Türkiye is among the world’s most successful countries in safeguarding intangible cultural heritage, according to professor Öcal Oğuz, president of the UNESCO National Commission of Türkiye.
Speaking at the award ceremony of the Muğla Olive Blossom International Short Film Competition, organized by the Türkiye Beyazay Association with support from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, Oğuz said Türkiye ranks second on UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage list.
He also highlighted the 43rd General Conference of UNESCO, which took place in Uzbekistan from Oct. 30 to Nov. 13, noting Türkiye’s active participation in global cultural initiatives.
Oğuz said Türkiye collaborated with Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan to designate Dec. 15 as "World Turkic Language Family Day.” The proposal received written support from 26 countries and was approved by all 194 UNESCO member states.
He added that UNESCO has recognized 2026 as the 700th anniversary of Sheikh Edebali’s death and the 500th birth anniversary of the poet Baki. During the conference, Oğuz was reelected to the UNESCO Executive Board for the third time.
Cultural achievements
Oğuz emphasized that Türkiye has made significant gains within UNESCO, particularly in the field of intangible cultural heritage. He pointed out that "Antep handiwork,” recognized at a meeting in India, was added to the UNESCO list, bringing Türkiye’s total number of intangible cultural heritage elements to 32.
On the global ranking, China leads the list, followed by Türkiye in second place, France third, Iran fourth and Croatia fifth.
Protecting languages
Highlighting the role of language as humanity’s most effective communication tool, Oğuz said preserving languages is essential for safeguarding cultures, geographies and intangible heritage.
"UNESCO’s core priorities are, first, to protect biodiversity; second, to preserve geological diversity; third, to safeguard cultural diversity; and fourth, to support scientific diversity,” Oğuz said. "Protecting cultural diversity ensures the future of humanity. Preserving scientific diversity enables innovations. All these forms of diversity depend on humans. By protecting them, languages are also preserved.”
He added that UNESCO’s language preservation program has evolved from saving endangered languages to protecting all living languages. "Some languages are disappearing rapidly, even before our eyes. If humanity becomes monolingual, it risks becoming monocultural. A single culture could stifle creativity, and the world could enter a state of stagnation.”
Oğuz concluded by stressing that humanity’s future depends on safeguarding biological, geological, cultural, scientific and linguistic diversity.