ALL
pray
ICH Elements 125
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Ceremonial Keşkek tradition
Ensuring solidarity and collective identity, national and religious holidays, celebrations, feasts, commemorations are of great significance as regards to social values. The providers, the distribution and the consumption of the food are strictly determined on these special days. Traditional ceremonial keşkek is one of the social practices which sustain its significance from the past to our present day. Keşkek tradition is practiced at circumcisions, wedding ceremonies, religious holidays such as, Ramadans, sacrifice Aid, Muharram Month (first month of the Islamic calendar), charities, pilgrimage feast, prayers for the rain, Mevlid (Islamic poetry reading), Hıdrellez (a kind of seasonal celebration) and similar practices. Preparation and consumption process of keşkek bears a collective character. Particularly in village communities, preparation of ingredients and cooking process of keşkek are actualized through collective work. The villagers contribute to keşkek ceremony by providing the ingredients and participate in cooking process. Wheat and meat are the basic ingredients of keşkek. The main ingredients are provided by the household on special days for the family and the dwellers of the village provide the work force if needed. The wheat for keşkek, of an amount proportional with the number of participants, is washed with prayers a day before the wedding ceremony. Accompanied by davul-zurna (traditional Turkish musical instruments) the wheat is carried carefully to a large stone mortar. The wheat is hulled on the large stone mortars by two or four persons using gavels in a fixed rhythm. The rhythmic sound is a sign for the start of wedding ceremony. The hulled wheat is one of the main ingredients of keşkek to be prepared on the wedding morning. Meat is the other main ingredient for keşkek. Cooking keşkek requires specialized knowledge therefore it is carried out by experienced persons called ""keşkekçi"" (keşkek maker). Keşkekçis are trained in a master-apprentice tradition. Cooks and his assistants in charge of keşkek cooking start the preparations at early hours in the morning of the day before the ceremony. As weddings - the primary occasions for ceremonial keşkek tradition – are usually held during summer or early autumn, keşkek is usually cooked outdoors. Requiring a long-lasting source of heat, keşkek is cooked in large copper cauldrons, the bottom of which is smeared with ash to protect it before being put on a big open fire. Hulled wheat, chunks of meat on the bone, onions, spices, water and oil are all put together in the cauldron. It is important to maintain the heat at a certain temperature while cooking. Therefore, cook and the assistants take turns to maintain the cooking process as desired until morning. Watching the heat and preparation of the side dishes to be served with keşkek last all night long. This night spent around the keşkek is full of stories, friendly talks and jokes. The cook checks the keşkek cauldron in the morning of the wedding day. Towards noon, the most important phase of the keşkek tradition takes place. The strongest of the village youth, who were previously chosen for ‘keşkek dövme (keşkek beating)’, are called in to ‘beat’the keşkek with a wooden tool which can be named as ağaç kepçe (wooden ladle) tokmak (gavel), çomça or şişe. This is in a way a mashing process. The rhythm while hulling the wheat goes on during the beating process as well. The wooden tools are used in a rhythmic order. The beating process of keşkek attracts great interest among the crowds. To motivate the beating youth, the crowd cheers and sings folk songs. During the beating, one or two persons apart from the beating youth take the bones out with a special kind of tongs. The neighboring towns and villages are invited and keşkek is collectively consumed in the ceremony premises (courtyard of mosque for religious holidays, bride’s or groom’s house on wedding days, a sacred venue for charities and hıdrellez). Prayers are uttered before and after the feast. The pots and pans used during ceremony are collectively washed. A special set of equipments are necessary for the preparation of keşkek. The stone mortar, a collectively owned product of particular craftsmanship, a copper cauldron made especially for such ceremonies and tinned regularly. Hand made ladles and gavels made of wood are among the most important tangible elements of the keşkek tradition. The most significant aspect of the tradition is unifying all people in this ceremony regardless of age, ethnic origin, gender and culture even being invited or not. The hosts of the ceremony check whether all the guests are at the dining table for keşkek. Each person attending to keşkek ceremony is considered as an element of this cultural environment. All individuals within the community through participating in such a ceremonial event have a sense of belonging. This ‘sense of belonging’ reflects itself with the common expression ‘our keşkek is better’, which is a bare evidence of considering keşkek as an important element of cultural heritage. Keşkek ceremony should be practiced with all the components of the tradition or else it loses its traditional aspect for the bearers. In Zonguldak-Ereğli on the west coast of Black sea Region, there is a village named ‘Keşkek’. People from the neighboring villages go to this village, which is a developed locality among the surrounding places, in order to worship on Holy Friday and the visitors are served keşkek there. This clearly explains why the village is called ‘Keşkek’. The villagers see keşkek as a major part of their cultural identity and they are glad to have the name keşkek for their village. Today, this ceremonial tradition, through organizing keşkek festivals and festivities has been preserved by the intimate efforts of city and district municipalities and the hemşeri (locality fellowship) associations, founded by fellow citizens for creating a kind of solidarity. It is observed in these occasions unifying aspects of ceremonial keşkek tradition continues in the cities as well. Preservation of this tradition in the cities is particularly important in terms of how much this tradition is embraced by the communities concerned.
