Oshi Palav (pilaf) is a kind of traditional meal of the Tajik people, which is prepared regularly at homes and in celebrations, rituals, gatherings. In dining rooms, national restaurants and tea-houses the Oshi Palav is everyday favourite meal of Tajik people. The Oshi Palav is prepared from carrot, rice, meat (beef, lamb, chicken), oil, onion and water in a big pot. For better flavor, cooks add some peas, saffron, garlic, caraway seeds, pepper and barberry. During the centuries Tajik people created different kinds of this meal, like "Oshi yak ba yak", "Palavi toki", "Oshi devzira", "Bedonapalav" and etc. up to 200 kinds of the element. In traditional Tajik culture there are many customs, rituals, celebrations and social gatherings dedicated specially to the element in which participate a big number of people, for example, the rituals "maslihat-oshi" (osh for advices), "sabzirezakunon" (cutting carrot rite), "oshi nahor" (morning osh), "oshi zanho" (osh for women), "oshi harifona" (osh of friends), "oshi gapkhuri" (osh with talking) and etc. The Oshi Palav in such gatherings and rituals brings people together and has the character of social integration and unity. People of Tajikistan recognize the Oshi Palav as a part of their traditional cultural heritage and call that as "King of meals". There are many stories, legends, folksongs, proverbs and other folklore texts regarding the element, which show the importance of the element among people. Also the element created many kinds of folk dance with plate, imitating the Oshi Palav cooking, which are played by folklore dance groups.

Tajikistan 2016

The traditional Vĩnh Khê Village Wrestling Festival is held annually on the 7th day of the first lunar month to commemorate and pay tribute to two generals - the village's tutelary gods who had great merit in defeating the enemy to save the country and protect the people during the Tran Dynasty. The two tutelary gods are Vũ Giao and Vũ Trong, and also to honor Mr. Phạm Tử Nghi - a famous general from Vinh Niem (An Duong commune) - who passed through Vĩnh village when the festival was held, he asked to participate in the wrestling competition and won a high prize. After his death, the villagers set up a memorial tablet to worship him along with the two Vũ brothers. The Vĩnh Khê Village Wrestling Festival was formed during the Tran Dynasty, 14th century (with a history of nearly 700 years), converging the crystallization of the training of soldiers proficient in martial arts to save the country by the two tutelary gods of the village - who are also the lucky gods that the villagers have built temples to worship since that time. The annual wrestling festival is held for the first 3 days of spring on the birthdays of the two tutelary gods, of which the 7th day of the first lunar month is the main festival day. The Vĩnh Khê Village Wrestling Festival is associated with a wrestling competition, which usually lasts only one day but attracts many wrestlers from famous wrestling schools in Hai Phong and other provinces and cities to compete. After the traditional rituals according to the village's customs, two elders in the village, dressed in formal clothes, will perform the "giao diep" ceremony and symbolically wrestle in the communal house, then the wrestlers will compete on the stands set up in the communal house yard. The competition rules are set by the village, regardless of age, weight class and competition time. This is also a unique feature of the Vĩnh Khê Village Wrestling Festival. Normally, the wrestlers will compete in 3 rounds, each round has a time of 3 minutes to determine the winner. However, in case the 3 rounds end without determining the winner, the wrestlers will enter the extra round without counting the time. The wrestler is considered to have won absolutely when he defeats his opponent in a position where both shoulders and one buttock touch the mat at the same time for 3 seconds. The Vĩnh Khê Village Wrestling Festival demonstrates the martial spirit, respect, and remembrance of the people's origins. The festival has been deeply rooted in the subconscious of the people, maintained as a tradition, and passed down through many generations. With its unique cultural features, in 2017, the Vĩnh Khê Village Wrestling Festival was recognized as a National Intangible Cultural Heritage.

Đờn ca tài tử is a musical art that has both scholarly and folk roots. It developed in southern Việt Nam in the late nineteenth century. People in southern Việt Nam consider Đờn ca tài tử to be an indispensible spiritual cultural activity and a highly valued part of their cultural heritage. It is performed at numerous events such as festivals, ‘death anniversary' rituals such as the Death Anniversary of the Ancestors held annually on the twelfth day of the eighth lunar month, and celebratory social events like weddings and birthdays. The performers express their feelings by improvising, ornamenting and varying the ‘skeletal melody’ and main rhythmic patterns of these pieces. The audience can join practicing, making comments or creating new song texts. Đờn ca tài tử is played on a variety of different instruments, including the moon-shaped lute, two-stringed fiddle, sixteen-stringed zither, pear-shaped lute, percussion, monochord and bamboo flute. Its repertoire is based on twenty principal songs and seventy-two classical songs.

