
Declared Parrandas of the central region of Cuba Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity
The Parrandas of the Central Region of Cuba were declared Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, in the 13th Session of the Intangible Heritage Committee of UNESCO.
The Committee received 40 proposals to examine for the possible inscription in the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of UNESCO, among which selected other cultural phenomena as winners, along with Parrandas.
The file of the Parrandas of the Central Region of Cuba was delivered to UNESCO in March of 2018, by the National Commission for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of the Ministry of Culture. Since 2016, awareness workshops have been held with the participation of the parranderos of the 18 existing parrandile communities; accompanied by the decision makers and the academic community as facilitators of the process, explained Granma Lara.
On the Parrandas of the Central Region, it was stated that everyone is convinced that it is a distinctly popular and raigal phenomenon, recognized by diverse communities, and constitutes a vital need of family, neighborhood, social and community type for each of its inhabitants , is an expression of the authentic Living Cultural Heritage; only from Cuba, which is not found anywhere else in the world; it is unique, in addition to its lucidity, also for its dynamism, its thematic and ethno-demographic diversity, trades and identity elements, for its added values, for facilitating the sense of continuity in the new generations, for its sense of collectivity and inclusion, for its resistance and durability for almost 200 years, and for the effort to keep a tradition alive.