[Xiang Yunju] On the concept and category of "oral and intangible heritage"

[Abstract] This paper comprehensively analyzes the emergence, origin, purpose, and significance of the concept of "oral and intangible heritage" proposed by UNESCO, and theoretically analyzes and expounds its academic and disciplinary significance.

This paper carefully analyzes the category and content of this new type of heritage from both broad and narrow perspectives.

Combined with the announcement and implementation of the "Representative List of Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity", it analyzes the principles of worldliness and endangerment therein, and proposes to understand this.

The basic theoretical essence of a heritage protection action, as well as the three-level theory of conceptual categories.

[Keywords] Oral and intangible heritage; folk culture; broad concept; narrow concept

[China Map Classification Number] K892 [Literature Identification Code] A [Article Number] 1008 - 72142004) 03 - 0069 - 05

"Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity" is a newly proposed project and concept by the United Nations in protecting world cultural heritage.

In 2001, UNESCO published the first batch of "Representative Lists of Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity", which immediately aroused great repercussions around the world and quickly set off a new round of "heritage application" craze around the world.

Recently, UNESCO published the second batch of representative works.

But what is "oral and intangible heritage"? What is its value and form? Why should the United Nations protect it worldwide? People don't know much about these issues, and even academic circles are confused.

The concept of oral and intangible heritage was proposed by UNESCO to improve the protection system of world cultural heritage as a concept corresponding and symmetrical to material, site and architectural cultural heritage.

In this origin, we can also trace back to two starting points: one is the concept of "intangible cultural property" extended from the concept of "tangible cultural property" in the "Cultural Property Protection Law" proposed by the Japanese government in 1950; the other is the "Recommendation for the Protection of Folk Works" proposed by UNESCO in 1989.

These two starting points are to supplement and improve legal concepts and judicial practice, and the other is suggestions made based on a certain law.

The "Proposal for the Protection of Folk Creation" is the direct basis for the actions, articles, and bills of "Representative Works of Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity".

Therefore,"Oral and Intangible Heritage" and "Folk Creation" are more directly related and even Different expressions of the same thing.

UNESCO's Regulations on the Declaration of Representative Works of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity clearly states: "According to the Recommendation for the Protection of Folk Creation, the term 'oral and intangible heritage' is defined as 'all creations from a cultural community, which are based on tradition, expressed by a group or individuals, and are considered to be in line with the expectations of the community as an expression of its cultural and social identity; Its principles and values are passed down orally through imitation or other means, and it takes the form of language, literature, music, dance, games, mythology, etiquette, habits, handicrafts, architecture and other art.' In addition to these examples, traditional forms of communication and information will also be considered."① In the "Proposal for the Protection of Folk Creation", the so-called "folk creation" refers to "traditional folk culture".

In addition, the "Regulations" also have the following expression: "Oral and intangible heritage cultural sites or folk and traditional manifestations)."

However, in essence, there are still considerable differences between "oral and intangible heritage" and "traditional folk culture" and "folk and traditional expressions".

Oral and intangible heritage in the strict sense mainly refers to the part of cultural heritage corresponding to "tangible" and "material" cultural heritage, that is, traditional "oral culture" and "behavioral culture", including non-folk parts.

Although "traditional folk culture" is dominated by "oral culture","behavioral culture" and "folk culture", it also contains quite a lot of tangible and material contents and forms.

In fact, these two concepts are just purely theoretical differences and differences.

In real life and practice, they are difficult to distinguish.

However,"traditional culture" and "folk culture" are very different.

Traditional culture includes folk culture, and folk culture is an organic component of traditional culture.

When the first batch of 19 "masterpieces of oral and intangible heritage of mankind" was announced, there were some subtle differences and contradictions in the scope of concepts and the nature of heritage.

Some projects were purely folk, while some projects originated from and transcended folk; some projects were "cultural", and some projects were close to pure "art." Correctly understanding the differences and their reasons, and establishing relevant understandings, concepts and standards between and within different differences is a task that should be continuously explored now and in the future.

