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ICH Elements 18
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Dried fruits making
The production of dried fruits is one of the effective ways to solve the problem of seasonality without loss. Fruits and vegetables cultivated in Uzbekistan are distinctive with their taste. In particular, the degree of sugar is very high in them, which maintains sweetness of dried fruits. For this reason Uzbekistan is famous for its dried fruits. Traditional way of drying fruits (drying in an open air) is widespread. Methods of drainage vary with the type of fruit. Sometimes, the same type of fruit is dried in different ways. For example there are such ways of raisin making (drainage of grapes) as: avlon, bedona, garmiyon, sabza, soyaki and others. In simple way of making raisin, grape is laid on the plastered square, on bordon or buyra. In this method, the grape dries duing 20–30 days. Grapes, dipped to an acid solution, dry in 7–10 days, in specially cooled rooms, it takes 4–8 weeks to dry the grape.
Uzbekistan -
Traditional music of the Tsuur
Mongol Tsuur is a blending of sounds created simultaneously by both the musical instrument and the human throat. Tsuur has an inseparable connection to the Uriankhai Mongolians of the Altai Region, and remains an integral part of their daily life. Its origins lie in an ancient practice of worshipping nature and its guardian spirits by emulating natural sounds. Tsuur is a vertical pipe-shaped wooden wind instrument with three fingerholes. Simultaneously touching the mouthpiece of the pipe with one’s front teeth and applying one’s throat produces a unique timbre comprising a clear and gentle whistling sound and a drone. Tsuur is traditionally played to ensure success for hunts, for benign weather, as a benediction for safe journeys or for weddings and other festivities. The music reflects one’s inner feelings when travelling alone, connects a human to nature, and serves as a performing art.
Mongolia 2009 -
Thai Agricultural system knowledge
Thai society in its way of life as well as in the commodities of its trade has been an agricultural one since in the ancient times. As a consequence of centuries of practice, farmers and orchardists have developed localized forms of wisdom and know-how on the cultivation of a variety of crops. A crucial element of this know-how lies in the mastery of irrigation methods used to maximize the productivity of the fields and orchards. The management of the water supplied by the Chaophraya river and the strong seasonal rainfalls was crucial to convert the plentiful sunlight provided by the tropical climate into rich harvests. Among the techniques that the farmers and orchardists developed, the most important way in which the flow of the Chaophraya’s nutrient-rich water to the fields was regulated was by the digging of irrigation ditches. The traditional ditch that was used most widely had its origin in southern China, from where significant numbers of Chinese immigrated to Siam during the Ayutthaya period. This technique can be used both as a way to prepare soil for cultivation and to sustainably regulate water supply to the plants. In the particular case of Bangkok, with its proximity to the sea, it is also a water management process through which the gardener can maintain the balance between fresh water, salt water and brackish water. The gardener will work to regulate the proportions of these three sources of water within their garden by purposefully designing the ditch channels without harming their crops. The wisdom behind the raised garden with a ditch and dike system consists of many small connecting canals dug by the farmers within the turf soil to fertilize the trees. The trees are planted in an elevated plot to prevent flooding during the rainy season. This knowledge of making high-ridge agricultural plots where the soil is dug in lanes is called “Oak Rong” and “Thong Rong”. Besides, the gardens’ water systems were connected to rivers and streams of the public water system.
Thailand -
The Coconut Shell Grating Dance
The Coconut Shell Grating Dance is a created dance originating from the state of Kedah, and suitable to be performed by various layers and age level of the society. This dance is normally performed by males and females in groups by using traditional coconut grater and coconut shell, and patterned in dance form based on the traditional activity of grating coconut. The specialty and uniqueness of this dance lie on the sound of the knocking of the coconut grater as well as the coconut shell itself.
