Page 13 - ARUBA TODAY

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Thursday 19 december 2019

Culture for Christmas Year is approaching or has nos a jega na bo porta” – of Savaneta, 2. Its starting
arrived. Dande stems from Ay Nobe, translated means in the district of Noord, 3.
the word Dandalia, which “Oh the party has arrived Its popularity strengthened
loosely translates into “to at your door” – New Year. in the district of St. Cruz, or
party, he who parties, or The origin of the Dande is 4. Its starting after the abo-
simply paranda”. not known, however there lition of slavery in 1863 by
The first sentence of the are many theories such as; the Dutch King.
Dande song “oh dande 1. Its starting in the district Continued on Page 14

ORANJESTAD — As the last weeks of this year are ap-
proaching and a new decade is before us, it is essential
to highlight an irreplaceable traditional intangible cultur-
al heritage of Aruba, the Dande. Even though between
Aruba, Bonaire, and Curaçao there are many shared
cultural traditions, the Dande is something uniquely from
Aruba and can’t be found on the other islands.

According to UNESCO, cultural heritage “does not end
at monuments and collections of objects. It also includes
traditions or living expressions inherited from our ances-
tors and passed on to our descendants, such as oral tra-
ditions, performing arts, social practices, rituals, festive
events, knowledge and practices concerning nature
and the universe or the knowledge and skills to produce
traditional crafts”.

While delicate, intangible cultural heritage is a significant
aspect in preserving cultural diversity in the face of grow-
ing globalization. The general understanding of intangi-
ble cultural heritage of different communities on Aruba
helps with intercultural discourse, community cohesion
and supports mutual respect for other ways of life. The
meaning of intangible cultural heritage is not only the cul-
tural manifestation but rather the richness that is diffused
from one generation to the next.
UNESCO reiterates that “the social and economic value
of this transmission of knowledge is relevant for minority
groups and for mainstream social groups within a State,
and is as important for developing States as for devel-
oped ones”. Summarized we can conclude that Intangi-
ble Cultural Heritage is: 1. Traditional, contemporary and
living at the same time; 2. Inclusive; 3. Representative;
and 4. Community-based.

Dande
The most traditional cultural intangible heritage Aruba
has throughout the Christmas season is called Dande.
The Dande is a local oral tradition where the song "ay
nobe" (aña nobo) – "new year” is performed as the New