Turkey 2011 -
Traditional Ainu dance
The title ‘Traditional Ainu Dance’ is defined as dances and songs transmitted among the Ainu people of distinctive cultures in Hokkaido located in the northern area of Japan. Those dances and songs are derived from the life and religion of the Ainu people; some are performed at ceremonies and banquets in local communities, and others privately performed in daily lives. Neither of them is accompanied with musical instruments. They are performed along with songs and handclaps of dancers and participants on site. The Ainu people used to live in a vast area including Hokkaido, the northern part of Honshu, the Kuril Islands and Sakhalin. Currently, however, most of them live mainly in Hokkaido, and its population is estimated at approximately twenty-four thousand. The Traditional Ainu Dance is transmitted by the seventeen preserving associations established in fifteen cities and towns where the Ainu people live. Allegedly the Ainu culture of today’s style was formed up approximately in the twelfth or thirteenth century. People at that time lived by fishing, hunting and gathering, and they also traded with other areas. In this way of life, the Ainu people have developed such a creed as they believe in deities which are omnipresent at anything related to their lives, namely the nature (the sun, rain, water, fire etc.) including animals and plants. Thus, they often conducted prayers and ceremonies in their daily life. The Traditional Ainu Dance can be performed at these prayers and ceremonies or banquets. ‘Iyomante,’ for example, is the biggest ceremony with the Traditional Ainu Dance for sending a deity disguised as a bear back to heaven. The Ainu people believe that a deity comes down to the human world in disguise of an animal or a plant which is a gift from the deity to be eaten by the human beings. Once people have physically eaten it up, they thank the remaining spirit of this invisible deity for its gift and hold a ceremony to send it back to heaven. During the ceremony people sing and dance. One of the features found in the Ainu performing arts is the imitation of calls and movements of animals and birds. During the ceremony of ‘Iyomante’ people repeatedly imitate calls and sounds accompanied with its movements of a bear, and words are inserted in such repetitions. On the other hand, performing arts which are privately performed in an Ainu daily life contain lullabies, improvisatory lyrical songs, incantations with melodies, and songs accompanied with movements of labours by several persons in a daily life. As mentioned above, the Traditional Ainu Dance is performed at important ceremonies and banquets to the Ainu people and also in their daily life, through which the Ainu people reconfirm the identity and deepen a sense of continuity. Currently, in addition to such ceremonies as mentioned above, the Traditional Ainu Dance is demonstrated at newly projected festivals and events. It is one element of the intangible cultural heritage transmitted from generations to generations and is continuously developed and reproduced according to the situations of each era. The traditional style of the Ainu dances is a big circle of many participants, proceeding right-handed with some fixed movements and singing together. They sing the same song together or in turns, otherwise they sing in a responding way between a chorus leader and the others. Some of those traditional songs are polyphonic; several women sit on a floor in a circle in surrounding a lid of a wooden container, make a rhythm in beating the lid, and sing the same melody with one sound successively delayed. Because there are currently many opportunities to perform it apart from a daily life, some dances and songs have been formed up as independent repertoires in paying due attention to the traditional performing style. As overviewed, they are (i) the imitation of calls and movements of animal, namely ‘crane dance’, ‘fox dance’ and ‘swallow dance’: (ii) the imitation of insects, namely ‘grasshopper dance’: (iii) the ritual one, namely ‘sword dance’ and ‘bow dance’: (iv) the entertaining one: (v) the improvisatory one. Thus, the Traditional Ainu Dance is simple and naive, and often retains the primordial quality inside. In this sense it can illustrate the origin of performing arts.