Malaysia -
Dassain: A Festival of Southern Bhutanese
Dassain symbolizes the victory of good/virtue prevailing over evil/falsity. It is the most important festival in Nepal. Since most of the Lotshampas (Southern Bhutanese) originated from Nepal, the southern Bhutanese celebrate it every year in September or in beginning days of October. The date of celebration varies every year which marked as per the Hindu calendar. According to Hindu Mythology, Dassain festival has been celebrated since Lord Ram and Goddess Durga had gotten the victory over Ravan and Mahisharura, the demons who had created terror in the Devaloka (the world where God reside.) consequently, the festival is a way of acknowledging triumph over an evil spirit. Dassain is popularly a celebration within families lasting for 15 days starting from bright lunar fortnight to full moon (Hindu calendar) The days are divided for the activities starting from cleaning, washing to shopping. However, in Bhutan the official declaration of holiday is one day (day of Tika.) The community people explain that the significance of celebrating the festival with families is to honour the unity of Lord Ram’s Monkey army who helped him build the stone bridge to connect Lanka where Sita has been confined. The most memorable of all days of Dassain is the Vijaya Dashami or the Day of Victory. On this day, the families gather to put tika (rice mixed with curd) beginning with the eldest person on the youngest. The person who puts tika also has to give money as a symbol of blessing. In the community level, the Gup, head of the community will be invited to receive the Raja Tika. However, the nature of celebration of Dassain then and now has taken a transformation; earlier all the people of the community used to come together for the grand festive celebration, but nowadays due to the modernization and employment opportunities, many of the family members have migrated to the urban cities or travelled aboard, leaving the celebration only for members present during the occasion.
Bhutan -
Hakka rice dumplings
“Hakka” means “guest people” in Chinese. A group of Hakka settled in Mui Tsz Lam, a village in North-East New Territories in Hong Kong, in the 17th Century during the Qing Dynasty. The Hakka are known for being hardworking and enduring. Since they farmed on less fertile terraces, their food grown is modest and practical. This culture is also reflected in festive foods like rice dumplings for the Tuen Ng Festival, also known as the Dragon Boat Festival. Making and eating rice dumplings is an essential part of the Tuen Ng Festival. The festival is associated the patriotic poet and politician Qu Yuan in the 3rd Century BC, who committed suicide at the river. After his death, people made rice dumplings and threw them into the river and played drums on the dragon boat, hoping that the fish would not eat Qu Yuan’s body. At present times, people still make rice dumplings every Tuen Ng festival as a tradition, with different recipes passed on in different areas. The Hakka recipe is modest and simple, which utilizes almost all home grown produce, which includes bamboo leaves, sticky rice, peanuts, shallots, and dried shrimp. After many years of desolation since the 1970s, Mui Tsz Lam villagers come back to their home village to make rice dumplings together for the first time.
China -
The Art of Bài Chòi
Bài Chòi is a typical cultural activity of people in the South Central region in general, and in Phu Yen in particular, taking place during holidays. The Bài Chòi Festival usually takes place from the first day of the New Year to the day the Ritual Pole is taken down, which is the seventh day of Tet. At the beginning of the festival, elders and officials in the village hold a ceremony to worship the God of agriculture, the Tutelary God, and Earth gods, etc., Bài Chòi Festival consists of 9, 11, or 13 high bamboo huts with stairs leading up for players to sit. Each hut has a bamboo tube to hold cards and a punch to type out announcements. There are many forms of building huts. First, there are nine huts constructed in the shape of an octagon, or eight trigrams. Second, construct the eleven huts in accordance with the cans. Third, construct one of the 13 huts based on the animal of the zodiac. The middle hut is reserved for elders and dignitaries; The remaining huts are chosen by the players. The bamboo stall is set up in the middle, opposite the middle hut, for the orchestra of the elders. On the stall, there is a tray inlaid with conch containing wine, betel, areca nut, and money to bring to offer whenever a hut wins. A card game will have the participation of the following characters: A signer is a person who can play a game of cards well, understands the rules, can dance and sing well, and has an improvisational flair. An individual who operates the request of the signal is known as a sign operator. The card player call the card's leg. Start, a sign distributor distributes cards to the huts; shouts the signal to shake the tube, draw a card, and shouts a sentence for the card players to guess; sign operator receives cards; The card players strike the bell; run the check mark and hand over the card to the player that guessed correctly; When a hut has three cards, the signal is given to beat the war drum and the adoring drum, and the orchestra pours in congratulations; Call to the winning hut to collect the main card and three small cards for presentation; Carrying a tray of prize money, betel and areca nuts, wine and prize flags and giving them to the player in the winning hut; shouted congratulatory songs; The signal operator collects all the cards in the remaining huts to prepare for the next play. If "Hiệu" calls a card that matches the card in the tube, the player knocks 3 times. When he reaches the game, meaning there are no cards in the tube, he knocks for a long time. The deck of playing cards includes 27 or 33 spleen cards and 9 or 11 small bamboo cards, painted or printed with simple names, such as Nhứt Nọc, Nhì Nghèo, Tam Quăng, Tứ Cẳng, Ba Gà, Bảy Thưa, etc., The deck is divided into 3 sections: the "văn" section, the "vạn" section, and the book section. Mr. "Hiệu" usually controls the game like an actor, has a strong voice, and can read or improvise witty sentences to respond to the name of the card being called. In addition to entertainment, Thai verses also have the effect of educating people about morality, personality, love for the homeland, love for couples, etc.
