60 Types of Heritage

John Spacey, December 21, 2020 updated on April 20, 2022

Heritage is value that is handed down from the past. This includes knowledge, traditions, culture and nature. This can be viewed as the assets that are passed from one generation to the next with responsible stewardship of valuable resources, sustaining of traditions and the invention of new knowledge and culture. The following are common examples of heritage.

Agricultural Traditions	Antiques & Antiquities
Archaeological Sites	Architecture / Buildings
Areas of Natural Beauty	Art
Beaches	Books / Writings / Letters / Documents
Carnivals	Conservation Areas
Coral Reefs	Costumes
Crafts	Culinary Traditions
Culture	Customs
Dances	Designs
Ecosystems	Fashions
Festivals	Films
Flora & Fauna (biodiversity)	Folklore
Forests	Games
Gardens	Heirloom Plants
Historical Sites / Artefacts	History
Holidays	Institutions
Islands	Lakes
Landforms	Languages
Legends	Literature
Mountains	Music
Musical Instruments	Myths
Nature Preserves	Oceans
Parks / National Parks	Pastimes
Performing Arts	Rainforests
Religious Sites	Rites of Passage
Rituals	Rivers
Scientific Knowledge	Sports
Stories	Traditional Beliefs
Traditional Knowledge	Traditional Practices
Universities	Volcanoes / Geothermal Sites

Intangible Heritage

Intangible cultural heritage is any heritage that has no physical form such as a dance or language. This a living element of heritage that is passed from generation to generation.

Importance of Heritage

Heritage represents value for each generation whereby the knowledge, creative expression and artifacts of the past add to the richness of cultural life. Natural heritage such as ecosystems are essential for the survival of each generation and is also an important element of quality of life.

Heritage Issues

In some cases, heritage is used as a reason not to change or to grow to meet the needs of the current generation. For example, a city filled with historical sites whereby building new housing and infrastructure becomes expensive and slow due to protection of historical sites. The preservation of heritage can be expensive and surrounded in high culture elitism that prioritizes the opinions of a "cultural elite" over the needs of a community.

Overtourism

Cultural and natural heritage can have significant economic benefits as they may attract tourists or investments in the local economy such as the headquarters of a firm. As with any resource, heritage can be overexploited whereby it is damaged or becomes detrimental to quality of life. For example, a beautiful beach that attracts a large number of tourists that damage the local ecology or way of life.

Overview: Heritage
Type	Cultural Heritage
Definition (1)	Value that is handed down from the past.
Definition (2)	Old culture and nature that has survived to the present day.
Related Concepts	Cultural Heritage » High Culture » Quality Of Life » Institution »