Critical Reviews and Future Direction of Regional Non - government Investigations for the Protection of the Intangible Cultural Heritage– Focusing on Activities of the Muhyeogusanjigi -

As international community’s interest in selection of the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity increases, in Korea, too, the importance of national investigations for making the list of the Intangible Cultural Heritage has been brought to light. In the process of devising a suitable system to simultaneously execute bottom-up protective activities and enumeration investigations, regional volunteers now known as the“Muhyeogusanjigi”was born. This study has as an objective to compare and review voluntary activities commissioned and managed by National Institute of Korean History, National Archives of Korea, Cultural Heritage Administration and National Intangible Heritage Center and to analyze the main characteristics of the Muhyeogusanjigi activities. The analysis of the status quo of the Muhyeogusanjigi activities certainly presented a few points to improve their activities that can be maintained continuously. Details include: first, expansion of investigation methodologies for the intangible heritage through the Intangible Heritage Supporters; second, improvement of operation methods for projects that support the Muhyeogusanjigi, and proposition of models incorporating people, government officials and scholars that can lead the protection of the Intangible Cultural Heritage. The Intangible Heritage Supporters are the principal agent that can investigate and record in two ways and they have enough potential to grow and become the most ideal activist to protect the regional Intangible Cultural Heritage. It is because their activities are effective movements which can help the yet unfamiliar concept of the Intangible Cultural Heritage and its protective system properly settle down in Korea.