The broad concept

The broad concept of oral and intangible heritage should include all oral and intangible cultural heritage created and left behind by predecessors.

Among them, oral heritage should refer to all human language forms, regardless of their language size.

In addition to language itself, there is the art of language, namely oral literature.

Traditional oral literature is what we usually call folk literature.

Oral literature also has contemporary forms, and oral heritage also has some non-literary forms, such as lectures.

Therefore, oral heritage in the broad sense is a very broad concept.

Similarly, in the broad sense of intangible heritage, in addition to the requirement of the word "heritage" to have certain historical value, the so-called term "intangible" is also extremely inclusive.

People who are not material but are human are not only related to the human body.

Of course, in a sense, the human body is also a kind of material), it is difficult for us to find other objects.

Therefore, we believe that in addition to specific oral culture, intangible heritage refers to human behavior culture or human body culture, that is, inheritance culture.

The culture of human behavior can be divided into two major categories:

The first is art, which is art that is operated, expressed and passed down by people.

Without the actual living and established human body, this art cannot be fully displayed, demonstrated and preserved.

For example, human tattoos, tattoos and human body paintings are intangible heritage.

It can only be retained on the human body.

Once the person dies, the body decorations, scars, body paintings, tattoos, tattoos, tattoos or painted surfaces on his body will no longer exist.

Art works created by artists on rocks, wooden boards, canvases and other material materials should be attributed to material heritage.

Although in the strict sense, the painting skills, techniques, creative talents, etc.

owned or mastered by the painter are also standard intangible heritage), because the painter and his works can at least be separated.

Music is also a typical non-material, human or behavioral art.

Vocal music relies entirely on the human voice organs, while instrumental music must be operated by someone.

Without human performance, this art cannot be conveyed or preserved.

In addition, dance, drama, folk art, acrobatics and other performing arts are all of the same kind.

On-site and improvisation are the characteristics of performance art or performing art, and they are also their unique charm.

The second is the cultural category, that is, the culture conveyed and expressed by people's actions, words and deeds.

This kind of culture cannot be displayed, spread and passed down without the human body or the crowd.

For example, for religious beliefs, although there are classics to write doctrines, and temples or idol symbols to express the content, thoughts and objects of belief, their nature will change greatly without people's beliefs and behavioral norms.

Religious beliefs can only become religious beliefs when they are alive or in people's beliefs, otherwise they can only become relics.

Among behavioral cultures, folk culture is the most eye-catching.

Folk culture is also called folk culture or lower-level culture.

Folk culture is the product of the broad masses of the people, especially the working people.

This culture is closely related to the real life and basic life of workers, and mainly relies on the language and actual actions used in daily life as the main communication tools.

It is passed down from generation to generation and is therefore a traditional culture.

Thomas, the British folklorist who pioneered the term "folklore", believes that folklore is traditional beliefs, legends and customs spread among ordinary people, namely "ancient folk customs or folk literature","people's knowledge and knowledge" and "ancient behaviors, customs, rituals, superstitions, ballads, fables, etc." Since then, the definition of "folk custom" has been different.

Some people believe that folk customs are a "legacy" of the old era or a "residual legacy" in modern urban environments, preserved among the less educated elements in civilized societies.

Some people believe that folk customs are the traditional part of the culture of the secular people, that is, the traditional creations of the original people and the civilized people.

They are those things passed down from generation to generation without reliable inventors or creators.

Some people believe that folklore is a degenerate religion, and folk religion is a major department of folklore.

Others believe that folklore refers to folklore or folklore is a kind of popular literature that is mainly passed down orally.

Others believe that folk customs are the expression of secular culture in civilized culture.

British folklorist Ms.

Benny C.

Burne's interpretation and definition of folklore and folklore are the most noteworthy.

She said: "Folklore is a general term that includes inherited beliefs, habits, stories, ballads, slang and other things that are popular among lower-cultural peoples or retained among the uneducated classes of civilized peoples.

