More than 100 years ago, German colonists destroyed the culture of the Chagga people in Tanzania. Now the Chagga are trying to regain their lost history through books by German missionary to the region Bruno Gutmann, the author’s great-grandfather.
Tag: heritage
Tunisian troglodyte villages in the Dahar mountain range are mostly empty as a result of policies dating back several decades. But locals, concerned about losing part of their identity and history, are mobilizing to maintain a presence and to safeguard their heritage.
Just north of Berlin, a luxurious villa that used to belong to top Nazi propagandist Joseph Goebbels has become a real estate headache. What should become of it?
Russia’s semantic war against Ukraine aims to create a discourse and future in which Ukraine never was and never will be. Ukraine — and its Western allies — must take this war as seriously as the military war.
An exhibition of Indian commercial posters from the 1920s to the 1960s at Le Méridien in New Delhi offers a “time capsule” into the rapidly evolving society of that time.
Mali’s “mysterious city” welcomes a new class of students trained in looking after ancient books. From conservation to digitization of these works, a colossal task awaits them to preserve this endangered heritage and the secrets they contain.
In the island nation, Rizo Libre (free curl) seeks to rescue Afro-descendant roots on the island.
The clumsy restoration of a mural of Christ in a Spanish chapel 10 years ago shocked, then amused Spaniards and millions more abroad, and gave the local town a level of publicity, and tourist revenues, it never had nor could have hoped for. Here’s how it looks 10 years later.
Despite opposition, authorities are proceeding with the eviction of residents of traditional houseboats docked along the Nile in Egypt’s capital, as the government aims to “renovate” the area – and increase its economic value.
Should schools add new subjects every year to keep up with the times? Or is their job simply to help students become critical thinkers? A new mother’s musings.
The events that have marked the 800-year history of the Notre Dame cathedral bear witness to the monument’s eternal meaning and national symbolism.
Yonder’s Slovenian-born Andrej Mrevlje is also a part-time Uber driver in Washington. Oh, the people he meets.
The UN culture and patrimony organization’s new chief, Audrey Azoulay, a former French culture minister, shares her vision for reviving UNESCO after the U.S. and Israel have announced their withdrawal.
PARIS – Notre-Dame Cathedral continues to draw millions in the center of Paris. But how long before it starts to collapse? For now, at least, France’s most famous cathedral still stands tall and proud. But it’s not in great shape. Far from it. Pollution is eating away its stones. Detail work on the outside is […]
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How UNESCO Got It Wrong In Africa
-Analysis- PARIS — Since 1972, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, or UNESCO, has maintained a “World Heritage List” of sites that it deems to have an exceptional value. This list, which aims to preserve the world’s cultural and natural heritage, has sparked global tensions and drawn criticism that it doesn’t give adequate […]
Before it became the Syrian rebellion stronghold, Aleppo was the heart of ancient civilizations.
LIMA — The Sheraton hotel chain is being accused of threatening Peru’s cultural patrimony by building a new hotel in protected parts of Cuzco, the ancient capital of the Inca empire and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Accusing Sheraton of violating the conditions of an earlier municipal permit, Peru’s culture ministry has decided to appeal […]
BEIJING — Like others, as a child I used to daydream about taking a shovel and hunting through our yard for priceless treasure buried from ancient times. What I never would have imagined is that such an act can get you into serious trouble — even if it’s done on your own property. It’s a […]
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Swiss Directions
To reach the small old town of Olten: turn left after the train station, walk alongside the Aare river until you get to a 19th-century wooden bridge, take a picture.
In Beijing alone, more than 1,000 acres of historical areas have been lost since 1990. As rural Chinese move to cities, the country must figure out how to preserve its heritage.
Exclusive: A historian has identified Pope Francis’ birthplace in Buenos Aires, after false reports of where he was born circulated following his election last year.
ISTANBUL — In our divided existences, everyone lives their own reality, with their own priorities. Right now, the demand that this city’s Hagia Sophia museum be transformed into a mosque has suddenly become the singular issue for a certain segment of the Turkish population. The Anatolia Youth Association announced a gathering at the iconic location […]
-Essay- BEIJING – On April 10, Fenghuang, a popular tourist town that is on the UNESCO World Heritage tentative list, started charging entry for visitors, triggering public outcry in China. Fenghuang is located in Xiangxi Prefecture, in China’s central Hunan Province, which is home to the Miao and Tujia ethnic minorities. Now, whoever wants to […]
TURIN – So it’s like this: after having solved a mystery involving the Pope in Rome and the esoteric world of Leonardo da Vinci in Paris, the new Dan Brown thriller will be set in the streets of Florence, as well as in the pages of Dante’s Inferno. Dan Brown is no master of style, […]
FEZ – Everyone should go to the Moroccan city of Fez at least once, if only to get lost in the medina, around the mosque of al-Karaouine, the oldest university in the world. You could choose to spend the hot hours of the day in the Bou Inania Madrasa, the religious school built in the […]