This article lists the practices listed in UNESCO intangible cultural heritage in Algeria.
Understand
The country has seven practices listed on the "representative list of intangible cultural heritage "Of UNESCO and a practice taken from the"emergency backup list ».
No additional practice is included in the "register of best practices for safeguarding culture ».
Lists
Representative list
| Convenient | Year | Domain | Description | Drawing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Ahellil of Gourara | 2008 | * Performing Arts * knowledge and practices concerning nature and the universe * oral traditions and expressions | Musical and poetic genre, emblematic of the Zénètes du Gourara, it is practiced during collective ceremonies mainly in the Berber-speaking part of the Gourara region during religious festivals and pilgrimages, but also on the occasion of secular celebrations such as weddings and fairs. local. It is closely linked to the lifestyle of the Zenetes and to oasis agriculture. |  |
| 1 Rites and craftsmanship associated with the tradition of the wedding costume of Tlemcen | 2012 | * social practices, rituals and festive events * know-how related to traditional craftsmanship | Traditional dress considered in Tlemcen as the most expensive and the most beautiful dress worn by the bride on her wedding day, but also by other women at weddings. This dress is worn by brides with other jewelry such as cultured djouhar pearls, hanging necklaces meskia, el-kholkhal which is put around the ankle, in addition to the bracelets while the head is capped with a conical chechia embroidered with gold threads on which is tied the mendil of mensoudj, kind of scarf where the zerrouf (Crown), djébin (kind of pearls) and other ornaments. |  |
| 2 The annual pilgrimage to the mausoleum of Sidi ‘Abd el-Qader Ben Mohammed called" Sidi Cheikh " | 2013 | * oral traditions and expressions * social practices, rituals and festive events * know-how related to traditional craftsmanship | The pilgrimage takes place over three days and begins on the last Thursday in June. The next one will take place on Thursday, June 24, 2021. Each year, nomadic and sedentary Sufi communities make a pilgrimage to the mausoleum of the Muslim mystic Sidi ‘Abd el-Qader Ben Mohammed known as“ Sidi Cheikh ”, buried in El Abiodh Sidi Cheikh. From the last Thursday of June, three days of religious rituals and festive secular events pay homage to the founder of the brotherhood. The pilgrimage renews the links and alliances within the Sufi brotherhood and ensures peace and stability between the communities. He has also contributed to the recent rise of Sufism as well as the promotion of community values such as hospitality and collective practices such as hymns to Sidi Cheikh, recitations of the Quran, secular dances and songs. The rituals begin with a choir recitation of the Koran followed, at dawn, by a ceremony of renewing the affiliation of communities to the Sufi brotherhood. The secular festivities include fencing games, equestrian competitions and dances which mobilize more than 300 riders from different communities. Spiritual knowledge is learned and passed on in families, while Sufi masters teach initiates major Sufi rituals and prayers through formal learning. The secular dances and games of men and women are taught in associations or are transmitted through practice. |  |
| The practices and knowledge related to the Imzad of the Tuareg communities of Algeria, Mali and Niger | 2013 | * oral traditions and expressions * Performing Arts * social practices, rituals and festive events * know-how related to traditional craftsmanship | The music of the imzad, characteristic of the Tuareg populations, is played by women with a single-string rubbed instrument, also known as an imzad. The musician places the instrument on her lap and plays in a seated position using an arched wooden bow. Combining music and poetry, the music of the imzad is frequently played during ceremonies in Tuareg camps. The instrument provides the melodic accompaniment of poetic or popular chants glorifying the adventures and exploits of heroes of the past, which are often sung by men and in which men and women participate by emitting modulated or shrill cries. Music also has a therapeutic function because it is played to drive away evil spirits and alleviate the suffering of the sick. The sound of the imzad reflects the feelings and moods of the performer, and any difficulty in performing during a performance is considered a sign of unhappiness. The women make the instrument from a dried, hollowed-out half-calabash. It is stretched with a skin on the open side, pierced with two rosette-shaped gills and fitted with a wooden V-shaped easel. The musical knowledge of the imzad is transmitted orally according to traditional methods that promote observation and assimilation. |  |
| 3 The ritual and ceremonies of the Sebeïba in the oasis of Djanet, Algeria | 2014 | * oral traditions and expressions * social practices, rituals and festive events * know-how related to traditional craftsmanship | The ritual and ceremonies of the Sebeïba are practiced over ten days by two communities living in Djanet during the first month of the Muslim lunar calendar. Dancers and singers compete for the right to represent their community in a nine-day competition called "Timoulawine". The winners take part the next day in the ritual and ceremonies of the Sebeïba. The dancers, in warrior clothes, and the singers go to a place called "loghya" to practice the ritual. Once there, the dancers form a ritual circle by clicking their swords continuously while the women sing traditional songs to the rhythm of the tambourines. At the end of the day, the participants disperse. Knowledge related to ritual and ceremonies is transmitted directly from elders to young people. Local artisans make and repair the outfits, weapons, jewelry, and musical instruments needed for ritual and ceremonies. The ritual and ceremonies of the Sebeïba are an important marker of the cultural identity of the Tuaregs who live in the Algerian Sahara. They make it possible to strengthen social cohesion and symbolically ward off any acts of violence between rival communities by simulating and transposing this violence into the field of artistic competition. | .jpg/150px-Sebiba_Touareg_Exhibition,_Djanet_(Algérie).jpg) |
