Intangible heritage: stages of term and phenomenon

In this article we are talking about the emergence of the term and concept of "intangible culturalheritage". As you know, intangible cultural heritage is a link between the past and the future, representing a valuable asset of variouscommunities, groups and individuals. In connection with the processes of globalization, levelling and unifying the cultural identity ofpeoples, the problem of preserving intangible cultural heritage evolved. Intangible cultural heritage, according to the "InternationalConvention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage", adopted in 2003 by the General Conference of UNESCO, includesthe practices, representations, expressions, knowledge and skills, as well as related tools, objects, artefacts and cultural spaces thatcommunities, groups and, in some cases, individuals recognize as part of their cultural heritage. This intangible cultural heritage, passedfrom generation to generation, is constantly recreated by communities and groups depending on their environment, their interaction withnature and their history, and provides them with a sense of identity and continuity, thus promoting respect for cultural diversity andhuman creativity. In this regard, this study proposes to consider the main stages of the concept and the phenomenon of "intangiblecultural heritage" in the foreign and Russian practice and to identify the main trends of its preservation. Thus, the original concept of"intangible heritage" stands out from the general concept of conservation of the World Heritage and Cultural Diversity and getsrelevance in light of the preservation of traditional folk culture. It is also worth noting that this term is integrative in nature. Before itsadoption, issues were developed to preserve its separate parts: folklore, language, oral traditions, etc. The final step in the formation ofsafeguarding of the intangible cultural heritage was the adoption of the Convention "On Protection of Intangible Cultural Heritage"(2003). Russia has not ratified this Convention. However, measures to preserve intangible cultural heritage are undertaken. Among thelarge-scale programs of this kind are: the federal program "Culture of Russia" and the concept of the federal target program "IntangibleCultural Heritage of the Russian Federation for 2009-2015". In the context of the changes the functions of the museum have expanded.It became a translator and preserver of not only material but also intangible heritage. In general, it should be noted that the idea ofsafeguarding the intangible cultural heritage is a promising developing field, the practical and the theoretical bases of which wereadopted by the regulations (conventions, laws, declarations), as well as public and museum work. The main trends in the practice ofpreservation of intangible heritage are its monitoring, accounting, security and updating.

Keywords

Authors

References