British Christmas traditions, including pantomime, carol singing, and wreath-making may soon receive protected status under the 2003 Unesco Convention for Safeguarding Intangible Cultural Heritage, which the UK government has confirmed it will ratify. The system safeguards crafts, practices, and traditions that provide people with a sense of identity around the world. Meanwhile, a wide range of traditions, including Argentine tango, Belgian beer culture, Chinese shadow puppetry, Italian dry-stone walling, and Croatian gingerbread crafting, already enjoy protected status.
Lord Parkinson, the arts and heritage minister, believes that the UK is wealthy in traditions that have been passed down from generation to generation and that these have helped to form our communities. Sea shanties, calligraphy, and tartan could all receive protection alongside famous landmarks such as the Tower of London, Fountain’s Abbey, and the Giant’s Causeway, which enjoy Unesco world-heritage status.
In addition, members of the public can provide input on which values and customs should be celebrated and how the adjudication process should work when determining which nominated values to choose. The Department for Culture, Media, and Sport says they will collaborate with the devolved nations to ensure that the nomination process represents all territories before presenting them to parliament to ratify with Unesco in the spring of 2024.
Traditions that are being considered include Hogmanay, Burns Night, Shrove Tuesday, and the Welsh tradition of Eisteddfodau, as well as dancing, bagpipe playing, cheese-rolling, Welsh valley male voice choirs, basket-weaving, thatching, and the creation of tartan and tweed. Other traditions that may be added include Notting Hill Carnival and steel-drumming, which have been introduced to the UK by immigrant communities.
The system aims to preserve practices that have been inherited from ancestors and passed down through generations, ensuring that they continue to form an integral part of our communities
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