To put it bluntly, for example, primitive beliefs about the universe, creatures, non-creatures, human nature, man-made creations, the spiritual world, witchcraft, charms, disgust, destiny, omens, disease, death, etc.; also examples are habits and rituals about marriage, inheritance, adulthood, sacrifices, war, fishing and hunting, animal husbandry, etc.; as well as myths, legends, folk tales, storysongs, ballads, proverbs, riddles, children's songs, etc.

In short,'folk customs' include people's psychological aspects and have nothing to do with craftsmanship.

For example, what folklorists pay attention to is not the shape of the plow, but the ritual of using the plow to cultivate the field; not the manufacturing of fishing gear, but the taboos that fishermen follow when fishing; not the construction of bridges and houses, but the sacrifices and sacrifices performed during construction." Benny's exposition comes from her book "Introduction to Folklore"(1914).

There are two points worth noting here: 1.

This view is a view of folklore in the early and middle periods, and it has now been broken through and developed: folklore not only studies the above content, but also covers civilized people in civilized societies; folklore not only studies behavior, psychology, rituals, but also studies the objects and results of behavior, namely: At the same time, we study the shape of the plow and the ritual of using the plow to cultivate the field, the manufacturing of fishing gear, the taboos of fishermen when fishing for fish, the art of architecture, architecture and sacrifice matters, and the shape and function of buildings.

In the above statement, it can be found that folklore was once devoted to the study of oral and intangible heritage.

The old concept of "folklore" is very consistent with the current concept of "oral and intangible heritage." This is enough to understand why UNESCO's relevant work derives the term "oral and intangible heritage" from "folk culture" or "folk creation".

The etiquette culture in the upper culture corresponding to folk culture is also oral and intangible.

The so-called collocation of "folk customs" and "official etiquette" also turns out to have its historical origin.

Generally speaking, etiquette originated from the court and the official, centered on the monarch, and gradually spread various details to all classes.

In ancient China, etiquette and reason generally referred to the social norms and moral norms of slave society and feudal society.

In the Zhou Dynasty, etiquette not only referred to etiquette, but also referred to the idea of norms and etiquette governance and the patriarchal system of "monarch, minister, father, son and son".

"Zuo Zhuan·Eleventh Year of Yin Gong" said: "Rites govern the country, determine the country, order the people, and benefit successors." The Book of Rites·Rites says: "Rites cannot be inferior to common people, and punishments cannot be superior to doctors." This is the difference between etiquette and vulgarity.

In fact, in ancient China's rites made specific provisions on monarch and minister, father and son brothers, learning officials and officials, running the army in class, performing laws in officials, praying to ancestors and sacrifices, supplying ghosts and gods, marriage and funeral, etc.

Those who are benevolent, benevolent, ceremonial, and wise and trustworthy all follow etiquette." Benevolence, righteousness, wisdom, and faith are nicknames of etiquette." In the Northern Song Dynasty, Li Gou's "Selected Works of Mr.

Zhi Jiao: The First Theory of Rites ") There is still a two-way interaction between etiquette and custom from time to time." "The etiquette from above is passed down as a custom;" the wind from below is used to pierce the upper "," the wind moves it, and the teaching changes it "are manifestations of the influence of folk customs on etiquette.

The reciprocity of etiquette shows the universality of "etiquette" in ancient China." The spread of "etiquette" has created a deeply rooted etiquette culture for thousands of years and has become the most distinctive and characteristic content of China culture.

In the West, the Middle Ages was a golden age when etiquette was prevalent, resulting in strict hierarchical divisions.

Just think back to the situation of British society at that time to appreciate the fashion of this time.

By the end of the 19th and early 20th centuries, Western upper-class society regarded the most cumbersome requirements of observing etiquette as a pastime, but it was the most basic duty for women, just as China women must strictly abide by women's ethics and abide by the three obedience and four virtues).

To date, etiquette can still be seen everywhere in Western courts, ceremonies, professional life and public life, such as dress requirements, seating order for guests and guests, dining regulations, limitations on titles, etc.

A complete set of international etiquette has even been formed.

