The wedding is considered the most important event in one’s lifetime, as the joining of a couple marks the beginning of a family and a household. The first notable characteristic of the Korean wedding is that it is a Korean version of Confucian wedding culture, which originated in China. Koreans modified the Chinese ritual to fit their local situation and created a unique Korean ritual. For example, unlike in China, the wedding is held in the bride’s home according to traditions dating back to the Goguryeo dynasty.

The Republic of Korea has undertaken systematic efforts to safeguard intangible cultural heritage since enactment of the Cultural Heritage Protection Act in 1962 and implementation of the 2003 UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2005. Korea has a long history of institutions for cultural heritage safeguarding. Korean ICH assets are basically protected under three government organizations known as Cultural Heritage Administration (CHA), Intangible Cultural Heritage Division of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, and National Intangible Heritage Centre (NIHC) of Korea.A variety of national institutions have taken charge of transmission, promotion, education documenting and archiving ICH elements in consideration of their domains and characteristics. Those organizations are working collaboratively with each and many other ICH stake holders such as government and non-governmental organizations, education institutions, ICH holders and community people as well as foreign countries and international organizations in the safeguarding process of traditional music and dancing.

Co-orgarnized by ICHCAP and Hue Monuments Conservation Centre (HMCC), this year’s Asia-Pacific ICH NGO Conference was held in Hue, Vietnam under the theme of ICH NGOs towards Sustainable Development of Communities.