Viet Nam 2013

National Intangible Cultural Heritage, Republic of Korea The making of tteok, or Korean rice cakes, begins by steaming and pounding rice powder or flours made from other grains. Grain powders can be boiled or grilled to make tteok as well. There is a time-old tradition in Korea of making and sharing a variety of types of rice cakes on occasions that mark important moments in life, such as the 100th day after birth, first birthdays, weddings, funerals, and death anniversaries, as well as on seasonal and national holidays such as Seollal (Lunar New Year), Jeongwol Daeboreum (the fifteenth day of the first lunar month), Dano (the fifteenth day of the fifth lunar month), and Chuseok (the autumn harvest celebration). Rice cakes are one of the fundamental offerings at traditional rites held at community, familial, or individual levels. Contemporary Koreans still celebrate important events such as the opening of a business or a move to a new house with rice cakes, actively transmitting this long-standing practice of tteok making and sharing. Tteok making and sharing remains an important part of Korean culture. Tteok serve as a medium for promoting solidarity among community members and symbolize sharing and consideration for others. The rice cakes used for particular ceremonies carry unique cultural meanings. It is estimated that the rice cake-making tradition in Korea dates back to ancient times, given that there are Bronze and Iron Age archaeological sites that have produced tteok steamers. Various documents from the Three Kingdoms and Goryeo Dynasty periods detail the rice cake-making practices of the era. During the Joseon Dynasty, the grains and cooking methods involved in tteok making diversified thanks to advances in agriculture and cooking. The practice of presenting rice cakes on a ritual table became further popularized. Koreans of the Joseon era, particularly aristocrats and members of the royal family, enjoyed a broader range of rice cakes with improved flavors. Local tteok-making traditions reflect the agricultural characteristics of each region. For example, residents of Gangwon-do Province, known for its production of potatoes and corn, have long been making potato and corn tteok. Since the volcanic island of Jeju does not offer a favorable environment for rice cultivation, people on this southernmost island in Korea have focused on the production of other staples such as azuki beans, buckwheat, and millet. There is a variety of tteok from Jeju that use these as the main ingredients. Western foods that entered Korea after the opening of ports in the late 19th century changed traditional Korean culinary practices, including tteok-making traditions. The spread of commercial mills contributed to a separation between the producers of tteok and consumers. Despite these changes over time, the tradition of tteok making and sharing is still actively practiced across the country with wide local variations. The rice cake tradition has been designated as National Intangible Heritage based on the following considerations: It is a time-old tradition that has been transmitted across the Korean Peninsula; its long history is evidenced in written records that date as far back as to the Three Kingdoms period; it holds great potential for research in such disciplines as anthropology and food/nutrition; it has widespread and unique local variations; and it is practiced by a large and vibrant body of communities encompassing professional producers, research centers, and individual families. As rice cake making is practiced and enjoyed by the entire nation, this element has entered the national heritage list without recognizing any specific individuals or groups as official holders.

The Baba and Nyonya communities are well known for their traditional culinary normally based on Chinese cooking but adapted to suit the buds of the Babas who love the Malay hot dishes. Their dishes are served during celebrations such as Chinese New Year, birthdays and weddings. The dishes are like curries, pastes, pang-teh, bak-wan, crab soup, timitik duck where the duck is covered with preserved vegetable, siohi duck where the duck is covered with spices, as well as nyonya pickle, and nasi lemak. The cakes are kuih bakul or tih kuey, and kuey-ku in the shape of a tortoise coloured in red, blue and black.

Hét khoăn means a soul-worshiping ceremony, held to celebrate the birthdays of people 50 years of age or older, who have finished getting married, have children, and have grandchildren. Thereby, celebrating longevity and giving strength to grandparents, parents, and elders in the family. After asking the fortune teller to choose a good day, the homeowner prepares offerings, invites the shaman to perform the ceremony, informs the children and grandchildren, and invites friends to attend the Hét khoăn ceremony. The ceremony took place over two days. The homeowner invites the shaman to pray for peace, fortune, and health for the person celebrating his birthday, and then for the whole family. The Shouting ceremony is held in front of the ancestral altar of the person whose birthday is being worshiped and usually lasts from the previous afternoon, overnight and until the next day. Offerings used in the Hét khoăn ritual include round sticky rice cake, whole boiled chicken, roasted pig (ancestor offering tray, birthday offering tray, harvest offering tray), and rice, gold coins (offering tray for the deceased).. The Hét khoăn ritual includes rituals such as worshiping and asking permission from ancestors; Pray for health, praying for peace; adding more water of life; planting destiny tree; Add food to the bag of destiny rice to extending the relationship with Nam Tào, prolonging the life of the birthday person; praying for health and peace for the homeowner; Provide money and rice to heavenly soldiers, heavenly generals and make offerings to the birthday person. Some items such as rice baskets, bamboo branches, bridges (cloth strips), and lamps are brought by the shaman to the homeowner's ancestral altar. After the worshiping ceremony, brothers and friends come to have a festive meal and congratulate the birthday person. After 7 days (men) or 9 days (women), descendants take rice and eggs to cook porridge for the birthday person to eat to increase strength and longevity.

It is a customary social and cultural practice related with Pyongyang Raengmyon (cold noodle), on various meaningful occasions such as weddings, birthdays and holidays. Pyongyang Raengmyon is served in a brass bowl. The main ingredient is buckwheat regarded as conducive to health. The noodle strips are topped by trimmings of meats, Kimchi, vegetables, fruits and garnishing. Cool meat stock or Tongchimi (watery radish Kimchi) juice is poured around noodle strips to finish the preparation. There are certain knowledge and skills related to Raengmyon's taste and form. A historical record praising noodle in the 12th century reflects its development well before that time. Pyongyang Raengmyon is a special folk food deeply rooted in the life of Pyongyangites expressing long life, happiness, hospitality, convivial and friendly atmosphere. A day before Jongwoldaeborum (one of Korean folk holidays in winter), family members or neighbourhood would together enjoy noodles hoping their life to be as long as the noodle strips. At celebrations like birthdays and weddings, Pyongyangites serve it to elders, relatives, neighbours and friends coming with blessings, and share happy and delightful moments of life in a convivial and friendly atmosphere, fostering respect, intimacy and harmonious unity. Housewives make Raengmyon with great pleasure and devotion. To have some liquor before Raengmyon is a customary practice even set as a phrase "Sonjuhumyon". Expressing the common wish and aspiration of people, today, the element is practised and spreading beyond special occasions and regional differences along with establishment of scores of Pyongyang Raengmyon restaurants like Okryu Restaurant.

North Korea 2022