Ia, Romanian traditional blouse, included in UNESCO patrimony

Ia, the traditional Romanian blouse, has been included in the UNESCO patrimony during the seventeenth session of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage. The committee, meeting in Morocco, decided to inscribe "The art of the traditional blouse with embroidery on the shoulder (altiţă) — an element of cultural identity in Romania and the Republic of Moldova" on the Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

The announcement was made on Thursday by deputy Ana-Maria Cătăuţă, president of the Joint Permanent Commission of the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate for the relationship with UNESCO.

“The committee’s decision, taken as we celebrate the National Day of Romania, represents the universal recognition of the beautiful story regarding one of the traditions that originate from the same common root of Romania and the Republic of Moldova,” said Cătăuţă in a press release cited by Libertatea. “The high-waisted blouse, the Romanian ia as it is known to all, represents a legacy passed down, out of love and with love, from generation to generation. Worn by girls and women, painted and sung in verses, promoted assiduously, with pride, including by Queen Marie and the Royal Family of Romania, the blouse is one of the identifying elements that give us strength and power,” she added.

The deputy also added that the blouse’s inclusion on the List of Intangible Heritage of Humanity comes with a series of responsibilities for Romania. Cătăuţă said that she is hopeful that “we will succeed in implementing a clear and coherent set of public policies to support the art of making the ie.”

"Well done to all those involved in generating this hard-earned victory, but above all, deep gratitude to the communities and associations without which we could not enjoy this national treasure, this wonderful sequence of collective memory, this red thread connecting us with the history our ancestors," said Simona Mirela Miculescu, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary, delegate of Romania to UNESCO, in a press release.

The UNESCO Committee also included the breeding of the Lipizzaner horses to the List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity during the same session. The horses were initially bred for the Habsburg imperial court in Vienna, but nowadays, the Committee said, “the Lipizzan horse plays a special role in the everyday cultural and social life of communities in rural areas” in Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Hungary, Italy, Romania, Slovakia, and Slovenia.