Viet Nam 2017 -
Kate Festival of the Cham
The Kate Festival of the Cham people is the most important festival of the Cham community in Ninh Thuan, taking place in the 7th month of the Cham calendar every year (around October of the Gregorian calendar). This festival is to commemorate gods such as Po Klaung Garai, Po Rame... and ancestors. The Kate Festival of the Cham people in Ninh Thuan province usually takes place in a large space at the temples and towers: Pô Klong Garai Tower (Do Vinh ward, Phan Rang - Thap Cham city), Pô Rômê Tower (Hau Sanh village, Phuoc Huu commune, Ninh Phuoc district) and Po Inư Nưgar Temple (Huu Duc village, Phuoc Huu commune, Ninh Phuoc district), in order from the temple, tower to the villages and finally to the family, creating a rich and diverse Cham festival flow. The Kate Festival consists of two parts: the ceremony and the festival. The ceremony includes rituals such as: The ritual of receiving clothes from the youngest Raglai brother down from the mountain at 7am; Opening the tower door to invite the gods to attend and enjoy the offerings; The ceremony of bathing the statue of the god; The ceremony of dressing the statue of the god Anguei Khan Aw Kapo; The most important Adaoh Tâm ceremony, starting from 9am - 11am; Kate festival at the temple, tower: The beginning of the Kate festival in Ninh Thuan is the worship ceremony at the temple tower directed by the high priest. The celebrant will play the Kanhi and sing a hymn, offering the gods. After that, the high priest will preside over the statue bathing ceremony performed by some Brahmin priests. The offerings in the Kate festival in Ninh Thuan at the temple tower include: 3 chickens, 1 big goat, 3 loaves of rice cakes, 1 tray of rice with sesame salt, 5 trays of rice with goat meat and soup with fresh fruit. In addition, the offerings also include eggs, wine, sticky rice, betel and areca nuts... After completing the above rituals, people will return to the village and continue other rituals. When the sacred dance in the tower has just ended, the festival outside the tower begins. The Kate festival is similar to the Lunar New Year of the Kinh people. The festival is vibrant with dances, Cham folk songs, Gi Nang drums, Saranai trumpets, brocade weaving performances, pottery making, water carrying competitions, drum beating... Kate festival in villages and families: The worship rituals and the festival part of the Kate festival in Ninh Thuan are held in parallel. Before the festival, villagers will clean the temple together, decorate the village house, and prepare food, drinks, and the yard. According to beliefs, each village will worship a god, but all are village gods. The celebrant - a prestigious person, trusted by the villagers, will represent the people to offer offerings to the gods to pray for good things, luck, and peace. After the Kate Festival in the village, the Cham people will return to their homes to perform the ceremony. The celebrant is the oldest person in the clan. This is the person who will represent the whole family to offer offerings to the ancestors. At this time, all family members are present, dressed neatly and sincerely pray for the ancestors to wish for peace. The Kate Festival expresses the desire for fertility, praying for growth, good crops towards a peaceful and prosperous life. With its great historical and cultural value, the Kate Festival of the Cham people in Ninh Thuan province was recognized as a National Intangible Cultural Heritage by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism in 2017.
