Immaterial Heritage is a concept adopted in many countries and international forums as complementary to the concept of tangible heritage in the formulation and implementation of policies to protect and safeguard cultural heritage, from an anthropological and relativistic perspective of culture. Intangible heritage is also used as a synonymous term to designate the symbolic references of the sociocultural processes of invention, transmission, and continuous practice of traditions that are fundamental to the identities of groups, social segments, communities, peoples, and nations.
In Brazil, the legal framework for immaterial cultural heritage policy is the 1988 Federal Constitution. In Article 216, the concept of cultural heritage is established in both tangible and immaterial dimensions. It encompasses both archaeological sites, architectural, urban, and artistic works—assets of a tangible nature—as well as popular culture celebrations and knowledge, festivals, religiosity, musicality and dances, food and drink, arts and crafts, mythologies and narratives, languages, and oral literature—manifestations of an immaterial nature.
Conceptual Foundation
