Basque Cultural Heritage
Basque Cultural Heritage is a designation granted by the Basque Government to movable properties, immovable properties and intangible heritage of the Basque Country, Spain. The current law governing the designation was enacted in 2019, superseding the first one from 1990.
History
The first law, enacted in 1990, distinguished three categories of cultural heritage:- Monument : movable or immovable properties with individual cultural interest.
- Monument complex : groups of movable or immovable properties forming a cultural unity.
- Cultural space : places, activities, creations, beliefs, traditions or events of the past linked to relevant forms of the Basques' culture and lifestyle.
In August 2018, the Basque Government put forward a bill to update its regulations about cultural heritage. It would increase the number of heritage categories from three to thirteen, as well as toughen penalties for violators. The law was enacted in 2019, with near-unanimous support in the Basque Parliament. It was the third regional law in Spain to contemplate the protection of intangible heritage, after the ones of Navarre and Andalusia. The enacted law distinguishes nineteen categories of cultural heritage, arranged in three broad groups:
- Immovable properties: monument, monument complex, archaeologic or paleontologic area, historic garden, cultural itinerary and cultural landscape.
- Movable properties: individual movable property and complex of movable properties.
- Intangible heritage: cultural oral traditions and expressions, bertsolaritza, music, dance, traditional and commemorative performances, social traditions, cuisine, sport, festivities, traditions related to nature and the universe and artisanal and industrial techniques.