Viet Nam -
Trịnh Xuyên Communal House Festival
Trịnh Xuyên communal house festival is held from the 9th to the 12th of the second lunar month every year, to commemorate the merits of General Vũ Đức Phong - the man who participated in the battle against Chiêm Thành during the Trần dynasty. Since last year, the village has sent a family to grow sticky rice on the village's public fields and raise a pig. Pigs are raised in cages and eat clean food. On the day of the festival, the village will use steamed sticky rice to pound round sticky cakes and slaughter pigs to pound sausages as offerings to the Saint. The opening ceremony is the Ngọc Lộ procession. The dragon lion dance team, flag teams, drum teams, incense plans, flag carrying teams, Bát Bửu teams, twin horses, float carrying teams with parasols and canopies, and representatives of the people and government make up the procession. For the ritual, Ngọc Lộ was led in a procession from the temple to the common house in Trịnh Xuyên. It is usual to walk through the palanquin in the hopes that the Saint may grant good health and fortune to the sick, old, and children. The offerings to the Saints include two parts: a vegetarian offering and a salt offering. The fasting ceremony includes fruits, cakes, and oats, which are offered by representatives of the hamlets wearing heads. The salty ceremony includes pork, sticky rice, rice cakes, wine, gold coins, incense, and betel and areca nuts. The custom of raising "Mr. Pig" in a cage, drinking clean water, and eating clean food. On the day of the festival, the villagers slaughter the pig, pound the meat and offer it to the Saint; Planting sticky rice in village fields to get sticky rice for sticky rice and pounding sticky rice cakes to worship the Saints. Many folk games are organized within the framework of the Festival such as: going on a bridge, human chess, blindfolded hitting pots, etc, and especially clay cannon competitions. Teams compete in 4 rooms, each 45 minutes.
Viet Nam -
Lacquerware Making in Cát Đằng
The Lacquerware Making in Cát Đằng was born more than 600 years ago (from the end of the Tran Dynasty) associated with festivals to worship the village's ancestors (the founders are Mr. Ngô Đức Dũng and Mr. Ngô Ân Ba) and annual ceremonies taking place on January 14-16. Rich materials: wood, rattan, bamboo, reed... The main material is lacquer processed according to a secret recipe. It takes the craftsman a month or more to complete a product. Wooden objects for lacquer are not nailed but only use mortise and tenon joints with paint mixed with sawdust. Of all the stages, the most outstanding skills/techniques of the lacquer craft are the way of mixing paint, spraying paint, gilding gold, silver, inlaying, and drawing. These are also the most typical secrets of the Lacquerware Making in Cát Đằng. To make a product of the craft village, it is necessary to have the main materials such as: lacquer, tung oil, resin, sawdust, soil... Materials for making the core (vóc): wood, bamboo, rattan. Decorative materials: gold leaf, silver leaf, pearl shell, snail shell, egg shell, etc. Tools for making lacquer: beak, bucket, earthenware pot, etc. Tools for making lacquer: steel hair, sandpaper, whetstone, broom, curtain cloth, jackfruit leaves, xoan charcoal, tangled hair, paring knife, slotting knife, iron rod, etc. Decorative tools: cat hair pen, steel hair, slotting knife, etc. Currently, in addition to traditional lacquer materials, mainly industrial paints such as PU, cashew nuts, Japanese, etc. are used, and there are many other supporting tools such as: peeling machines, quilting machines, sharpening machines, sanding machines, paint sprayers, etc. to make bamboo patchwork products. The products of the craft village currently include two main product lines: Fine lines goods (worship items) and patchwork goods (handicrafts). Fine lines products are usually made from wood with two stages: making the frame (wooden blank, attaching, wrapping, tying, jamming, lining, giving, holding) and decorating (using silver leaf, gold leaf, mother-of-pearl, snail shell, eggshell... to inlay or paint on the product including the stages: gilding, covering. After each stage, it must be polished). Patchwork products are usually made from bamboo, rattan. To complete a patchwork lacquer product, in addition to the same process as patchwork, it must go through stages such as: soaking, drying, splitting, whittling, quilting, creating product blanks, bathing, shaving, smoothing, sanding the product, jamming, sanding, drying the product, spraying paint, and painting. Today, on the basis of inheriting the traditional Lacquerware Making craft, Cat Dang artisans have been creating and absorbing new techniques and new materials to create a variety of products to serve the needs of religious activities, decoration and consumption such as thrones, chairs, palanquins, statues, paintings, betel boxes, engagement trays, gilded lacquerware decorated at relics, tables and chairs, mother-of-pearl inlaid mahogany beds, vases, lampshades, pen holders, trays, bowls... with many rich and diverse designs, suitable for the needs of the domestic and export markets. The development of Lacquerware Making in Cát Đằng contributes to solving employment, improving local social life, building a rich and beautiful homeland. At the same time, it has gradually introduced traditional values, the quintessence of Vietnamese culture in general and Cat Dang locality in particular to the world. With the historical, cultural, artistic, usage and economic values of the heritage, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism recognized "Lacquerware Making in Cát Đằng" as a National Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2017.
