'Haenyeo' inscribed on UNESCO cultural heritage list

Haenyeo / Korea Times file

By Kang Hyun-kyung

Haenyeo ― female divers on the southern island of Jeju ― were listed as an intangible cultural heritage of humanity of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Wednesday.

This came weeks after the UNESCO Evaluation Body, which evaluates the nominations list, recommended in early November that the haenyeo culture be inscribed on the list.

Haenyeo were once breadwinners who risked their lives to dive deep into the sea without breathing apparatus. They hold their breath for minutes at a time to collect conches, abalones and seaweed to make ends meet.

According to the Cultural Heritage Administration (CHA), haenyeo represent the cultural identity of the scenic island where people in the past relied heavily on the sea to survive. The women divers’ eco-friendly way of doing business and their passing down of diving know-how for generations help them to be listed as a UNESCO cultural heritage, it said.

In a press release, the CHA expressed hope that Korea’s iconic culture can gain fresh attention from the world on the occasion of its being inscribed on the UNESCO list. To commemorate the accomplishment, the cultural heritage body will showcase some 150 items, including photos and video clips about women divers on Jeju Island, at the National Intangible Heritage Center in the southwestern city of Jeonju from Dec. 5 until March 31.

Haenyeo became Korea’s 19th intangible cultural heritage inscribed on the UNESCO list during the 11th session of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

Other cultural heritages that were inscribed on the UNESCO list include the royal ancestral ritual in the Jongmyo shrine and its music, the pansori epic chant and the Gangneung Danoje festival.

Lee Sun-hwa, a member of the Jeju Special Self-Governing Provincial Council, is a key figure who initiated the campaign for the UNESCO cultural heritage project. Over the past six years since she was elected as a member of the local legislature, Lee has teamed up with local politicians, lawmakers and government officials to raise public awareness of haenyeo.