Bagpipe playing in Bulgaria inscribed on the UNESCO list of intangible heritage

09.12.2025 | Bulgaria

The Bulgarian bagpipe and bagpipe playing are included in the UNESCO List of Intangible Cultural Heritage. The decision was made in Delhi. Bagpipe playing is defined as the transfer of knowledge and skills from generation to generation.

Снимка от Flowerlin, Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)

The Bulgarian bagpipe and bagpipe playing are now officially on the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

The world organization announced this on its profile on the social network X.

The announcement reads: "New entry on the List of #intangible cultural heritage: Bagpipes and bagpipe playing in Bulgaria: transfer of knowledge and skills, #Bulgaria. Congratulations!"

The decision was made during the 20th session of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage, which is being held in Delhi, India.

Bulgaria prepared a national nomination for inclusion in the representative list of UNESCO with the file: "Bagpipes and bagpipe playing in Bulgaria - transfer of knowledge and skills".

In order to be declared a practice for intangible cultural heritage, it must be passed down from generation to generation.

Christoph Wulf, Vice President of the German Commission for Intangible Cultural Heritage at UNESCO, said that intangible cultural heritage is a symbol of cultural participation, diversity and vitality.

This year, experts are considering 11 nominations for the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in need of urgent safeguarding, 54 nominations for inclusion in the Representative List and one proposal for the Register of Good Safeguarding Practices.