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TRADITIONAL KNOWLEDGE CONTAINED IN KIMJANG, THE ANCIENT PRACTICE OF KIMCHI MAKINGThe tradition of storing vegetables harvested in autumn to eat throughout the winter is an ancient practice on the Korean peninsula that can be traced back to the Neolithic era when agriculture began. When buried in the ground for storage, the portions of vegetables that contain moisture would retain their freshness within even as the outer portions dried up. However, this method had the drawback of rendering large portions of the vegetable inedible. This led to the method of drying vegetables under the shade for prolonged storage. However, this method could not preserve the original flavor of the vegetables. Generations of trial and error in search for a better method of preservation led to the discovery of pickling in salt water.Year2013NationSouth Korea
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RITUAL CULTURE AND PALOV CEREMONYPalov, a tasty rice dish that incorporates meat, onions, carrots, herbs, and spices, comes standard on Uzbek menus. Prepared throughout Uzbekistan as an everyday meal, palov also has an important presence during festive events and rituals.Year2016NationSouth Korea
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Memory and ICH in KyrgyzstanKyrgyzstan, a landlocked country the territory of which is more than 94 percent mountainous, is among the most attractive lands located at the heart of Asia on the ancient Silk Road trade routes. The cultural heritage of the Kyrgyz people has been greatly influenced by their nomadic history. Kyrgyz people occupy a unique cultural environment and have a rich ICH. The vitality of this cultural heritage is safeguarded and transmitted from generation to generation as collective memory, orally or through practice and expression.Year2021NationKyrgyzstan
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Ethnobotanical use of Symplocos paniculata (Thunb.) Miq. in Punakha District, BhutanSymplocos paniculata of symplocaceae was found to be used by Serigang community under Punakha Dzongkhag. The seed of the species was widely used for extraction of oil. There appears to be a smaller number of people who make medicines in the village. The production of Pangtse makhu is on a steady decline because of the availability of a cheaper alternative. Due to heavy work and little return, most of the trees are being cut to make way for other cash crops. Although the village is equipped with modern amenities, people still depend on forest for goods and services. Ethnobotany is still apparent in every item and situation that make up their everyday life. From this study prospects of an ethnobotanical\nplant have been found in kabjisa geog. It also suggests that rural folks should also be considered as an important source of information about the use of ethnobotanical plants. The effort in this study may provide benefits for future researchers in other parts of the locality.Year2007NationBhutan
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Makgeolli Making and Sharing Designated as National Intangible Cultural Heritage"The Cultural Heritage Administration has a new listing on the national intangible heritage list: the traditional Korean alcoholic beverage makgeolli and its associated culture. It incorporates the skill of making this milky and lightly effervescent rice wine and the cultural practices associated with sharing it. Makgeolli is conventionally brewed by cooking rice, mixing it with water and nuruk (a fermentation starter that contains sacchrogenic enzymes and natural yeast), and running the mash through a sieve after a few days of fermentation. Mak in makgeolli means ‘right now’ or ‘just then’ and geolli mean ‘to filter.’ Not only is the word pure Korean, but the name itself reveals the method of making the beverage and its characteristics.\n\nMakgeolli is an alcoholic beverage made from rice or other grains that is purported to date back to the introduction of farming on the Korean Peninsula. Histories on the Three Kingdoms period, such as Samguk Sagi (History of the Three Kingdoms) and Samguk Yusa (Memorabilia of the Three Kingdoms) include terms such as mion, jiju, and ryoye that presumably refer to what is known as makgeolli today. Baekju and other terms purported to denote makgeolli appear in Dongguk Isanggukjip (Collected Work by Minister Yi of the Eastern State) and other literary compilations from the Goryeo Dynasty. Books from the Joseon period, such as the novel Chunhyangjeon (The Story of Chunhyang) and the encyclopedia Gwangjaemulbo (Information on Comprehensive Things) contain mentions of mok-geolli or mak-geolli. Joseon-era cookbooks, such as Gyuhap Chongseo and Eumsik Dimibang, contain recipes for alcoholic beverages that would have been enjoyed as a cloudy makgeolli.\n\nMakgeolli can be made easily and at low cost simply with rice and nuruk. As a result, it was easily affordable, and it became the alcohol to sooth the sorrows of ordinary people. Makgeolli quenched the thirst of farmers throughout the working season. Korean farm laborers used to say, “If it all pays the same, I’d rather offer a hand to the farmhouse serving the most delicious makgeolli.”\n\nMakgeolli was also an indispensable element in ritual ceremonies and celebrations or mourning. Many traditions featuring makgeolli as a ritual drink have been transmitted to the present. The milky rice wine is still presented as an offering in many modern ceremonies commemorating, for example, the completion of a building, purchase of a new car, or opening of shops.\n\nIn a nutshell, the tradition of making and sharing makgeolli has been evaluated as a worth entry onto the national intangible heritage list for the following reasons: its transmission across the Korean Peninsula for ages; its historicity is supported by documents; it serves as an interesting subject of study in diverse academic fields such as history, food sciences, and folklore studies; and its association with a wide range of farmers’ songs, folkloric sayings, and literary work; among other reasons."\n\nPhoto : Makgeolli in a bowl. Public domain image.Year2021NationSouth Korea
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Nepali Women and the Teej FestivalHindu Nepali women celebrate a huge festival—one of the biggest occasions in Nepal—known as teej. It takes place on the third day of Shuklapaksha in Bhadra (normally in August or early September). The mythical explanation of teej purports that Hamalay’s daughter Goddess Parvati went through a rigorous fasting for 108 years known as hari talika teej with the desire to have Lord Shiva as her husband. Having witnessed the willingness of the Goddess to be with him, Lord Shiva accepted her as his wife. Goddess Parvati’s spirit, devotion, and strong intention generally compose the story upon which teej festival is grounded. Inevitably, Nepalese women have come to see teej as a venue for them to show their devotion to their significant other. If unmarried, they celebrate teej as a symbolic prayer to someday have a good husband.\n\nIn a highly male-dominated society such as that of Nepal, this kind of festival rings the idea of female subjugation and puts women empowerment in question. Does teej, a Nepali heritage as it is, survive a misogynistic culture? How do women (re)create themselves in a festival created by men for men? To put these inquires in context, it should be noted that Nepali women have historically been regarded as inferior objects. In the old days, if married, women would not be allowed to visit their hometown; they would not be given easy access to basic needs of living such as communication and transportation. teej is, again, a festival created by men symbolically for men, but it also is, and absolutely a venue for women. Nepali women use this opportunity to be with others to share their sorrow, happiness, and other deep emotions in togetherness. It has been reported that women use Teej as an assembly to collect funds for women-centered causes, taking advantage of the big occasion to raise development issues.\n\nteej remains as an important festival in Nepal, a surviving cultural vein of the South Asian nation. It honors Nepalese folk life, folk songs, and ancient Nepali music. Wearing red attire with fancy ornaments, participating in singing, dancing, and eating dar (a particular food in Teej) are the main activities in the festival. These days, both women and men observe the festival, recognizing its cultural value\n\nPhoto : CONTRIBUTED BY ANIL GANDHARBAYear2017NationNepal
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A Look into Jeju: Living in Harmony with NatureJeju is a volcanic island filled with stones. Previous eruptions have produced volcanic bombs (large volcanic rocks) scattered around, covering the whole island. This is why it is difficult to cultivate crops in Jeju. Since the thirteenth century, the people of Jeju have been making stone walls to secure farmlands. The total length of stone walls is estimated at 22,100 km. These stone walls look like they are heaped up randomly. However, Jeju people’s wisdom is time-tested, unassumingly sturdy, hidden in those walls. Because the island is prone to strong winds all throughout the year, taking note of typhoons in the summer, they built the stone walls like roughly-heaped stones with holes to let the wind pass through, weakening the possibility of structural collapse.\n\nTamna is Jeju’s old name. The beginning of Tamna is illustrated by Samseong myth. Legend has it that three demigods emerged from holes in the ground. The ground is called samseonghyeol, which is still considered as a sacred place. The emergence from the ground shows difference in cultural archetype from the birth myth of the mainland involving the egg from the heavens. There are 18,000 gods and goddesses in Jeju. Jeju people believe that god lives in everything. Such belief is shaped by Jeju’s naturally difficult tendencies. As people in Jeju battle with endless wind and water shortage due to the island’s barren volcanic environment, they rely on gods to adapt to the roughness of Jeju.\n\nThere are Bonhyangdang Shrines, the house of gods protecting people’s livelihoods. simbangs (shaman in Jeju dialect) act as intermediary between Jeju people and gods. They perform yeongdeunggut in the second lunar month for haenyeo (female divers) and fishermen who depend on the sea for a living. The Yeongdeung is the goddess of the wind, who can raise the waves, which is why she is deemed important for the safety of people pursuing the sea. Jeju Chilmeoridang Yeongdeunggut, the representative yeongdeunggut in Jeju, was listed as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity of UNESCO in 2009. There are many other rituals for gods and goddesses of the sea, which are held in roughly 30 areas in Jeju during the same month. There are many stories related to goddesses in Jeju. Different from goddesses in other countries, Jeju goddesses neither depend on nor belong to gods. This is a characteristic shown by Grandmother Seolmundae, the giant who created the island by carrying soil in her skirts; Grandmother Samseung, the goddess of babies; and Jacheongbi, the goddess of farming. Jeju women have high self-esteem unlike those in patriarchal East Asian societies following Confucian teachings. They also participate in the economy more actively than their counterparts in other regions in Korea. Jeju haenyeo is a representative example of women’s participation in the economy. In 2016, the Culture of Jeju Haenyeo was inscribed on the Representative the List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO during the eleventh Session of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. It shows matriarchal characteristics of Jeju. In Jeju where the soil is not fit for rice farming, many women became divers to find food from the sea and learned how to cooperate with each other.\n\nDespite the unique challenges in the island, Jeju people have used nature without destroying it, depending on 18,000 gods and neighbors. Such characteristics form the core of the Jeju culture.\n\nPhoto : Jeju haenyeo (female divers) crossing low stone walls to get to the sea © Jeju Haenyeo MuseumYear2017NationSouth Korea
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2018 Auckland Tamaki Herenga Waka Festival: Celebrating Maori CultureThe Auckland Tamaki Herenga Waka Festival will be held on Auckland’s waterfront and harbor over the Auckland Anniversary Weekend, 27 to 29 January 2018. Traditionally, with Auckland being home to more than 180 ethnicities, the region has featured various types of Maori presence including Maori waka (canoes) during the weekend. And in the recent years, this tradition has been celebrated as a festival, a result from collaboration among the Mana Whenua; nineteen iwi (tribal groups) authorities of Tamaki Makaurau; the Auckland Tourism, Events and Economic Development (ATEED) on behalf of the Auckland Council.\n\nThroughout the three-day festival, many activities related to traditional and contemporary Maori culture will be featured. The activities are designed to boost harmonious understanding of the Maori culture to both children and adults by blending traditional and modern elements.\n\nThe program consists of music, games and craft activities, storytelling, and waka parades and rides. Sunday, 28 January, is the peak of the festival, hosting an array of waka activities such as waka paddling and a waka carving demonstration. On the same day, participants can visit village workshops to experience traditional arts and craft like toi (Maori arts), weaving, and carving. At the ANZ Viaduct events center, several art exhibitions will take place. There will also be a booth of modern digital games in the venue. Next to the Viaduct basin, people can experience waka sailing throughout the festival.\n\nThe festival has become a host of celebrated events during the Auckland Anniversary Weekend in just a short period of time. The 2018 Auckland Tamaki Herenga Waka Festival program is expected to be enjoyed by the locals and tourists, marking a scene to celebrate Maori history and heritage as well as the contemporary culture of Tamaki Makaurau.\n\nAdmission is free; however, partial payments may be collected in some tour zones and market places for food or souvenirs. The festival’s full program is available here.\n\nPhoto : Youth experiencing waka culture © Auckland Tamaki Herenga Waka FestivalYear2018NationNew Zealand
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Celebrating Festivals During a Global PandemicNepal was famously referred to as “the land where there are nearly as many temples as houses and as many idols as inhabitants” by Sir William Kirkpatrick in his book Account of the mission to Nepaul in 1811 CE. This quote holds testimony to the numerous festivals celebrated throughout the year until today to commemorate these idols and temples. Since the seventh century CE, one such ancient festival has had continuity to relieve Kathmandu Valley from a long drought. The god being appeased in this festival was Matsyendranath, the god of rain, from which the festival received its name Rato Matsyendranath Jatra.\n\nAccording to legend, the drought was relieved by bringing a Matsyendranath from Kamarup-Kamakhya (now in east India). The king sent his team—the priest Bandhudatta, a farmer, and the serpent king Karkotaka. The entourage returned successfully and entered the valley through Bungamati, where the locals greeted them with much adoration and built a temple for the serpent king to reside. However, being from Patan, the farmer insisted on having the residence of the deity at Patan too. Since then, the festival has been celebrated in Patan and Bugamati without interruption.\n\nThis festival is celebrated just before the monsoon season (mid-April to May) as a harbinger of the rains. The festivity extends over a month and is the longest among the many festivals Nepalis celebrate. Astrologers are consulted for the events involved in this festival. The local community constructs an elaborate eighteen-meter-tall wooden chariot, which is assembled and dismantled annually. The deity is placed in the chariot on a throne, and the indigenous inhabitants of Kathmandu Valley pull the chariot around Patan. As the chariot rests at various locations, locals venerate the deity, offering incenses, flowers, and other items. Some people light oil lamps to ask for the general well-being of their families. The priest escorting the deity inside the chariot hands out flowers and fruit to devotees. The light from the lamps makes the chariot glow. In the evening, people invite extended families and friends and indulge in a feast of traditional food and drinks and merrymaking. After completing the tour, the deity is carried in a palanquin to its second home at Bungamati.\n\nThis year, the global pandemic changed the events of this festival. The government, rightly prioritizing citizens’ health, requested the organizing communities to cancel the festival. However, the organizers were keen to celebrate at least a low-key festival because the initial processes had already begun. Furthermore, they opined that the festival was celebrated to overcome a disaster in the past, so it should continue to avoid further tragedies. The public, impatient with the chariot festival’s delay, forcefully started pulling the chariot, disregarding social-distancing measures ordered by the state. The sight of a large mob would entice the police to use force to disperse the crowd, leading to a violent clash. The organizing committee decided to make a symbolic movement of the chariot. All other festival activities were canceled, so a ritual will be conducted to ask the god for forgiveness for the mishaps of the festival.\n\nThis is a very unpleasant situation, which could be handled better by the state. A similar chariot festival in Kathmandu, Kumari Jatra, which falls around August, was not celebrated on a joint decision of the state and the organizers. However, at Patan, the situation was slightly different; the initial rituals had already commenced before COVID 19. The government should have regarded the people’s commitment to providing continuity to ICH even during such times of crisis.\n\nNepal is known for having more festivals than the number of days in a year. If the state had been more diplomatic, it could have set an example to the world by celebrating all festivals in the presence of only the concerned people and authorities while broadcasting a live telecast for people all over Nepal and globally. With such negligence by the state, festivals and other ICH of a country can be lost.\n\nPhoto : Armed Police Force stand guard in front of the chariot of Deity Rato Machindranath. Skanda Gautam/THTYear2020NationNepal
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Thailand’s Vow to Buddhism in the Hae Pha Khuen That FestivalDerived from a Buddhist belief, the Hae Pha Khuen That Festival is centuries-old and still practiced to today. The event is a gathering of Buddhists parading in streets, carrying cloth called pha bot to wrap around the stupa that houses the relic of Buddha. According to the legend, the tradition of wrapping cloth around the stupa originated during the reign of the King Si Thamma Sokkarat, the first monarch of the Tam Porn Link Kingdom and founder of Nakorn Si Thammarat. At that time, the stupa had been just built, and the king heard that some people on a voyage to Sri Lanka to bring pha bot as an offering had sunk into the sea due to a violent storm. The King then decided to bring the cloth to wrap around the newly made stupa to pay homage to Buddha and celebrate his new constructed relic house.\n\nNowadays, Hae Pha Khuen That takes place yearly at Wat Phra Mahathat Worramahawihan, a royal temple in Nakorn Si Thammarat Province in southern Thailand, where the aforementioned stupa is located. The event is held on the full moon day of the third lunar month (Makha Bucha Day), a religious holiday; it usually falls in February. This year, it will be held from 13 to 19 February 2019. The most important activity of the event is carrying the pha bot to warp around the main stupa, inside of which is the relic of Buddha. Locals of Nakorn Si Thammarat and people from other parts of Thailand are expected to take part in a parade carrying more than a thousand yards of yellow or white cloth from the main city to the temple and walk around the stupa three times before covering the stupa with the cloth. It is believed that participating in the activity brings good luck to life and families.\n\nIn addition to wrapping cloth around the main stupa, there will be lots of entertainment and cultural activities such as chants, sermons, meditation, food offerings, exhibitions, and a cultural product market as well as light and sound shows all day and all night during the festival. Hae Pha Khuen That is famous all over Thailand. In 2014, Hae Pha Khuen That Festival was inscribed by the Department of Cultural Promotion, Ministry of Culture, as National ICH in the category of Social Practices, Rituals and Festival. The festival has been in practice for generations, celebrating the blessing of and faith in Buddha.\n\nA festival guide for 2019 is available online at http://www.thaifestivalblogs.com/hae-pha-khuen-that-festival/\n\nPhoto : Hae Pha Khuen That Festival @ Department of Cultural Promotion of ThailandYear2019NationThailand
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Loy Krathong Festival of ThailandLoy Krathong Festival is a yearly event in Thailand on the full moon night of the twelfth lunar month, usually in November. This festival has a long history dating back to the Sukhothai era and continuously maintains its popularity in the present. It is a local ritual in honor of the goddess of water to get rid of misfortunes for a better future. During the festival, people gather by a river or canal float krathong, a basket made of banana trunk and leaves in the shape of a blooming lotus. This performance is more of a prayer that the krathong will take their hardships and bad luck far away. Traditionally, families make at least one krathong as beautiful as they can, decorated with various flowers, candles, and joss sticks. Strands of hair, nails, clothes, and money are sometimes placed in the krathong, too. Before floating it, people light the candle and joss sticks and make a wish, asking for forgiveness from the goddess of water for any deeds that may have disappointed her, and ask her to take their bad luck away.\n\nThis ritualistic performance is practiced throughout Thailand, though each location has its own way of performing it. There are also some fun activities during the festival such as the Best Krathong Competition to honor the most beautiful and creative krathong, Noppamas beauty pageant to crown a beautiful and smart girl (named after Noppamas, a beautiful consort of the King Lethai’s grandson during the Sukhothai era), fireworks display, traditional costume display, and many other traditional entertainment and performances.\n\nLooking into how the festival has been carried out over the last decade, people have come up with more resourceful and impressive ways to participate in the festival. Some have used foam or plastic and artificial decorations to make a lighter krathong that can float well on water. In response to global warming, people have also become more vigilant in using eco-friendly materials in creating Krathong. For example, a krathong-shaped bread has already been created for the festival; it didn’t leave waste on the water, and it also served as a fish food. Commonly, banana trunks and leaves have also been used to create krathong.\n\nPhoto : Loy krathong ⓒ Department of Cultural PromotionYear2018NationThailand
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Different Communities in Nepal Celebrates Shrawan Shukla PurnimaNepal is a diverse country, which is reflected in the rituals, traditional festivals and practices. Even the same day is celebrated by different ethnic communities with different practices and even name it differently. One of the examples is the celebration of full moon on Shrawan Shukla, which fell on 22nd August this year. Different communities within Nepal celebrated this day in different ways.\n\nFor the shamans of ethnic communites: Tamang, Magar, Rai, Limbu, and Gurung, who are commonly known as Jhakris, Shrawan Shukla’s full moon day is an important day. They perform special rituals in the various temples. In the sacred sites like Gosaikunda Lake in the mountain, there is an annual fair. Shamans trek to those sites and perform rituals along with singing and dancing the whole night. Also the junior shamans get graduated from the senior shaman after special rituals. Besides shaman many trek for days to reach those sites for this day and watch the shamans perform and pay homage to the site.\n\nBrahmins celebrate this day as Janai Purnima. On this day they change the sacred thread called Janai, which they wear on their body. People are seen taking bath in the holy rivers and lakes, after performing the rituals and changing sacred thread. Many Hindus also tie a sacred thread on their wrist with the Brahmin priest. Many priests are seen within the premises of different temples (either Hindu or Buddhist), tying the threads on the wrists and putting tika (mixture of vermilion and uncooked rice) on the forehead in exchange of some offerings.\n\nMadeshi communites of Nepal celebrate this day as a Rakshaya Bandahan or Rakhi. This is the special day for brothers and sisters as sisters tie a sacred thread with decorations on the wrist of brothers. Brothers showers sisters with gifts in return. This is a beautiful ritual to strengthen the bond between siblings and celebrate. Brothers and sisters travel a long distance to reach the place of their brothers/ sisters to celebrate this day. Rakhi is also celebrated in most of the communiites in India as well. Now a lot of non-Madeshi communites in Nepal are also celebrating this ritual of tying rakhi on brother’s wrist. This tradition is now crossing the ethnic and communal boundaries, and setting the example of cultural acceptance.\n\nLikewise, Newa communities of Nepal celebrate this day as Kwati Punhi. On this day nine different beans soup are eaten known as Kwati, which literally translates as hot liquid. Also the offerings of these beans mixtures to different deities and temples are done. Traditionally the day to eat protein rich food was set after the laborious work of monsoon in paddy field.\n\nThe same day Newa community also performs the rituals called Byā jā nakegu, the ritual to feed rice and beans to frogs. This is an ancient farming tradition, which is still continued in the outskirts of cities of Kathmandu. Farmers believe frogs help in bringing rain that is important for paddy planation. Still many farmers are seen will small portions of beans and cooked rice in small green leaves and leaving in the field.\n\nThis day not only reflects the cultural and ethnic diversity in Nepal but also deep-rooted connection of nature, people and practices. Either be it a Shaman ritual or Hindu rituals of changing sacred thread, all have associations with nature. Not just the continuity of the practices but we also need to teach the underlying message of nature conservation and suitability to the younger generations.\n\nPhoto : Hindu Priests tying sacred thread to people in the premise of temples © Monalisa MaharjanYear2021NationNepal