Japan 2009 -
Benediction
Benediction is a powerful expression of the miraculous capacity of words. It is one of the genres of Mongolian oral poetry that uses melodies. Benedictions propitiate people’s future happiness and well-being through skillfully composed and recited poems. It is unique in a way that minstrels sing the benediction completely from memory, and also by adding their own versions of words or improvising totally new verses to fit particular situations or events. By the invitation of people, a person who knows the order of feast and ceremonies well and mastered in the benediction and its melody says the benediction with use of the holly silk scarf, milk in the silver bowl, and Airag in bowl. The benediction is oral poetry which contains a beginning, main part and ending part.
Mongolia -
CHIL
Funeral ritual which will be held in the house of dyed person after forty days of burying. People come and spell pryings.
Tajikistan -
Xoan singing of Phú Thọ province, Viet Nam
As a form of performing arts, Xoan singing includes singing, dancing, drumming and clapper beating. It is closely attached to the Worship of the Hùng Kings, founders of the country. Phú Thọ people created Xoan singing and performed it at the village communal houses, temples and shrines worshipping the Hùng Kings in springs. “Xoan” means “spring”. Bearers and practitioners form four guilds, in which the male and female Trum play the most important role; they preserve the songs, select students, transmit the singing styles and repertoires and organize practices. They are also active in introducing and teaching Xoan singing at the four Xoan guilds, and in clubs and guilds. A full Xoan performance cycle includes 3 phases: Worship singing (Hát thờ) with songs praising the virtues of the Hùng Kings and the village guardian deities; Invocation for good health and fortune (Quả cách) with 14 repertoires praising nature, humankind, and the daily life of the community; Festive singing (hát Hội) with songs featuring the couple love. The special characteristic of Xoan is the modulation between singers and instrumentalists at the perfect fourth interval, and it has a simple structure with few ornamental notes. Xoan dance's movements have a sense of imitativeness, illustrating people's daily life activities. After singing at their communal houses from the 2nd - 5th day of the Lunar New Year, the Xoan guilds travel to other communities venerating Hùng Kings to take part in convivial cultural exchanges. Xoan practitioners are organized into music guilds called Phường. The Leader of each guild is called “Trùm”. In the past, only men could be “Trùm”, but nowadays women could also be leaders. The Leaders are in charge of transmission and organization of activities of the guilds. At present, each guild comprises of 30 - 100 members. Men are called “kép”, women are “đào”. As a community performing art, Xoan singing fosters cultural understanding, community cohesion and mutual respect. The Vietnamese Institute for Musicology has collected 31 Xoan songs, and thanks to the efforts of several Xoan artists four guilds have been established. 33 dedicated clubs also exist, and seminars are held to expand knowledge of Xoan.
Viet Nam 2017 -
Kazakh traditional art of Dombra Kuy
Traditional Kazakh dombra kuy (kaz 'kuy') - instrumental play performed on dombra - a traditional pear-shaped musical instrument with two strings and a long neck. The true meaning of kuy execution dates back to the sacred relationship with the Creator and the desire to establish the internal harmony of the individual. Kazakhs say 'Kuy - Tanyrdyn sybyry' ('Kuy - a whisper of Tengri'). Dombra had been hung on the wall of each nomad house (yurta) for the play before guests and home owners. The art of DombraKuy refers to a short solo composition performed on a traditional pear-shaped, long-necked, two-stringed, plucked musical instrument known as a dombra. The music aims to connect people to their historic roots and traditions through classical and improvised pieces that engage the audience at a spiritual and emotional level. Public engagement in the performance serves as one of the most important means of social communication between people and contributes to the transfer of knowledge and skills related to Kazakh culture. The music is usually accompanied by narrated stories and legends. It is traditionally performed at social gatherings, holidays and festive celebrations, amid a rich variety of food and musical entertainment. It serves as a vital social and cultural experience, strengthening people’s identity and promoting solidarity and mutual understanding in society. Aspiring and talented musicians are apprenticed to masters from the moment a child demonstrates an interest in the philosophy and virtuosity of traditional music and performance. Amateur musicians then apprentice themselves to other more experienced and talented performers from their region to increase their skills and repertoire.
