Hanji nears inscription, taekwondo faces a debate over ‘preemption by North Korea’···UNESCO does not distinguish ‘countries of origin’ - 경향신문
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‘Traditional knowledge and skills of making hanji, and associated cultural practices’ is expected to be inscribed on UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. Provided by Korea Heritage Service
‘Traditional knowledge and skills of making hanji, and associated cultural practices’ is expected to be inscribed on UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. Provided by Korea Heritage Service
‘Hanji-making’, which has sustained the lineage of traditional Korean paper, is likely to be inscribed on the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity (intangible heritage). ‘Taekwondo’, which North Korea submitted as its traditional martial art ahead of South Korea, also appears set to be inscribed on its own.
According to UNESCO on the 5th, the Evaluation Body under the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage (Intangible Heritage Committee) reviewed ‘Traditional knowledge and skills of making hanji, and associated cultural practices’ submitted by the South Korean government and recommended its inscription on the Representative List.
Hanji is made from natural materials such as paper-mulberry bark and plant-ash lye. The ‘single-dip’ technique is used, in which a bamboo screen scoops a mixture of dak fiber, water, and dakpul and is shaken back and forth and side to side. Because it requires high proficiency and a complex process, it is also called ‘baekji’, meaning paper that passes through a hundred hands. In production villages formed around paper-mulberry cultivation areas, residents participate through communal labor, and artisans pass down their skills from generation to generation. The Evaluation Body assessed, “Hanji is widely used for diverse purposes including records, printing, crafts, and household goods, and plays an important role in the daily life and cultural practices of the community.”
If inscription is finalized, hanji will become the 24th element from South Korea on the List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. South Korea holds 23 elements, from ‘Jongmyo Jerye and Jongmyo Jeryeak’ (2001) to ‘Korean jang-making culture’ (2024).
At a joint performance by the World Taekwondo (WT) and the International Taekwon-Do Federation (ITF) demonstration teams held in Sokcho, Gangwon, in February 2018, the North Korean team (ITF) performs. South Korea developed taekwondo as a ‘sport’ centered on WT, spreading it worldwide and achieving its inclusion as an official Olympic event. Led by North Korea, which heads the ITF, the discipline has emphasized training rules and striking techniques of traditional martial arts, retaining more of the original form of ‘martial taekwondo’. Yonhap News
The Evaluation Body also recommended inscription for ‘Traditional Martial Art of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea - Taekwondo’, submitted by North Korea. Following ‘Arirang’, ‘Kimchi-making’, ‘Ssireum’ (jointly inscribed by the two Koreas), ‘Pyongyang cold noodles’, and ‘Joseon attire customs’, taekwondo is expected to become North Korea's sixth element on the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
North Korea submitted a solo nomination for taekwondo in March 2024. After considering a possible joint inscription, South Korea filed its nomination on March 31 under the title ‘Taekwondo: Training culture of Korea’s dojang community’. As North Korea’s taekwondo inscription has become likely, criticism has emerged that South Korea, as the home of taekwondo, has fallen behind North Korea or has been ‘preempted’ in inscription.
In response, some argue that responsibility for the delay in pursuing inscription should be distinguished from the claim that the heritage’s authenticity has been taken away. The intangible heritage system does not determine origins or exclusive ownership. Kim Ji-hyun, policy team leader at the UNESCO Korean National Commission, said, “For intangible heritage, what matters is how it is currently practiced and transmitted by communities,” adding, “Even for the same culture, it recognizes the diversity of transmission that varies by country.” In 2014, when Peru’s Virgen de la Candelaria festival was inscribed, Bolivia objected that its own dance was included, but UNESCO clarified that inscription does not imply exclusivity. Arabic coffee and Arabic calligraphy have been jointly inscribed by multiple countries.
On the 2nd, at Kukkiwon in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, participants competed in sparring at the ‘2026 World Taekwondo Hanmadang’. Yonhap News
The two Koreas also inscribed Arirang separatelySouth Korea in 2012 and North Korea in 2014. Kimjang culture and kimchi making were likewise listed separately, with South Korea in 2013 and North Korea in 2015. Ssireum was initially filed separately and then jointly inscribed in 2018. North Korea also inscribed in 2024 the ‘Joseon attire customs’, the practices of making and wearing hanbok, but a preemption debate like today’s did not stand out then. This is not an issue of ranking countries as if in a 20th-century system competition.
The Korea Heritage Service also stated in a position paper the previous day that prior inscription does not grant exclusive or monopolistic rights, adding, “We will pursue the ‘solo’ or ‘extension inscription’ of Korean taekwondo.” However, an extension inscription that joins an existing entry requires North Korea's consent, making it unlikely amid strained inter-Korean relations. Heo Min, head of the Korea Heritage Service, heightened controversy by posting on social media on the 2nd, ahead of the official announcement, a note anticipating the recommendation for iscription. Some say this was a preemptive explanation conscious of criticism.
The final decision on inscription will be made at the 21st session of the Intangible Heritage Committee in Xiamen, China, this December. Barring an unexpected turn, inscription is considered highly likely in light of past cases.
