(Re)inventing intangible cultural heritage through the market in Greece

Abstract

ABSTRACT This article analyses a conceptual shift from ideas of tradition, customs and folklore and towards Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH). It looks to the political implications of ICH and various understandings of ICH held by heritage actors, including officials, academics, NGO’s and practitioners. It also scrutinises the ways in which traditions, customs and folklore were (re)introduced into the market when rebranded as ICH. The latter will be showed by analysing three diverse ethnographic case studies: a performative custom, a craft technique and an agricultural practice. It will be demonstrated how for the first time in Greece, these cases were brought together under one category in the all-inclusive umbrella of ICH. The concept of ICH began its dissemination in Greece during the ongoing economic austerity that has been in place since 2008. The austerity had a primary role in the interpretation of ICH, and many heritage actors attempted to counter the effects of the austerity through ICH, an important factor in understanding the conceptual shift. Consequently, the Greek austerity contextualised this change, and the article will elaborate upon the ways in which austerity directed actors to focus on the economic potentials of ICH.