Paradigm Shift Regarding the Protection of Intangible Cultural Assets: Based on “Kimjang: Making and Sharing Kimchi,” Recently Recommended for the Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity

Since the Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage was declared by UNESCO in 2003, Korea has been acknowledged as a leading country in the protection of intangible cultural heritage, having already listed 15 items in the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. Such items account for 30\% of Asia-Pacific countries’ items. Note, however, that there is a fundamental difference between Korea’s protection system for intangible cultural assets, which has been implemented since 1962, and the Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage as an international convention. Although the convention defined intangible cultural heritages to be protected by humanity as those a community sets high value on, Korean law stipulates that only valuable heritages in terms of historical, artistic, and intellectual significance can be listed as intangible cultural heritage. Such led to relatively insufficient consensus on acknowledging value and necessity for the protection of cultural heritages transmitted among almost all Korean people, such as “Kimjang: Making and Sharing Kimchi.”Since the Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage took effect in 2006, and the Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity was implemented in 2008, the Korean government kept listing Important Intangible Cultural Properties by priority in the Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity and fixed its hierarchy. Considering this, efforts to add “Kimjang: Making and Sharing Kimchi” in the Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity have significance in terms of the paradigm shift regarding the protection of Korea’s Intangible Cultural Assets as follows;First, by recommending non-designated cultural heritage for the Representative List, these efforts let the Korean government and people realize the significance of non-designated cultural heritage, accepting the definition and boundary of intangible cultural heritage as set by the Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage.Second, all community members took part in enlisting “Kimjang: Making and Sharing Kimchi,” which reminded them of their role of protecting cultural heritage.To date, discussions regarding the protection method after listing have yet to be held, whereas more efforts were made to list more items in the Representative List. A reflective review is deemed needed at present given the abovementioned negative trend noted when “Kimjang: Making and Sharing Kimchi” was recommended for the Representative List, since misusing the listing in the Representative List to flaunt Korea’s cultural superiority defeats the fundamental aims of the Representative List.