It can be seen from the above that it is possible to use oral and intangible heritage in a broad sense to classify culture and form a special category of cognition.

However, if this concept is used to determine the scope of protection or delineate the scope of academic research, it will be too broad and therefore lose scientific nature.

For example, English, Chinese, etc.

in the language, symphony, opera, ballet, drama, etc.

in art, etiquette, official ceremonies, etc.

in culture, at present, there is no need to be included in the heritage list, although they can also be called "masterpiece".

Narrow concept

"Oral and intangible heritage" in the narrow sense should refer to the areas that UNESCO hopes to protect.

This category is not immutable and should have certain flexibility in concepts and objects.

A cultural form may remain insignificant and non-crisis today, but tomorrow it may have special significance or be in danger." The scope of the "Representative Works List" may change or advance with the times.

Let's first analyze the relevant statements of UNESCO.

In the "Proposal for the Protection of Folk Creation", the expression of "folk creation" contains the following contents:

1.”Folk creation is the common heritage of mankind and a powerful means of bringing peoples and social groups closer together and recognizing their cultural identities, noting the social, economic, cultural and political significance of folk creation, its role in the history of a nation and its status in modern culture, emphasizing the uniqueness and importance of folk creation as a cultural heritage and an integral part of modern culture, and recognizing the extreme instability of traditional forms of folk creation, In particular, the instability of various aspects of oral tradition and the danger that these aspects may disappear, emphasize the need to recognize the role played by folk creation in various countries and the dangers faced by multiple factors, and believe that governments of various countries should play a decisive role in protecting folk creation and should take action as soon as possible..."

2.”Folk creation "means" traditional folk culture ".

Folk creation is based on tradition and passed down orally, in the form of language, literature, music, dance, games, myth, etiquette, habits, handicrafts, architecture and other art.

All these forms should refer to "folk", such as "folk etiquette","folk literature","folk dance","folk music", etc.

3.”Folk creation, as a form of cultural expression, should be protected by the group (family, occupation, country, region, religion, ethnicity, etc.) that expresses its characteristics.”

4."Protection of folk creation" involves the preservation of folk creation traditions and their disseminators, because people of all ethnic groups have the right to enjoy their own culture, and because the people's integration with this culture is often weakened by the influence of industrial culture transmitted by communication tools.

Therefore, measures must be taken to ensure the status of folk creative traditions and ensure financial support within and outside the groups that produce them." The "Proposal for the Protection of Folk Works" is the result of international organizations beginning to pay attention to folk literature and taking major measures.

The origin of this proposal can be traced back to the request made by the Bolivian government to the Director-General of UNESCO in 1973.

At that time, they hoped that the cultural body of the United Nations would start studying the situation of folk literature and make suggestions on adding provisions to international copyright conventions.

The Government of Bolivia believes that additional provisions should include issues related to the protection of cultural heritage and copyright issues arising in the protection, support and dissemination of folk literature.

The recommendation also expresses concern about the export of traditional culture and the expression of this culture out of its original context in a way that is incompatible with the people who produce and preserve it.

Since then, UNESCO and the World Intellectual Property Organization have both cared about, sponsored and participated in the protection of folk literature.

Mr.

Laurie Hangke, a famous Finnish scholar, cultural anthropologist, folklorist, and folk literature and art scholar, recently passed away unfortunately.

I deeply regret it, and I would like to express my condolences and remembrance), I participated in relevant work of UNESCO and the drafting of documents before the "Recommendation".

As a party involved and a scholar who drafted the document, in 1986, at the invitation of China Folk Literature and Art Association, Mr.

Laurie Hangke gave an academic speech entitled "Protection of Folk Literature" at the China-Finland Academic Seminar on the Collection and Preservation of Folk Literature jointly held by China and Finland, and introduced the relevant situation in detail.

Laurie Hangke specifically introduced the definition of folk literature in relevant UNESCO documents that he participated in and directly wrote.

