“Hora” Could Join the UNESCO Cultural Heritage List

Moldova’s village hora — the communal circle dance that once brought whole villages together for holidays and celebrations — may soon be proposed for inscription on UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage list. Specialists are now preparing the nomination file, which is expected to be submitted jointly with Romania and several Balkan countries.

The National Commission for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage has reviewed the steps taken so far to prepare the nomination file for this tradition. Following the review, the Commission recommended drafting an informational note to launch potential cooperation with Romania and other countries in southeastern Europe.

Representatives of the National Center for Traditional Culture presented the results of a survey on the hora tradition, sent to 118 localities across the Republic of Moldova. The responses confirm that the hora remains a living practice, still preserved and passed down within communities today.

Commission members also examined the draft inventory file for the “Hora Satului” element — a key document required for any future UNESCO candidacy. Based on the material gathered so far, the Commission recommended compiling a summary to be sent to similar institutions in Romania and other southeastern European countries, with a joint UNESCO nomination in mind.

"We intend to launch a new nomination file. The initiative comes from the Republic of Moldova, and we hope to bring in both Romania and the Balkan countries where the hora is still practiced and remains an important part of the cultural heritage,"

said Petru Vicol, Director of the National Museum of Ethnography and Natural History, in a statement to MOLDPRES.

During the same meeting, the Commission also discussed the organization of the Intangible Cultural Heritage Forum, scheduled for October 16. The event will mark the International Day for Intangible Cultural Heritage, established by UNESCO to be observed on October 17.

The Republic of Moldova currently has five elements inscribed on UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity:

Men’s group Christmas carolling (Colindatul de ceată bărbătească) — 2013
Traditional wall-rug (scoarță) weaving techniques — 2016
Mărțișor — 2017
The art of the “ie” blouse with embroidered altiță — 2022
Cobza, traditional music craftsmanship and performance — 2025

Moldova is also part of the transnational Struve Geodetic Arc, included on the UNESCO World Heritage List, which stretches across several European countries.