The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) recognized this Tuesday as intangible cultural heritage of humanity to the Ancestral Knowledge System of the four indigenous peoples of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta: Kogui, Wiwa, Arhuaco and Kankuamo.
“We celebrate the recognition as intangible cultural heritage of humanity of the Ancestral Knowledge System of the four indigenous peoples of the Sierra Nevada. The invaluable legacy of this knowledge, which has been transmitted from generation to generation, allows dialogue between humans and nature, sustainable coexistence in the ecosystem of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta and contributes to the protection and safeguarding of the environment. of the country and the world,” highlighted the Minister of Culture, Patricia Ariza.
The UNESCO announcement was made within the framework of the 17th session of the Unesco Intergovernmental Committee on Intangible Cultural Heritage, which takes place in the capital of Morocco until December 2.
The Ancestral Knowledge System, which covers the sacred mandates that support the existence of these four peoples in harmony with both the physical and spiritual universe, is based on the Law of Origin, which contains various codes of teaching, learning and behavior.
The Law of Origin is materialized in the Sierra Nevada with the ecological calendar, sacred sites, baptism rituals, marriage and retribution to the spiritual powers that are expressed in plants and animals.
Likewise, traditional dances and dances are other forms of spiritual communication with each of the elements of nature as established by the Law of Origin. This ancestral wisdom plays a fundamental role in guaranteeing the protection of the Sierra Nevada ecosystem to avoid the loss of the cultural identity of the four towns.
Brothers of nature
In this regard, the Ambassador, Permanent Representative of Colombia to the United Nations (UN), Leonor Zalabata, explained that "the Law of Origin is a system of knowledge that makes us feel the tangible of being people to the intangible of the spirit that unites us with other living beings such as plants, animals that also have their own spirit."
Next, the Ambassador added: “We really have the capacity to recognize ourselves as brothers of nature and not just a being superior to the rest of the lives that the earth has and that the universe has.”
The file, which was presented to UNESCO to request registration in the Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, was developed with the leadership of the four indigenous peoples of the Sierra Nevada and the technical support of the Ministry of Culture, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Government of Magdalena.
It is worth remembering that Colombia currently has the Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage at the national level, made up of 28 manifestations, 11 of them included in the Lists of Intangible Cultural Heritage and registry of good practices of UNESCO.
In this sense, the Cultural Space of San Basilio de Palenque, the Carnival of Blacks and Whites, the Barniz de Pasto or Mopa – Mopa and as of today, the Ancestral Knowledge System of the four indigenous peoples of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta.
