Since it began publication, The UNESCO Courier has devoted many articles and issues to the intangible heritage. Here is a brief trip down memory lane.

« The rebirth of Kunqu opera », November 2005

This traditional Chinese art, once threatened with extinction, is now the object of renewed interest. Read online.

“Jongo’s rebirth”, December 2004

Thanks to certain communities, this blend of song, dance and magic, brought by slaves from Angola and the Congo, is again in the spotlight in Brazil. Read online.

“Preserving the magic”, September 2001

Defining the intangible cultural heritage is far from simple, as UNESCO’s efforts to safeguard endangered masterpieces go to show. Read online.

“A prince embroiderer without a kingdom”, July 2001

Among the last of a dying breed of gold embroiderers from Laos, Tiao Somsanith is trying to save this vanishing art without resorting to commercialism. Read online.

“Jemâa-el-Fna’s thousand and one nights”, December 2000

The oral traditions of Marrakesh’s famous square are unique in the world for their richness and variety. Read online.

“The past is not just made of stone”, December 2000

The world’s heritage is not just monuments and natural wonders–the intangible ideas and beliefs that make up our collective memory also have their rightful place. Read online.

And a selection of issues featuring examples of oral and intangible heritage:

“Great epics – Heroic tales of man and superman”, September 1989

Whether composed by unknown poets, or transmitted orally and reshaped from century to century, epics relate to the birth of a culture, an empire, or indeed the universe, maintained in the national memory of one generation to the next. The epic has thus survived the vicissitudes of history.

“Theatre of the world”, April 1983

From African rituals to the kabuki of Japan, world theatre covers an immense canvas, the “concentrated expression” of a culture. It draws on popular myths and customs, historic ways of life and experiences, and assimilates all forms of art, human expression and communication.

“Music of the centuries”, June 1973

Music is associated with life itself and with human society. Even in the early stages of every culture, sung recitation is a vehicle for historical narrative and the teaching of philosophical and moral concepts. This issue examines the place of traditional music in the world of today.