The Moroccan Ministry of Youth, Culture and Communication announces that the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of UNESCO approved the Kingdom’s request to list Al Malhun music is its Representative List of Cultural Intangible Heritage of humanity.
This inclusion is considered an international recognition of an authentic Moroccan heritage, an important tributary of Morocco’s rich artistic streams, and a reference component of the ancient Moroccan cultural identity, says a statement from the ministry issued today, following the committee’s 18th session in Botswana.
The Ministry submitted the request based on a file prepared by the Royal Moroccan Academy, which culminated in today’s announcement.
On this occasion, Secretary General of the Culture Sector Samira Malzi, on behalf of the Kingdom of Morocco, expressed before the heads of delegations participating in the work of the Committee her gratitude to the Evaluation Authority, members of the Committee, as well as the secretariat of the 2003 Convention, for including the art of Malhoun in the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
Malhoun is considered one of the arts found in various regions of the Morocco, and it is an essential symbol of Moroccan cultural heritage.
The UNESCO describes the newly listed Moroccan art form as “a popular form of poetic expression in Morocco, comprised of verses are sung in dialectical Arabic and sometimes Hebrew.”
They are accompanied by music played on traditional instruments, notably the lute, the violin, the rebab and small drums.
Popular topics include love, the joys of life, the beauty of people, nature, religious prayer and pleas, pleasure and merrymaking, gastronomy, imaginary journeys, political events and social issues.
The poems also convey moral messages and encourage constructive discourse. By combining song, theatrics, metaphor and symbolism in accessible language and a festive atmosphere, malhun unites all Moroccans, regardless of religion.
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