(ECNS) -- The 12th Epic Manas International Cultural Tourism Festival opened in Akto County, Kizilsu Kirgiz Autonomous Prefecture on Monday, and runs until July 20.
Organized by the Kizilsu Prefectural Government based on a theme about “The Pamir of the World, the Eternal Manas,” the festival features a main venue and county-level sub-venues.
The Manas epic, one of China's three great heroic epics, was inscribed on China's first national intangible cultural heritage list in 2006 and on UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2009.
It is preserved and performed across Xinjiang and in several other countries, including Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Afghanistan.
At the opening, an official from Kyrgyzstan's Ministry of Culture, Information and Youth Policy called Manas a cultural treasure shared by China and Kyrgyzstan and voiced hope that the two countries would deepen cooperation in culture and tourism.
Two projects were launched: a live-recording effort under the Chinese Epic Project and the international rollout of the Manas Theatre app, both aimed at expanding the epic's digital reach.
Prominent Chinese experts were also appointed as senior advisors to support the systematic protection and branding of the epic.
The festival also includes a national forum on Manas preservation, a multi-ethnic intangible heritage exhibition, and the fourth youth Manaschi singing competition, strengthening intergenerational transmission and regional exchange.
Across its twelve editions, the festival has grown into a key platform for intangible heritage dissemination and cultural tourism development.
(By Helen Mo, intern Lin Qiaochu)
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