Bulgaria - Mr. Nikolai Vukov, Institute of Ethnology and Folklore Studies with Ethnographic Museum (IEFSEM) – Bulgarian Academy of Sciences

1. Implementation of the 2003 Convention of
UNESCO in Bulgaria
Nikolai Vukov
Institute of Ethnology and Folklore Studies with Ethnographic
Museum (IEFSEM) – Bulgarian Academy of Sciences
Seventh Annual Regional meeting on Intangible Cultural Heritage
“New strategies for sustainable development, tourism and partnership”
Sofia, Bulgaria, 27-28 May 2013

2. General policies
 National Council of Intangible Cultural Heritage –
at the Ministry of Culture
 National System “Living Human Treasures”
 National Center for ICH at the Institute of Folklore
Studies with Ethnographic Museum (IEFSEM) at
the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences
 Partnership between institutions
 Regional Center for Intangible Cultural Heritage in
Sofia

3. Living Human Treasures
 “LHT – Bulgaria. Inventory of activities” – the
Institute of Folklore and the Ministry of Culture
(since 2001, handed officially in 2002);
 Questionnaire
 Inventory, methodical guidelines, analythical texts
 2005 – “Bistritsa Grannies – Archaic Poliphony,
Dance and Practices from the Shoplouk region”
 2009 – “Nestinarstvo – Messages from the Past”
 The creation of an archival fund of ICH
 The procedure of proposing and selecting
nominations

4. Legislation
 The new Law of Cultural Heritage (February 2009) –
substituted the Law for monuments of culture and
museums (1969)
 It introduced new categories of cultural heritage:
“intangible and material moveable and immoveable
heritage as a set of cultural values that bear historical
memory, national identity and have scholarly or cultural
value” (article 2)
 The expanded range of objects considered as cultural
heritage – intangible, industrial, underwater, audiovisual
heritage, cultural landscape, etc.
 Experts from IEFSEM – BAS developed the text on ICH
 The need of steps for legislative improvement

5. Inventorying ICH
 National Inventory: Traditional holidays and rituals; Traditional
singing and dancing; Traditional narration; Traditional crafts
and household activities; Traditional medicine
 Regional Inventory – by the 28 administrative regions;
 Prospects:
- Further expanding the inventorying of certain realms of
traditional culture;
- The need to work more on inventories’ updating;
- Elements in need of urgent safeguarding;
- The on-going process of awareness raising;
- Digitalization

6. Consultative bodies and networks
 The National Expert Council of ICH;
 The Expert Council of IEFSEM;
 The National Center of ICH at IEFSEM;
 Regional Cultural and Information Centers;
 Regional governments;
 The network of the cultural centers (chitalishta)
and museums;
 Regional forums (fairs, festivals, overviews of
folklore and regional traditions)

7. Main activities for safeguarding ICH
 Measures taken for awareness raising
 Educational programmes;
 Media campaigns;
 Activities organized by the Regional Center in
Sofia for the Safeguarding of ICH in
Southeastern Europe;
 Six new nominations for UNESCO’s
Representative List and Register of Best
Safeguarding Practices

8. Bulgaria’s nominations for 2013
For the Representative List:
 The Folk Feast Surova in Pernik Region;
 Visoko multipart singing from Dolen and Satovcha;
 Chiprovtsi Carpets;
 Nedelino Two-part Singing;
For the Register of Best Safeguarding Practices:
 The Festival of Folklore in Koprivshtitsa;
 The Bulgarian Chitalishte

9. Benefits of the nomination process
 accummulation and utilization of expert potential;
 strengthening of productive expert capacity;
 training and development of key competencies;
 continuing collaboration between IEFSEM and
the Ministry of Culture;
 active partnership with communities in preparing
the nominations;
 enhanced collaboration with the Regional Center

10. Opportunities and challenges
 National inventory policies
 The management of sustainable cultural
tourism
 The involvement of local communities,
community centered safeguarding
 The issue of transmission
 The transnational dimension of ICH
 Training and capacity building