UNESCO to Examine Morocco's Application to Include 'Tbourida' as Intangible Cultural Heritage

08 December 2021 Printable Version

Paris - UNESCO's Intangible Cultural Heritage Committee will hold a meeting on December 13-18 to examine 55 new applications submitted by various countries, including Morocco's "Tbourida", which seeks registration on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, UNESCO said on Wednesday.

The Kingdom is also part of a joint application alongside 15 Arab countries for "Arabic calligraphy: knowledge, skills and practices", as well as another application submitted by 25 countries from different continents for "falconry a living human heritage", with a view to their inclusion in the same list.

Morocco had officially submitted in 2019 the application file to register the "Tbourida" on UNESCO's representative list of intangible cultural heritage. The file was elaborated by the Ministry of Culture and Communication (Department of Culture), in partnership with the Société Royale de l'Encouragement du Cheval and the Royal Moroccan Federation of Equestrian Sports.

Tbourida constitutes, within the national heritage, a major component of the practices related to the horse. This equestrian art, deeply rooted in the Moroccan culture, is associated with both national and regional festivities.

Tbourida also crystallizes multiple dimensions of intangible cultural heritage, including rituals, skills and know-how related to the traditional dress, crafts, in addition to the oral legacy inseparable from this equestrian practice and the horse.