seek to reclaim their traditional ties with their homelands. It can challenge dominant disciplinary approaches that focus on individual artifacts and narrowly define their significance.