RIYADH: Prince Badr bin Abdullah bin Farhan, Saudi minister of culture and chairman of the Heritage Preservation Society, has announced the success of including the Simsimiyya musical instrument in UNESCO’s intangible cultural heritage list.
Saudi Arabia supported on Wednesday an Egyptian request to inscribe the Simsimiyya on UNESCO’s list during the 19th session of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage.
Simsimiyya is part of Saudi culture in coastal towns, and is used to play traditional music at weddings and festivals alongside songs narrating stories of sailors and social life near the sea, the Saudi Press Agency reported.
The Simsimiyya, which is made from a wooden box or bowl lyre with strings, is also famous in Egypt.
It is the latest Saudi cultural element to be added to UNESCO’s intangible heritage list. Other elements were Saudi Khawlani coffee beans, the art of engraving on metals, the Harees dish, Arabic calligraphy, and the palm tree.
Simsimiyya has passed down through the generations in Saudi Arabia and become part of the Kingdom’s artistic identity and collective memory, and is still played at cultural and social events, SPA reported.
