Switzerland is not the country you think of when you think of wild street carnivals, with masked dancers and bright colors, but in Basel, Fasnacht, the big pre-Lent celebration is a 700-year-old tradition, and the Swiss Federal Culture Office has submitted it for consideration as a UNESCO intangible cultural heritage.
Switzerland has made a number of other submissions as well, all pending approval by a UNESCO committee, which may rule next year. Other entries include the Festival of Vintners held every 20 years in Vevey and yodeling.
UNESCO defines intangible cultural heritages or living heritages as “the practices, representations, expressions, knowledge and skills transmitted by communities from generation to generation.”
For more on the submissions, from TheLocal.ch, click HERE
