Intangible heritage: A fluid concept

Normally, given the mobility and variability of this subject, the concepts that help scholars in their analyses of cultural phenomena require constant updating and fresh reflection over the course of time. The planet changes, societies and people change, along with their needs, expectations and aspirations, and consequently, the interpretative paradigms must display a degree of ductility. For this reason, the current definition of Intangible Cultural Heritage can be seen as the result of a long process that has been informed by the debate unfolding in the anthropological sphere about the concepts of culture, folklore and tradition, which I will touch upon very briefly. This chapter is divided into two parts: in the first part, I seek to briefly illustrate the content of this debate and the positions adopted by some of the main authors involved; in the second, I look at UNESCO s policies regarding the identification and safeguard of cultural heritage and the contribution of anthropological reflection to the definition of intangible heritage.