OLD FOLK SPORTS, GAMES, AND COMPETITIONS IN THE AREA OF THE FORMER YUGOSLAVIA AS AN ELEMENT OF INTANGIBLE CULTURAL HERITAGE—A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS

Abstract

The subject of the research is the old folk sports, games, and competitions as part of the intangible cultural heritage (ICH) in the territory of the former SFR Yugoslavia. Since 2009, these sports have been part of the representative UNESCO ICH world list. At the end of the first decade of the 21st century, the countries created by the disintegration of the former Yugoslavia (except Serbia) have begun entering them into national registers of intangible cultural heritage (a total of 20 sports and games are on the lists). On the territory of Serbia, there are old folk sports, games, and competitions, which represent intangible cultural heritage, however, they are still not sufficiently recognized by the competent institutions. In this regard, various initiatives have been created for certain old sports to become part of the national list of intangible cultural heritage of Serbia, as a corpus of endangered heritage. The task of the research is to perform a comparative analysis of old folk sports and games in the territory of the former Yugoslavia. During numerous migrations in the Middle Ages, South Slavs inhabited different geographical areas in the analyzed territory, where their main economic activity was extensive agriculture. Geographical conditions and the way of life have conditioned the development of numerous folk sports, games, and competitions. Shepherd’s games (children), sports, and games that prove maturity and folk competitions for fun are the foundation of their later genesis of development. Along with these sports and games, folklore, customs, and gastronomy were practiced as part of the cultural heritage. The rules of most old folk sports, games, and competitions (although mostly oral) remained identical throughout the former Yugoslavia, with minor differences. Based on field research, which included survey research, focus groups with the participation of experts from various fields, as well as the study of adequate scientific literature, the authors made a classification of old folk sports, games, and competitions through which they performed their comparative analysis as the elements of intangible cultural heritage in the territory of the former Yugoslavia: old sports with props, old martial sports, old athletic sports, folk sports competitions, children’s competitive games, sports with animals, water sports, ritual sports games, and folk sports games. A comparative analysis was also made with old folk sports, games, and competitions in the territory of Serbia. The formulated hypothesis assumes that the old folk sports, games, and competitions in the territory of the former Yugoslavia, through defined, joint elements, can be presented through a common international European cultural route as part of the common cultural heritage.