Kazakh experts join Asian project on intangible cultural heritage
The Secretariat of the National Commission for UNESCO and ICESCO sent a welcoming address to the organizers and participants of the online platform. The Kazakh side noted that the collective memory of the peoples of the world is vital for the preservation of cultural identity, continuity between the past and the future. Cultural heritage forms the main part of the national memory and reflects the cultural and ethnic diversity of the nation.
The ichlinks.com platform contains information about more than a thousand elements of the intangible cultural heritage (ICH) and provides an opportunity for additional study of books, video and audio materials, and expert information published by the largest research institutes in the field of preserving the intangible cultural heritage of humanity. In addition, the digital platform publishes updated information about upcoming and past conferences, seminars and events.
The project is implemented with the financial support of the government of the Republic of Korea and the UNESCO Center for the Exchange of Information on Intangible Cultural Heritage in the Asia-Pacific Region (ICHCAP).
Kazakhstan, represented by the National Committee for ICH, was among the first partner organizations to join the platform, along with the Malaysian Association of Art and Cultural Workers (MACPA), the Mongolian National Center for Cultural Heritage (NCCH), the Institute of Culture and Art Research of Vietnam (VICAS), and the Republican Training and Methodological Center for Organizing the Activities of Cultural Institutions in Uzbekistan.
Today, UNESCO has inscribed 11 elements of Kazakhstan’s ICH into the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, including the spring festive rites of horse breeders, the art of playing dombra kui, the Kazakh kuresi (wrestling), and the game of asyk. The list also includes heritage elements common to Turkic, Central Asian and other peoples: falconry, celebration of Nauryz, heritage of Korkyt Ata, improvisational performing art of aitys, the intellectual board game of togyzkumalak, traditional knowledge and skills of making yurts, flatbread (katyrma) making and sharing culture.
The digitalization of cultural heritage and the provision of broad access to it by individuals, research institutions and tourism associations contributes to the preservation of cultural identity, the formation of national memory and the dissemination of knowledge about the cultural and ethnic diversity of our country.
Kazakhstan joined the UNESCO Convention on the Protection of the Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2011. The National List of Intangible Cultural Heritage, maintained by the Ministry of Culture and Sports, has more than 50 elements and is constantly updated.
The National Committee for the Protection of Intangible Cultural Heritage was established under the National Commission for UNESCO and ISESCO in 2012. Murat Auezov became the first Chairman of the Committee, which is currently chaired by Myrzatai Zholdasbekov. According to the regulations of the National Commission of the Republic of Kazakhstan for UNESCO and ISESCO, its working body is the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan.