Intangible Cultural Heritage: The Living Culture of Peoples
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Intangible cultural heritage (ICH), made up of all immaterial manifestations of culture, represents the variety of living heritage of humanity as well as the most important vehicle of cultural diversity. The main ‘constitutive factors’ of ICH are represented by the ‘self-identification’ of this heritage as an essential element of the cultural identity of its creators and bearers; by its constant recreation in response to the historical and social evolution of the communities and groups concerned; by its connection with the cultural identity of these communities and groups; by its authenticity; and by its indissoluble relationship with human rights. The international community has recently become conscious that ICH needs and deserves international safeguarding, triggering a legal process which culminated with the adoption in 2003 of the UNESCO Convention on the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage. This Convention correctly highlights the main elements of ICH and is based on the right philosophical rationale, but its operational part – structured on the model provided by the 1972 World Heritage Convention – appears to be inadequate to ensure appropriate safeguarding of the specificities of intangible heritage. This article argues that to correct such inadequacy, international safeguarding of ICH must rely on the concomitant application, even though in an indirect manner, of international human rights law, for the reason that ICH represents a component of cultural human rights and an essential prerequisite to ensure the actual realization and enjoyment of individual and collective rights of its creators and bearers.
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The cultural variety of humanity is progressively and dangerously tending towards uniformity.
“As Lenzerini [15] (p.103) argues “the cultural variety of humanity is progressively and dangerously tending towards uniformity””
From Digital Storytelling in Cultural Heritage: Audience Engagement in the Interactive Documentary New Life (2021) · cites this paper as Lenzerini [15]
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- Authors
- Lenzerini, F.
- Affiliations
- University of Siena (IT)
- Corresponding author
- Lenzerini, F.
- ORCID
- Lenzerini, F.
- Venue
- European Journal of International Law
- Publisher
- Oxford University Press (OUP)
- Published
- 2011-02-01
- Volume
- 22
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 101-120
- ISSN
- 0938-5428 (ISSN-L)
- 1464-3596
- OpenAlex
- W2075586279
- Cited by
- 563
- References
- 0
- Citations by year
- 2026: 93 · 2025: 99 · 2024: 80 · 2023: 65 · 2022: 68 · 2021: 34 · 2020: 34 · 2019: 22 · 2018: 16 · 2017: 15 · 2016: 14 · 2015: 5 · 2014: 9 · 2013: 5 · 2012: 3
- FWCI
- 45.24
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Locations
- European Journal of International Law (publishedVersion)
- Use Siena air (University of Siena) (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › Archeology › Cultural Heritage Management and Preservation
- Social Sciences › Law › Indigenous Peoples' Rights and Law
- Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › Archeology › Cultural Identity and Heritage
- Keywords
- intangible cultural heritage, UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage, cultural identity, authenticity, cultural diversity, World Heritage Convention, international human rights law, collective rights
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