Conservation of Intangible Heritage as a Policy in Design of Rural Fabrics

Heritage is an important entity both for societies and individuals. Humans try to justify their action in the present by invoking their past, the past of their community.  We hear the message of our ancestors, a justification of the present with reference to the past but also to ensure relevant development in the future.  This concept is crucial in any given society but specifically in a rural and more homogeneous one such as villages.  If we are so attached to our heritage it is because we want to pass on a soundly based future to our descendents.  The heritage is of vital importance to the quality of life in a society. Unfortunately safeguarding the heritage has been understood only as the conservation of monuments.  Safeguarding a way of life may not be valued, although it is the main ingredient of the sense of place. It should be noted that as designers and decision-makers we are involved in a place-making activity.

Our cultural character is what must be preserved. In a rural community heritage is an anchor in the storm of information which is to make us all alike and condemned to uniformity.  Should we just respond to messages of commercialism and fashion?  In hot pursuit of novelty taste-makers are changing our taste and the public simply follows the lead of the supposed "intellectual elite".

When we look at folk culture which is our main subject in this article, researchers working on it are few and far between. By studying our folk culture we may find many other venues for survival in today's world.  Subjects such as sustainability can also be adopted much easier in a society if it stems from own heritage.

Keywords: intangible, rural, heritage, conservation, sense of place