Cultural Profile of the Village

This includes:
• Feature that makes the village unique
• Trait for which the village is famous for
• Legend or stories related to village
• Any famous historical events that have happened in the village.

Cultural Domains of the Village

1. Traditional Foods
• Traditional foods are foods and dishes that are passed on through generations or which have been consumed for many generations including traditional home remedies, and traditional drinks.
• Traditional foods can be a national dish, regional cuisine or local cuisine.
• Some traditional foods have geographical indications and traditional specialties.
Information to be included in this domain are:

• People involved in the cooking of the food
• Practices and rituals surrounding their local culinary traditions-associations with certain festivals, rituals or ceremonies, unique cooking techniques
• Special ingredients
• Local names of the food items.

2. Traditional Dress
It is defined as the garments, and accessories worn by a group of people.
Information to be included in this domain:

• People/community who wears the particular clothes
• Materials used to stitch the dress
• Tools that are used to make it
• Process involved in making which also includes practices and rituals, festivals and customs surrounding local and traditional dressing
• Stories that includes specific reasons for wearing these traditional dresses
• Local names of the dresses.

3. Traditional ornaments
It is defined as items such as jewellery that are worn by different groups and may have been passed on from older generations.
Information to be included in this domain:

• People/community who wears the particular ornaments
• Materials used to make the ornaments
• Tools that are used to make it
• Process involved in making which also includes practices and rituals, festivals and customs surrounding local and traditional ornaments
• Stories that includes specific reasons for wearing these ornaments
• Local names of the ornament

4. Arts & Crafts
Three broad aspects or sub-domains of documenting Traditional Arts and Crafts are:
I. Visual and Material: Sculpture, painting, pottery, textiles, woodcraft, metalwork, handloom, puppetry, toy-making
II. Performing arts: Dance (classical and folk), music (vocal and instrumental), theatre, sports, folk songs
III. Literature: Books, poetry, folk tales and lores, storytelling, epic narration
Information to be included in this domain:

• People/community engaged with arts & crafts
• Materials used in the form of arts and crafts
• Items, clothes, ornaments, instruments etc. used
• Process involved that includes practices and rituals associated with the craft or artwork
• Stories associated with arts & crafts
• Local names of the art forms

5. Beliefs
• Beliefs could be in the form of religion, philosophy, or spirituality, among many other things.
• There can also be beliefs specific to a certain community linked to their history, local identity, and customs
• It could be associated practices and customs that are part of everyday life of the village like:

• Life cycle-related major events such as birth, naming, puberty (menstruation), marriage, death, etc.
• Agricultural cycle related practices and rituals
• Weather cycle related practices and rituals
• Healing rituals
• Unique belief/ritual/custom/practice apart from the above mentioned categories

6. Heritage Places
There are two types of heritage places:
1. Built Heritage:
• It refers to any building, structure of site that holds importance to the local community or a state/nation at large
• It can also be a place that has existed for more than a 100 years. E.g. Historical monuments, place of worship, cemeteries, stepwells, etc.
2. Natural Heritage: Things in nature that are considered sacred or significant to a local community or a region/nation at large. E.g. Sacred groves and trees, rivers, ponds, etc.

7. Festivals and Fairs
• Festivals are gatherings of people to celebrate something that can be religious, commemorative, or national festivals. For example: Diwali, Ramadan, Eid, Shaheedi Diwas, Valmiki Jayanti.
• Fairs can be described as a gathering of people for various entertainment or commercial activities. For example, Pushkar Mela, weekly/monthly/quarterly haats/bazaars.
Information to be included in this domain:

• People/community who celebrates/participates also information on individuals who organize these
• Detail about happenings of festival/fair
• Significance of the festivals/fairs
• Any legend stories associated with these

8. Famous Personalities
• Famous personalities refer to men and women who are known for their significant contribution in the history and development of the community.
• They could be people who are famous just within their villages/districts or have contributed at a national level too.
• They can be performers (dancers, musicians, artists), master-craftsmen, community leaders, environmentalists, national/state awardees, war heroes, etc. who are known for their significant contributions in their respective fields.
• Information about the personality must be given that includes reason for which they are famous, details of his/her family, and legend/stories associated with them

9. Prominent Artists
Ministry of Culture wants to develop a National Register of Artists so that the artists can be included in any upcoming national or state level schemes pertaining to their art/craft category.
Information to be included in this domain:

• Name and contribution of the artist
• Personal details of the artist
• Specification about family member (if any) living in the village
• Legends/stories associated with them