Chinese Heritage Enriches the World

2020 will probably best be remembered for the pain and suffering brought by the COVID-19 pandemic. But amidst all the gloom, there were also good news stories. One of these was the inclusion of China’s Taijiquan into the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by the UNESCO Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage on December 17 last year. Undoubtedly, this move indicates that the Chinese traditional martial arts, with a history of more than 300 years, is highly regarded by the global community and will be better protected for passing down to future generations.

Taijiquan is more than just the art of fighting or keeping fit. It represents the essence of Chinese culture and philosophy, with human-nature harmony at its core. After its birth in the small village of Chenjiagou, located in central China’s Henan Province, in the 17th century, it has been inherited and developed for centuries and spread throughout the world. Today, Chenjiagou has dozens of Taijiquan schools and more than 800 masters, attracting learners from all over the world.

Statistics show that Taijiquan is now practiced by hundreds of millions of people in more than 150 countries worldwide. In addition, it has become an event at the 2026 Dakar Summer Youth Olympic Games.

The inclusion of Taijiquan into the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity reflects the world’s recognition of its value; but more importantly, it shows China’s respect of the diversification of world cultures. In the past decades, China has done a lot to, on the one hand, promote its intangible heritages on to world stage, and, on the other hand, strengthen protection of these heritages so that they can be passed down to future generations.

China is a strong supporter and promoter of the Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage. To date, China has 42 intangible cultural heritage items on the list, ranking first in the world, according to China’s Ministry of Culture and Tourism.

Adding Taijiquan to the list is a milestone in the inheritance and development of the martial arts. It marks the beginning of a new phase of securing its present-day image in the global community, so that more people worldwide can better understand Chinese culture.

At the online meeting held from December 14 to 19 in Kingston, Capital of Jamaica, the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage inscribed three elements on the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding, and 29 elements on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, including some elements from African countries, such as the Couscous, the Berber dish which is loved across Northern Africa’s Maghreb region and beyond. This safeguarding of cultural heritage can help promote diversification and mutual exchanges across the world’s different traditions, so that they can become the common wealth of the human family. CA