Kazakhstan 2014 -
Mevlevi Sema ceremony
The Mevleviye is an ascetic Sufi order founded in 1273 in Konya, from where it gradually spread throughout the Ottoman Empire. Today, the Mevleviye can be found in many Turkish communities throughout the world, but the most active and famous centres of the order’s activity are in Konya and Istanbul. The Mevleviye are renowned for their whirling dances. Following a recommended fast of several hours, the whirlers begin to rotate on their left feet in short twists, using the right foot to drive their bodies around the left foot. The body of the whirler is meant to be supple, with eyes open but unfocused so that images become blurred and flowing. At their dancing ceremonies, or Sema, a particular musical repertoire called ay›n is played. Based on four sections of both vocal and instrumental compositions, it is performed by at least one singer, a flute-player, called neyzen, a kettledrummer and a cymbal player. Dancers used to receive 1,001 days of reclusive training within the mevlevi-houses (mevlevihane), where they learned about ethics, codes of behaviour and beliefs by practising prayer, religious music, poetry and dance. After this training, they remained members of the order but returned to their work and families. As a result of secularization policies, all mevlevihane were closed in 1925.The Turkish government began to allow performances again, though only in public, in the 1950s, restrictions were eased in the 1990s. Some private groups are re-establishing the original spiritual and intimate character of the Sema ceremony. However, over the thirty years the tradition was practised clandestinely, transmission focused rather on music and songs than on spiritual and religious traditions, which has deprived performances of part of their religious significance. Consequently, many sema ceremonies are no longer performed in their traditional context but for tourist audiences, and have been shortened and simplified to meet commercial requirements.
Turkey 2008 -
Kırkpınar oil wrestling festival
Kırkpınar Oil wrestling Festival is a traditional practice which is composed of a set of rituals and can be traced back to middle ages. Emerged in XIVth century Rumelia (Southwestern part of Turkey), Kırkpınar Oil Wrestling is one of the world’s oldest festivals (648 years). 648th Kırkpınar Oil wrestling Festival was organized in Edirne, in 2009. Festival ceremonies last for three days. The festival is launched by the welcoming ceremony of Kırkpınar Aga with 40 davul-zurna bands in front of Edirne Municipality Building. The festival activities then move on ceremonial procession in the city center followed by moment of silence ceremony, singing the Kırkpınar anthem and visiting the ‘Cemetery of Pehlivans’. The “golden belt”, which the Chief Pehlivan (Baş Pehlivan) will be rewarded with, is carried during the ceremonial procession. The festival starts on Friday, which is regarded as holy by the Muslims. The reason for choosing Holy Friday as the first day of the festival is the tradition of reciting mevlid (prayer) for the pehlivans. The “mevlid” is recited in historical Selimiye Mosque by the participation of all pehlivans. The events continue with the wrestling of pehlivans on an arena built exclusively for the festival in the outside of the city centre, Men’s Field (Er Meydanı) is the place where the oil wrestling is held as a customary practice of Pehlivan wrestling. Oiling of pehlivans in the field and Peşrev, which consists of a series harmonized warming up exercises and salutation, are important rituals of the festival. The festival goes on with the introduction of the pehlivans by cazgırs and at the end of the third day, the festival closes with the awarding of Kırkpınar Golden Belt to the winner called Chief Pehlivan. A band of 40 davul-zurna players perform ‘Kırkpınar tunes’ throughout the festival. What distinguishes Kırkpınar from any other wrestling festival is its rich cultural form which preserved its traditional image for centuries. Attracting people from all regions of Turkey, Kırkpınar Oil Wrestling Festival contributes greatly to social peace along with a sense of cultural cohesion. Such a rooted tradition which is sustained by the groups, communities and individuals contributes to dissemination of intangible cultural heritage concept as well. Kırkpınar can be considered as a fair with its authentic objects (red-bottomed candles, kıspets, local traditional clothes, peşgirs, zembils -a kind of tool for carrying the kıspet, tools for oil, davuls and zurnas, golden belt), rituals (praying, mevlid tradition, peşrev and oiling) and cultural identities ( pehlivan figure) (pehlivan, Kırkpınar agası (main sponsor), cazgır). Main Elements of the Festival Pehlivans Wrestlers who oil themselves are called pehlivans. The figure of pehlivan is an important element of cultural identity for Turkish people. Pehlivans are exemplary figures in the society with their attributes like generosity, honesty, adherence to traditions and customs and respectfulness. Therefore, the most chivalrous pehlivans or pehlivans that display the best peşrev are also rewarded. Pehlivans are trained in master-apprentice tradition. All the wrestlers in the festival are called ‘pehlivan’. The ultimate winner of the Kırkpınar Oil Wrestling is called Chief Pehlivan of Turkey and he carries the golden belt for one year’s period. The wrestler, who becomes chief pehlivan