Two documents are involved: one is the document "Preliminary Study on Technical, Legal and Administrative Aspects of International General Rules for the Protection of Folklore" prepared by the Director-General of UNESCO for the Sofia Conference in October 1985, and the other is the working paper written by Laurie Hangko himself for the Second Meeting of the Committee of Governmental Experts on the Protection of Folklore held by UNESCO in Paris in January 1985.

It is in these two documents that the definition and expression of "folk culture" in the "Proposal for the Protection of Folk Works" and the "Regulations on the Declaration of Representative Works of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity" are determined and used.

The final shape of this definition was proposed at the Paris meeting of the Committee of Governmental Experts on the Protection of Folk Literature in 1982, revised and supplemented at the second meeting of the Committee of Governmental Experts in 1985, and became the final and effective formulation.

The meeting document at that time stated this definition as follows:

"Folk literature, more broadly, traditional and popular folk culture) is the creation of a group or individual that is directed to the group and passed down from generation to generation.

It reflects the expectations of the group, is an appropriate expression of the group's cultural and social personality, and its norms and values are passed down orally through imitation or other means.

Its forms mainly include language, literature, music, dance, games, mythology, religious rituals, customs, handicrafts, architecture and other art."

Comparing the above definitions with the definitions of "folk creation" and "oral and intangible heritage", we can see that they are basically the same, with only adjustments to individual words and words.

The most important one is that "folk literature" is changed to "folk creation".

"Folk literature" can also be expressed as "traditional or popular folk culture." This shows that the concepts of "folk creation" and "oral and intangible heritage" both originate from or are equivalent to "folk literature"

This is an important issue.

Folk literature-folk culture-oral and intangible heritage are three concepts that are gradually expanding in extension and are basically the same in connotation and spirit.

Moreover, the cause of all problems lies in the protection of "folk literature" and spreads out from it.

People's collective nature, oral form, inheritance tradition, facing the crisis of disappearance under the impact of modern media, and having important human cultural values and group values are the most basic characteristics of folk literature and folk culture.

The most basic characteristics.

By placing these definitions above "oral and intangible heritage", the basic spirit and essential significance of the concept of "oral and intangible heritage" will be clear at a glance.

In the "Regulations on the Declaration of Representative Works of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity", there are also some expressions worthy of analysis here.

In the "Purpose", the regulations state: "The purpose of the announcement is to reward outstanding representative works of oral and intangible heritage.

This cultural site or folk and traditional expression of oral and intangible heritage) will be declared a masterpiece of the oral and intangible heritage of mankind."

The "cultural place" here was later translated as "cultural space".

"The anthropological concept of a 'cultural place' is identified as a place where folk and traditional cultural activities are concentrated, but it is also identified as a period of time generally characterized by a certain cycle, season, schedule, etc.) or an event.

The existence of this time and this place depends on the very existence of cultural activities carried out in traditional ways."

There are three key words for the above expressions: "cultural place","folk" and "tradition".

"Cultural places" are mainly defined by the standards of anthropology, especially cultural anthropology.

Taking the comprehensive, collective, cyclical, and time-space integration of folk culture as the criterion,"tradition" is appropriately highlighted and "folk" is juxtaposed.

It can be seen that the concept of "oral and intangible heritage" has made a breakthrough beyond the private sector and expanded the scope of protection objects.

As early as the era of Laurie Hangke, international actions to protect folk literature had an important starting point, that is, from "folk literature, a spiritual asset that is despised by people in most countries in the world" to a process of gradual attention, and finally put it on the agenda of international organizations.

Another reason is that folk literature is generally recognized as an important component of human cultural heritage."For various cultural heritage of mankind, people mainly regard them as a whole, and the various components of the whole are increasingly attracting people's attention." The third phenomenon is that the value and status of folk literature have increased."With the passage of time, more and more forms of expression have achieved status comparable to scenic spots, monuments, literature, art and music works."

In the above discussion, folk literature was independent of scenic spots and historic sites, writers 'literature, elegant art and musical works.

It was initially unrefined, but more than ten years later, it can finally be compared.

