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What is a Cultural Heritage?

HeritageForAll on Monday 24 April 2017

Heritage is each moment in our life. It is a great term using the past in the present to develop the future vision (Baram, 2014, pp. 4674 – 4676). It reforms our identity into the framework of our current socio-cultural needs (Smith, 2015, p. 460). So, H. E. UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova has been collected between the concepts of culture and heritage as powerful tools for dialogue and social cohesion (UNESCO, 2014).

Cultural heritage has a high significance in the life of the majority of people. They obtain a connection to certain social values, believes, traditions and customs. So, heritage sites are considered a focal point contributing to the quality of life and heritage identity of our societies. Regarding Bura charter (the Australia ICOMOS charter for Places of Cultural Significance, 1999), cultural heritage has four perspective of significance: historical, aesthetic, social, and scientific significance (ICOMOS, 1999a).

There are numerous international organizations, conventions, and declarations which were identified the meaning of “Cultural Heritage”. The majority of professionals agree with UNESCO World Heritage Convention (1972) identifying the term of cultural heritage. Cultural heritage is included both types, tangible and intangible heritage. Tangible cultural heritage is monuments, and groups of buildings which are of outstanding universal value from the point of view of history, art or science; as well as, the archaeological sites which are of outstanding universal value from the historical, aesthetic, ethnological or anthropological point of view(UNESCO, 2013). So, UNESCO World Heritage Centre puts six criteria or outstanding universal values which regarding, it inscribes the cultural heritage on the world heritage list (UNESCO World Heritage Centre, n.d.).

UNESCO World Heritage Center
Nomination of Tangible Cultural Heritage
Source: www.ccivs.org/imgs/unesco.jpg
UNESCO World Heritage Center
Nomination of Intangible Cultural Heritage
Source: www.gwa.ge/upload/picture/UNESCO-Intangible_Cultural_Heritage_Logo3.png?w=240

Regarding UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage (UNESCO, 2003), the “intangible cultural heritage” means the practices, linguistic expressions, traditional craftsmanship, and so on that communities and in some cases, individuals recognize as part of their cultural identity and transmits via generations respecting cultural diversity and human creativity. Hence, legislator arranged the following as intangible cultural heritage:

  1. Oral traditions and expressions, including language as a vehicle of the intangible cultural heritage;

  2. Performing arts;

  3. Social practices, rituals and festive events;

  4. Knowledge and practices concerning nature and the universe;

  5. Traditional craftsmanship.


Architectural heritage is a term which scholar usually called on buildings that were constructed due to the interaction between the human being and the surrounding environment, whatever its type, to be subjected to the social, economic, cultural, and climatic factors. In October 1999, International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) asserted, through “Charter on the Built Vernacular Heritage”, that

The built vernacular heritage is a focus of contemporary life and at the same time a record of the history of society. It is the fundamental expression of the culture of a community, of its relationship with its territory and, at the same time, the expression of the world's cultural diversity. Vernacular building is the traditional and natural way by which communities house themselves. It is a continuing process including necessary changes and continuous adaptation as a response to social and environmental constraints. (ICOMOS, 1999b)

​So, we can understand that architectural heritage can add a variety to the urban context within the city. It proves the local or individual requirements as a main part of common memory. Architectural heritage represents specific values for the human beings. Consequently, the conservation of architectural heritage is very significant progress to protect our cultural identity, and memories. It is considered as a covenant preserving our authentic history.

As seen within our modern community, modernization perspective has high impact on the cultural heritage. This perspective is associated with the economic development making great changes in the cultural identity of the local community. So, the local community is automatically pushed for satisfying its economic and social requirements (needs and wants). By the way, this style of thinking is mainly contributed to loss our cultural heritage and subsequently, our local identity.

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