CHINESE BREWS BESTOWED WITH GLOBAL HONOR
Chinese tea culture, whose influence has been intertwined with the country throughout much of its history, has been added to the UNESCO list of intangible cultural heritage.
Traditional tea processing techniques and their associated social practices in China were added to UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity late last month.
The status was conferred by the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Rabat, Morocco. The newly inscribed item consists of many elements, such as knowledge, skills and practices concerning the management of tea plantations, the picking of tea leaves and the processing, drinking and sharing of tea.
More than 2,000 tea varieties, mainly in six categories — green, black, yellow, oolong, white and dark — are grown in China. Core skills include shaqing (enzyme inactivation), menhuang (yellowing), wodui (piling), weidiao (withering), zuoqing (leaves shaking and cooling), fajiao (oxidation or fermentation) and yinzhi (scenting).
The bidding document from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism to UNESCO said tea is ubiquitous in Chinese people’s daily lives.
“The practices of greeting guests with tea and building good relationships within families and among neighborhoods through tea-related activities are shared among multiple ethnic groups, and provide a sense of identity and continuity for communities, groups and individuals concerned,” the document said.
“The inscription of the elements into the UNESCO list marks the significant contribution made by Chinese culture to the world,” said Wang Chenyang, director of the intangible cultural heritage department of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism.
“Tea helped to promote exchanges and mutual learning among the world’s civilizations through the Silk Road and other ancient trade networks.”