for three consecutive years, also becomes the owner of the golden belt. Kırkpınar Aga Concept of aga is one of the most fundamental elements of Kırkpınar Oil-Wrestling. The concept of Aga is regarded as an institutional identity. As pehlivans, agas are also considered as exemplary figures in the society who adhere to traditions. Kırkpınar Aga is officially recognized by the state and thus a car with a red plate (a type of official plate) written Kırkpınar Aga on is specifically allocated to the Aga. This red plate is valid at least for one year during the period of Agalık. Following the festival opening, agalık for next year is announced. The one who offers to make the highest financial contribution to cover the festival costs is designated as Kırkpınar Aga for the next year. This tradition is one of the most important elements as regards to the sustainability of the festival. Kırkpınar Aga is the main sponsor of the festival events. Cazgır Also known as salavatçıs, cazgırs introduce all the pehlivans to the audience citing their names, titles, skills in verse format and through prayers and they start the match. They are also supposed to introduce the opponents to each other after the pairing up, praying and informing both sides about the strong points each opponent has with advices. They need to have a fine strong voice and be able to improvise prayers in verse. Cazgırs strive to maintain unity within the field and bring the pehlivans together in a common spirit. Their talks inspire and excite the people around. They utter prayers called salavat in a musical style which catalyzes the enthusiasm of the participants. Cargırs are acknowledged as a profession and they come from a master-apprentice tradition. Davul - Zurna players As another essential element of oil wrestling festival, davul-zurna players are trained in masterapprentice tradition. Kırkpınar music which is known as pehlivan tunes is played exclusively in this festival. A group of 40 davul-zurna players perform during the festival. In Edirne, three different associations have been established to perform musical pieces for Kırkpınar Festival. During the festival, davul-zurna band performs in traditional dresses. Instruments of Kırkpınar Oil Wrestling ▶Kıspet Kıspet is the basic outfit of a pehlivan. They are a kind of thick trousers made of water buffalo or cow leather. Currently, kıspet is tailored by a limited number of masters in Çanakkale and Samsun provinces. ▶Zembil Zembil, a traditional handcraft, which is a hand-made instrument produced on a special reed workbench. Zembil is only made and used for carrying the kıspet. ▶Red Bottomed Candle This candle is the official symbol of invitation for Kırkpınar. In the past these candles were hung in coffee houses of towns and villages to indicate the townsfolk were invited to the Kırkpınar.
Turkey 2010 -
Tibetan opera
Tibetan opera, the most popular traditional opera of minority ethnic groups in China, is a comprehensive art combining folk song, dance, storytelling, chant, acrobatics and religious performance. Most popular in the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau in western China, the performance begins with a prayer ceremony, including the cleansing of the stage by hunters and blessings by the elder, and concludes with another blessing. The heart of the opera is a drama narrated by a single speaker and enacted by performers supported by groups of singers, dancers and acrobats. Actors wear traditional masks of a variety of shapes and colours that contrast with their simple makeup.
China 2009 -
Sericulture and silk craftsmanship of China
Sericulture and Silk Craftsmanship refers to the craftsmanship applied in traditional sericulture, silk dyeing and weaving process, which has been handed down from generation to generation, and relevant folk-customs derived thereby. China’s sericulture and silk craftsmanship boasts a history of 5000 years. The silk fragments, preliminary loom and potteries decorated with silkworm patterns excavated from sites dating 4000 years ago in the Taihu Lake area; demonstrate the time-honoured history of the sericulture and silk production in the region. Alongside the historical process, traditional manufacturing craftsmanship develops, and the main elements include: Mulberry planting: including cultivation of mulberry seedling, mulberry trimming, and various methods of engraftment; Silkworm production: including the selection, hybridization, and breeding of silkworm eggs, incubation, instruments for silkworm rearing, control of the temperature and humidity, and frame mounting methods; Silk reeling: including sorting and stripping of cocoons, ways for preserving the cocoons such as drying and salting, temperature control and process for boiling the cocoons, facilities and techniques for silk reeling, etc; Silk floss making: including techniques of water rinsing and tearing; Weaving tools: including various looms such as treadle looms, multi-shaft and multi-treadle patterning looms, lesser draw looms, greater draw looms, etc, and arrangement of heddle drafts and programming of patterns on draw looms; Design and weaving of fabrics: including the design and weaving of various structures and patterns, such as the Shuanglin silk damask which is calendared by stamp rocks, the Hang gauze with warps crossed, the Shu silk with warp-faced patterns, the Song-style silk in lampas weave, and Kesi woven in tapestry structures.