This should be regarded as a major advancement in human cultural values and values.

When measuring the value and cultural criteria of representative works of oral and intangible heritage, the "Regulations" particularly emphasize "folk and traditional cultural expressions that are of special value from the perspective of history, art, ethnography, sociology, anthropology, linguistics or literature." In terms of the expert composition of the review committee, it also specifically stipulates the balance between the disciplines represented by each expert, such as music, oral literature, performing arts, etiquette, language and handicrafts, and traditional architectural expertise." In fact, the most prominent feature and valuable significance of folk culture lies in its multi-function and multi-value nature.

It is not only an encyclopedia of life, but also a multidisciplinary object.

Of course, it is understood that there are quite a few traditional art forms of oral and intangible heritage that are non-folk or purely artistic and are the work objects of aesthetics and artists.

However, disciplines such as "history, ethnicity, sociology, anthropology, linguistics or literature" are basically "cultural anthropology" and related disciplines, and cultural anthropologists must also study folk literature and art.

Therefore, the focus and main body protected by the oral and intangible heritage protection system should also be folk literature, folk art, and folk culture.

Finally, as long as we look at UNESCO's examples and demonstrations on the categories of oral and intangible heritage, we can more intuitively understand such a novel and rare concept and what it actually means.

Examples are as follows:

Oral expression: the performance and public expression of poems, historical stories, myths, legends and other narratives of great significance to cultural groups.

Performing arts: Performing arts during festivals or ceremonial activities of cultural groups, including body language, music, drama, puppets, singing and dancing, etc.

Social customs, etiquette, festivals: Various rituals throughout a person's life such as birth, growth, marriage, divorce and funeral ceremonies), games and sports activities, rituals of kinship and kinship relations, settlement patterns, cooking techniques, rituals to determine identity and the supremacy of elders and children, rituals related to the four seasons, gender-specific social customs, hunting, fishing and harvesting customs, names derived from place names and names derived from fathers, silk culture and craft production [weaving], sewing, dyeing, pattern design), wood carving, Textiles, body art tattooing, piercing, body painting).

Knowledge and practice about nature: Concepts about nature such as time and space), agricultural activities and knowledge, ecological knowledge and practice, pharmacopoeia and healing methods, cosmology, nautical knowledge, prophecy and oracle, mysterious, spiritual, prophetic, macrocosmic and religious beliefs and practices about nature, oceans, volcanoes, environmental protection and practices, astronomy and meteorology, knowledge of metallurgy, counting and calculation methods, animal husbandry, aquatic products, food preservation, production, Processing and fermentation, flower and tree art, textile knowledge and art.

There is no doubt that the scope of the above examples is basically the same as "folklore and folklore".

These examples can only be reasonable and necessary under the premise of "all creations from a certain cultural society","group expression", and "oral transmission".

Otherwise, what is the significance and necessity of having all science, technology, knowledge, literature, art, and etiquette in your pocket?

So far, we can see that the concept of oral and intangible heritage actually has three levels: 1) in the broad sense, intangible heritage, oral heritage, and intangible heritage corresponding to material heritage, sites, relics, cultural relics, classics, etc.;2) in the narrow sense, oral and intangible heritage, which includes the important subjects and components of oral heritage of folk literature, folk literature and art, folk culture, traditional performing arts, folk science and technology, folk skills, folk knowledge, folk crafts, etc.; 3) Take the essence of "oral and intangible heritage" in the narrow sense as the main body, and supplement it with the broad but endangered "oral and intangible heritage".

When the two masterpieces as oral and intangible heritage of mankind are included in the "Representative List", they are defined by "representativeness" and "endangered", requiring world-class form and global value and significance.

Among them, because of the principle of "endangered nature", it includes various "folk culture" in its own state, non-folk traditional intangible culture, and intangible traditional art of human behavior.

For example, it has global significance and world-class value, once endangered, is also within the scope of protection and selection of the "Representative List".

This article was originally published in Issue 3 of Folk Culture Forum in 2004.

Please refer to the original print issue for annotations.)