HK announces first intangible cultural heritage inventory

Cantonese opera is listed on Hong Kong's first intangible cultural heritage inventory.[Photo/Xinhua]

Cantonese opera, Dragon Boat Festival and traditional Chinese medicine together with more than 470 items are on the list of Hong Kong's first intangible cultural heritage inventory which was made public on Tuesday.

The inventory, including a total of 480 items, is the result of over three years of a territory-wide research and data collection, as well as a public consultation held last year, a spokesman for the Leisure and Cultural Services Department (LCSD) said when making the announcement.

The spokesman said the government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region will devise and implement a host of enhanced safeguarding measures which will include establishing a mechanism for updating the list of items regularly and for receiving public proposals.

According to the Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage adopted by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in 2003, the intangible cultural heritage is manifested in five domains comprising oral traditions and expressions, including language as a vehicle of the ICH; performing arts; social practices, rituals and festive events; knowledge and practices concerning nature and the universe; and traditional craftsmanship.

The 480 inventory items of Hong Kong covered in these five domains include oral legends of lineages, Cantonese opera, jiao festivals, the Dragon Boat Festival, the Yu Lan Festival, fire dragon dances, traditional Chinese medicine and the technique for making a guqin, an ancient stringed instrument.