China 2009 -
Mazu belief and customs
As the most influential goddess of the sea in China, Mazu is at the centre of a host of beliefs and customs, including oral traditions, religious ceremonies and folk practices, throughout the country’s coastal areas. Mazu is believed to have lived in the tenth century on Meizhou Island, where she dedicated herself to helping her fellow townspeople, and died attempting to rescue the survivors of a shipwreck. Local residents built a temple in her honour and began to venerate her as a goddess. She is celebrated twice each year in formal temple fairs, when Meizhou residents, farmers and fisherfolk temporarily suspend their work to sacrifice marine animals, venerate statues of Mazu and enjoy a variety of dances and other performances. Smaller worship ceremonies take place throughout the year in the other 5,000 Mazu temples around the world and in private homes; these may involve floral tributes; candles, incense and firecrackers; and evening processions of residents bearing ‘Mazu lanterns’.
China 2009 -
Flatbread making and sharing culture: Lavash, Katyrma, Jupka, Yufka
The culture of flatbread making and sharing, represented with the names Lavash-Katyrma-Jupka-Yufka, is a set of traditional knowledge, views, skills and rituals related to preparation, baking, storing, using and sharing of traditional thin bread that performs specific cultural and social functions within the related communities in Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Turkey and is transmitted from generations to generations. Flatbread tradition is a symbol of shared cultural identity and serves expression of mutual respect among communities. The five countries share a number of common features, skills and knowledge related to preparation and use of the flatbread. Tradition bearers usually prepare the flatbread from unleavened or leavened dough based on flour, salt and water, while also adding sometimes milk, butter, sesame and poppy seeds. Communities use different types of crops to prepare the dough, such as wheat and rye. The dough is rolled by hand or using a dough roller into round or oval shape. In Azerbaijan, Iran, Turkey and some communities of Kyrgyzstan, flatbread is baked in earthen or stone ovens called “tandyr” or “tanūr” buried into the ground. Some communities in Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan and Turkey bake the flatbread (yufka or lavash) on a metal plate known as “sac” (“saj” or “sāj”) over the fire. Communities in Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan bake the flatbread by laying out rolled dough in big cauldrons (‘kazan’) heated on fire. As a result of this baking style, practitioners manage to maintain nutritious qualities of the flatbreads and store them for several months without refrigerator. Various methods, techniques, instruments and substances are used by flatbread-preparing practitioners. The preparation of flatbread involves traditional practices based on collective labour and sharing within family and neighbourhood. As expression of social solidarity in rural areas, families prepare and bake flatbread together with their neighbours, especially as a preparation for winter. The flatbread is baked both at homes by family members and flatbread bakers, who learn the practice through a master-apprentice relationship. The flatbread preparation bears a great variety of social and cultural functions for its communities in terms of its usage at special occasions and its relation to transition between seasons. Communities of five countries consider flatbread preparation places sacred. In Kazakhstan, communities believe preparing flatbread at funerals helps the deceased get protection from the burning Sun, while waiting for decision of the God. To wish prosperity and wealth to newly-married couple, in Azerbaijani and Iranian weddings the flatbread lavash is often put on shoulders of the bride, while in Turkish weddings dried flatbread yufka is crumbled over the head of the bride. In Kyrgyzstan, tradition bearers believe that flatbread helps sick people. In some religious ceremonies and traditional weddings in Iran flatbread is served as a component of the sacred offering. During the preparation of flatbread, it is shared with all passers-by as a sign of hospitality. Flatbread culture is expression of belonging to common cultural roots. It reinforces cultural links and serves as marker of hospitality, conviviality and friendliness within the societies of five countries.
Azerbaijan,Iran,Kyrgyzstan,Kazakhstan,Turkey 2016