| 4 The sbuâ, annual pilgrimage to the zawiya Sidi El Hadj Belkacem, Gourara | 2015 | * oral traditions and expressions * social practices, rituals and festive events * know-how related to traditional craftsmanship | Each year, pilgrims from Zenet communities in the southwest of the Algerian Sahara visit the mausoleums of the saints to commemorate the birth of the Prophet Muhammad. The sbuâ is a week-long pilgrimage and involves festive cultural practices linked to group activities, such as tours and celebrations accompanied by song and dance. The pilgrims end their journey on the seventh day in a place outside a zawiya (community institution) located in the center of Gourara, which houses the mausoleum of Sidi El Hajd Belkacem. The different groups of pilgrims symbolically merge around a bearer carrying the saint's standard before then joining their respective groups to continue the ritual, which is led by the older pilgrims. The women participate in the gatherings by uttering ululations and by presiding over the so-called “millstone” ritual, a week before the start of the ceremony, during which they grind the first handful of cereals used to make the couscous eaten by the pilgrims. Holders of this tradition can trace their lineage back to the saints and describe themselves as descendants. Children and young people are formally involved in the different aspects (acts, prayers and songs), gradually becoming the bearers of knowledge themselves. Taking into account all the beliefs and rites at work in the pilgrimage, the sbuâ is considered by the communities to be an expression of their history and the links that unite them. |  |
| Knowledge, know-how and practices related to the production and consumption of couscous Note Algeria shares this practice with the Morocco, the Mauritania and the Tunisia. | 2020 | * Knowledge and practices concerning nature and the universe * Social practices, rituals and festive events * Know-how related to traditional craftsmanship * Oral traditions and expressions | The knowledge, know-how and practices related to the production and consumption of couscous include the method of preparation, the conditions and tools necessary for the production, the associated artefacts and the circumstances of the consumption of couscous within the communities concerned. The preparation of couscous is a ceremonial process involving different operations. It all starts with cereal growing, the molding of the seeds to obtain a semolina which will be rolled and then cooked after having been steamed. These practices are associated with a set of exclusive tools, instruments and utensils. This dish is accompanied by various vegetable additives and different meats depending on the territory, the season and the circumstances. Nowadays, as in the past, the methods of preparing couscous constitute a sum of knowledge and skills that are transmitted in a non-formal way through observation and reproduction. For the manufacture of utensils, those in clay are made by potters and those in wood are produced by cooperatives or artisanal factories, often family-owned. For several decades, formal transmission has developed beyond the family circle and the home. The non-culinary aspects of the element, namely the rites, oral expressions and certain social practices, are also transmitted by the bearers. Couscous is a dish that has a repertoire of symbols, meanings, social and cultural dimensions all linked to solidarity, conviviality, sharing and living together. |  |
Register of Best Safeguarding Practices
Algeria does not have a practice registered in the register of best safeguarding practices.
Emergency backup list
| Convenient | Year | Domain | Description | Drawing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The knowledge and know-how of the water meters of the foggaras or water workers of Touat-Tidikelt | 2018 | * knowledge and practices concerning nature and the universe * know-how related to traditional craftsmanship * oral traditions and expressions | The element concerns the knowledge and skills of the water meters of the foggaras (irrigation system), or water workers, of the Ksourian communities of Touat and Tidikelt. The water meters are involved in various operations ranging from calculating the water shares to repairing the water distribution combs and channeling the water into the gullies. Each foggara connects several categories of social workers and knowledge holders including owners, manual workers, accountants and water meters. It is the knowledge of the latter that seems threatened. The water meter is an essential character in the life of the Saharan ksour because he manages a vital area on which the survival of all depends. He has both an intellectual and a manual role and can be called upon at any time by the community. Currently, a lack of communication between young people and their elders is observed. In addition, several factors have modified the proper functioning of the foggaras, in particular the transformations initiated by the central power in the property relations, the effects of urbanization and modernization and a lack of consideration of the measures to be implemented. to ensure the transmission of knowledge. The disappearance of the activity of water meters is illustrated by their advanced age, which highlights a lack of renewal of practitioners. |  |
