Mexican food on heritage hot list

HOPPING Luxembourgers, scissor dancers from Peru, human towers from Spain and Turks wrestling in cooking oil will be smiling this weekend after they all won a place on Unesco’s list of intangible world heritages which has been unveiled in the Kenyan capital of Nairobi.

Mexican and French food, the Peking Opera and Spanish Flamenco were also included on the list which was started in 2003 to preserve art forms and other traditions in the face of globalisation. Some 47 traditions from 11 countries were added to it this week.

Among the lesser known traditions to feature are an ancient hopping procession in Luxembourg’s border village of Echternach; a blade-twirling scissor-dancing ritual from Peru’s Chanka region which dates from the 16th century; human towers built by members of amateur groups as part of annual festivities in Catalonia; and the 650-year-old Kirkpinar festival in Turkey which involves dozens of men wrestling in cooking oil.

The Peruvian dance was banned for centuries by Spanish conquistadors and the Catholic church who damned it as a pagan ritual and even after the country won independence it was banned for decades by successive governments who declared it to be satanic.

The loosely defined French diet which, Unesco said included growing and consuming olive oil, cereals, fresh or dried fruit and vegetables, was also honoured with recognition on the list.

The aim is to recognise elements of living heritage in a bid to protect cultural diversity and foster a sense of community. To be on the list, traditions must be deemed to spread knowledge of intangible cultural heritage and protective measures must be taken to promote them. Some 229 practices are now on the list. Practices on the list are given grants to help countries finance their protection.