As the Italian Ministry of Culture calls for nativity scenes to be recognised on Unesco’s list of ‘intangible cultural heritage’, The Local looks at the other Italian customs and traditions that have made the list.
The Italian Ministry of Culture has submitted a new request for Italy’s iconic nativity scenes (presepe), in addition to two other traditions, to be included on Unesco’s list of intangible cultural heritage.
These applications follow last autumn’s successful bid for recognition of Italian cuisine by the UN agency.
While Unesco recognises historic monuments and natural locations via the World Heritage List, the intangible heritage list seeks to preserve cultural practices.
READ MORE: Seven ‘secret’ UNESCO World Heritage sites in Italy you need to visit
The list of intangible heritage – such as performing arts, crafts and knowledge – was created in 2003 mainly to raise awareness, although Unesco also sometimes offers financial or technical support to countries struggling to protect their traditions.
To be eligible, the practice must be ‘traditional, contemporary and living at the same time’, meaning it is not just a thing of the past. It must also be inclusive (a part of culture that might be passed down by generations, or shared from one village to another), as well as representative of the community.
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In addition to presepe-making, Italy is also petitioning for the Valpolicella grape-drying ritual (appassimento) and Alpine food heritage to receive Unesco recognition.
If successful, the three traditions would add to the existing 21 Italian entries on the internationally acclaimed list.
Some are very recognisable, such as opera singing and truffle hunting.
Others on the list are more obscure, such as ‘canto a tenore’ – Sardinian pastoral songs – and traditional violin craftsmanship unique to Cremona, in Lombardy.
There’s also the medieval Celestian forgiveness celebration – a tradition at the church of Santa Maria di Collemaggio in L’Aquila held uninterrupted for nearly 600 years.
Every August, the church’s Holy Door (Porta Santa) is opened, symbolizing Pope Celestine V’s pardoning of sins.
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Full list of intangible Italian heritage
Art of Neapolitan ‘Pizzaiuolo’
Traditional violin craftsmanship in Cremona
Opera dei Pupi, Sicilian puppet theatre
Canto a tenore, Sardinian pastoral songs
Bell ringing
Opera singing
Tocatì street games festival
Italian cooking, ‘cucina italiana’
Truffle hunting and extraction
Dry stone construction
Transhumance, the seasonal droving of livestock
Traditional irrigation
Lipizzan horse breeding traditions
Falconry
Music art of horn playing
The art of glass beads
Alpinism
Celebrations of big shoulder-borne processional structures
Celestinian forgiveness celebration
Mediterranean diet
Traditional agricultural practice of cultivating the ‘vite ad alberello’