News Notes
On December 6, 2023, the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage at UNESCO inscribed “Garba of Gujarat” on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity during its 18th session, taking place in Kasane, Botswana in early December 2023.
The inclusion of Garba now makes it India’s 15th inscription on the list.
A ritualistic and devotional dance performed throughout the State of Gujarat, and across India, Garba is celebrated for nine days during the festival of Navaratri. The festival is dedicated to the worship of feminine energy or Shakti. The cultural, performative, and visual expressions of this feminine energy are expressed through the Garba dance. The performative and visual celebration of Garba takes place within homes and temple courtyards, public spaces in villages, urban squares, streets, and large open grounds. Garba thus becomes an all-encompassing participatory community event.
“I offer my sincere congratulations to India, its people and the teams that worked on the nomination dossier. I hope this inscription helps ensure the viability of this tradition and inspires the community, particularly young people, to continue with the knowledge, skills and oral traditions associated with Garba,” said Tim Curtis, Director of UNESCO New Delhi Regional Office for South Asia and UNESCO Representative for Bhutan, India, the Maldives, and Sri Lanka.