Viet Nam -
Bay Batabor (Ceremonial Sacred Offering)
Bay Batabor is one of the most important offerings among other offerings, as the old people in the fields often do when preparing offerings for various festivals, large or small, for example, birthday celebrations, funerals, Tes moha cheadok festival, and rainmaking ritual. How to make Bay Batabor may be slightly different from one to the next, it depends on the festival, community, or area. What we are sharing here is how to make rice cakes for cremation in Daun Ov village, Leang Dai commune, Angkor Thom district, Siem Reap province. First, they place ripe bananas and palm sugar which are wrapped in conical banana leaves in a bowl. Then take another bowl and place it on top of the bowl. On top of that bowl, there are 12 pieces of sticky rice and some spread sticky rice. Then, fold 12 banana leaves into a conical shape and put them around the 12 pieces of sticky rice. The top of the sticky rice bowl is called the middle part of Bay Batabor. It is where they place a banana corm right in the middle and they cover it with banana leaves in a conical shape. With that, they also put 12 areca palm nuts on it. On the top of the cone, there are 12 folded betel leave, 12 candles, champa flowers, yellow flowers, a paper bag of the dried areca palm, red and white paper flags, and riel banknotes. According to the elders who make Bay Batabor, they made the rice offering to put on the ceremony’s donation table. However, during the rain-making ritual at Neak Porn temple, the rice offerings are placed on the altar in front of other offerings. Before it can be placed on the table of the ceremony, those female elders, sit around the circle, make three rounds of Batabor bowls to dedicate to the Preah Shak muni stupa, and chanting for 3 times, “Tong Teng Kroleng Bopha Tok Moung Vey Bay Moung Va we are offering candle, incense, betel leaf and areca palm nut to Preah Shak muni stupa. The elders also mentioned that The Batabor rice bowl represents the mother’s body, and the 12 betel leave and the 12 candles represent the mother's breast, which has six holes in each side.
Cambodia -
Hải Thượng Lãn Ông Festival
Hải Thượng Lãn Ông Festival is held on the full moon day of January every year, which is also the taboo day of famous physician Lê Hữu Trác (1720 - 1791), who made great contributions to Vietnam's traditional medicine. The festival is held at two main locations: the grave site (Sơn Trung commune) and the church (Quang Diệm commune) of the famous doctor. The ceremony was held with many solemn rituals such as representatives of the government and people offered incense at the grave site; procession of offerings to the Great Physician from the grave to the church with the participation of 12 processions; Worshiping ceremony on the taboo day - held at the church of the great physician Lê Hữu Trác in Quang Diệm commune, Hương Sơn district with offerings including incense, candles, fruits, betel and areca nuts, water, sticky rice, chicken, wine, ghost money; Ceremony to pray for peace and health (performed by monks, nuns, and Buddhists at the grave site or at the monument of the great physician), releasing flower lanterns at the dragon wharf on Ngàn Phố River. The festival part includes activities such as the Ngàn Phố River Traditional Boat Racing Festival; Hải Thượng flute kite display; arm wrestling competition; wrapping and cooking Chung cake contest; Stick pushing, tug of war, volleyball competitions; Displaying local products, etc attracts a large number of people to participate. Main rituals include Sacrifice; a Ceremony to pray for good health, pray for national peace and prosperity, and a ceremony to release lanterns. The festival included traditional art performance activities such as folk songs, songs, rhymes, vi giam, and folk games that attracted a large number of people to participate. This is a big festival in Hương Sơn region, Hà Tĩnh province.
Viet Nam