UNESCO supports to the inventory of Yezidi community’s intangible and tangible cultural heritage in Iraq

The workshop was co-facilitated by two members of the International Facilitators Network of UNESCO 2003 Convention for Safeguarding Intangible Cultural Heritage (Dr Annie Tohme Tabet and Mr. Jean Hajjar). Thirty-three selected participants, all Yezidi community members from Sinjar, Duhok, Bahshiqa-Behazane and Cheikhan, were trained to conduct the inventorying works.

The ten days workshop included 5 theoretical days, 4 days of practical inventory exercises on the field and 1 day for the evaluation of the fieldwork exercise results and the closing ceremony.

Before delivering the graduation certificates to the participants, Mr. Junaid Sorosh-Wali, Head of Culture Programme at UNESCO Iraq office, explained that “the workshop is a part of a comprehensive project with the Yezidi Community to support them with the inventory of Yezidi intangible and tangible cultural heritage and hence its preservation and transmission for future generations. He also added that the choice of Yezidi Mazars and Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) elements attached to them makes it possible to have a coherent inventory documenting elements belonging to all ICH domains.

The trainees will carry out the inventory on the filed in the coming weeks. The result of the field work, in cooperation with Nadia’s Initiative and Lalish Cultural Centre and with UNESCO’s technical support, is expected to be completed by September 2023.