fbpx
Connect with us

News

UNESCO Just Recognised Malaysia’s Pantun & Wangkang Festival As World’s Intangible Cultural Heritage!

Published

63437Ca6 414F 4783 98Cd 84E7B2E36879
For illustrative purposes | Source: The Leaders Online & Lan Todak/Youtube

Follow us on Facebook, Youtube, Twitter, and Instagram for the latest stories and updates daily.

Let’s keep our cultural heritage alive guys!

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has recently officially listed two of Malaysia’s cultural heritage within the list of Intagible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. As reported by national news agency, Bernama, the listing were made through a multinational nomination whereby pantun was nominated alongside Indonesia while the wangkang ceremony was nominated alongside the People’s Republic of China.

F294726A Eb11 428E 99F3 0E62Faed7D70

The wangkang ceremony performed in melaka.

In case you didn’t know, the wangkang or barge festival had existed in Melaka since 1854. It is a procession of ships inviting wandering souls, evil spirits and other negative elements where they will then be sent away into the unknown. The Chinese community believes that the effort was to bring peace, prosperity and happiness to a certain place.

Meanwhile, Pantun is an old Malay poem that usually consists of four lines in each stanza. The first two lines are hints and the other two carries the actual meaning.

5B1De6F5 E11B 4874 88B5 80573C415961

Contestants during the 2018 national pantun competition.

Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister, Datuk Seri Nancy Shukri said,

“This decision was announced on Dec 17 during the 15th session of the Intergovernmental Committee  for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage which is ongoing until Dec 19.”

Furthermore, she clarified that the listing was decided by the UNESCO Intergovernmental Committee for Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage which comprises of 24 member states. Pantun and wangkang ceremony are now added to the 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage that was chaired by Jamaica.

55288905 22D2 4B09 A902 3F86Ad52533E

The performance of the wangkang ceremony.

Nancy also stressed that the listing showed our country’s commitment to protecting its intangible cultural heritage. Moreover, this has indirectly raised Malaysia’s image in the eyes of the world for being one of the world’s treasures which in turn would lead to more tourists coming to our country.

She also urged all parties including the government, private sectors, NGOs, local communities and even individuals to ensure that our cultural heritage to live on and be preserved for our future generations.

With the addition of pantun and the wangkang ceremony, Malaysia now has 5 intangible cultural heritage listed by UNESCO, which are:

  1. Mak Yong (listed 2005)
  2. Dondang Sayang (listed 2018)
  3. Silat (listed 2019)
  4. Pantun (listed 2020)
  5. Wangkang ceremony (listed 2020)

Awesome! Let’s keep this cultural heritage alive by practising them and teaching them to the future generations. On a side note, seeing how we got 5 intangible cultural heritage recognised by UNESCO, it indirectly means that we are all men and women of culture. 😛

5Fd2Fdea C820 4Cbf B8F6 Fab63Fc13A3A

 

Also read: 8 Things You Probably Didn’t Know About The Baba Nyonya Culture But You Should!

Nyonya Ft Img 1 Choice Wo

Source: UNESCO
Source: UNESCO

Follow us on Facebook, Youtube, Twitter, and Instagram for the latest stories and updates daily.



Just In

Feat Image Haniff Najib Wan Ji Feat Image Haniff Najib Wan Ji
News12 mins ago

“For security purposes” – Prominent M’sian Lawyer Says Najib Deserves Different Treatment in Jail

Previously, we shared how a former Kajang Prison inmate Wan Ji claimed that former Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak...

My Post 1 2024 03 29T144007.779 My Post 1 2024 03 29T144007.779
News55 mins ago

M’sian Mum Bashed for Accusing Foreigners of Attempted Kidnapping & Allowing Her 1YO to Walk Up Spoilt Escalator

Just a couple of days ago, 2 foreign workers were arrested for allegedly attempting to kidnap a 1-year-old child at...

Feat Image Kj Padu Feat Image Kj Padu
News2 hours ago

Khairy Jamaluddin Became Victim of Identity Theft After Someone Used His IC Number to Sign Up for PADU

Registrations for the Central Database Hub (PADU) will be closed this Sunday (31 March) and it looks like the database...

Collage123 2 Collage123 2
News2 hours ago

PETRONAS Earns the Crown of the Strongest Brand in the Oil & Gas Sector Worldwide!

With billions of cars driving on roads all around the world, using petrol is a big part of daily life...

My Post 1 2024 03 29T124131.137 My Post 1 2024 03 29T124131.137
News3 hours ago

“T20 wants to go shopping 1st” – M’sians Outraged by Delay in High-Value Goods Tax

On January 1, 2024, the Malaysian government implemented the Low-Value Goods (LVG) Tax, which imposed a 10% tax on the...

Collage 1 9 Collage 1 9
News4 hours ago

Former Inmate Claims Najib Wears Regular Clothes Like He’s at Home, Prison Dept Responds

It’s been nearly 2 years since Najib Razak went to prison but rumours about his “lifestyle” in prison is still...

Collage111 3 Collage111 3
News5 hours ago

FREE Toll for Class 1 Private Vehicles on April 8th & 9th for Hari Raya!

Exciting update for Malaysians! The government has just announced toll exemptions for Class 1 private vehicles on April 8 and...

My Post 1 2024 03 29T094758.488 My Post 1 2024 03 29T094758.488
News6 hours ago

M’sians Want to Boycott Tourism to Thailand Over Approval of Same-Sex Marriage Bill

It appears that Malaysians are becoming accustomed to boycotting, with calls to snub businesses and more should there be something...

Announcement

Latest Videos



TRENDING TODAY