(from the Associated Press in Bali via the Guardian, 11/29.)
Mexican mariachi music, Chinese shadow puppetry and poetic duelling from Cyprus were among the cultural traditions which have been identified by the United Nations as in need of protection.
Also added to the intangible cultural heritage list – now in its second year and nearly 250-strong – were French-style horseback riding, which celebrates harmony between beast and man, the fado songs of Portugal and Jultagi tightrope walking from Korea.
The Unesco intergovernmental committee – wrapping up its week-long meeting in Bali, Indonesia – was looking at oral traditions, art forms, and rituals handed down from one generation to the next.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/nov/29/unesco-endangered-cultural-traditions-heritage