The inscription of the Shepherd's Culture and the World of the Shepherd in the National Inventory of Intangible Cultural Heritage

The pastoral life in Psiloritis, or the shepherding as described by the shepherds and contemporary herders of the area, constitutes a rich field of self-organization and customary law, surrounded by rituals, specific phrases and performances, techniques, and practices. These elements have shaped a cultural background that is closely intertwined with the lives of shepherds and modern livestock farmers.

Shepherding serves as a key to decrypting the world of the shepherd in Psiloritis, revealing a significant part of the traditional techniques and cultural practices that are directly related to the daily life and survival of the shepherds. It represents a combination of elements that constitute the agricultural activity and the ethos in pastoral communities, with a historically decisive influence on the value system, economic and social life, as well as the cultural character of the mountainous communities on Mount Psiloritis.

Participants and guarantors for the preservation of this initiative are:

• The shepherds of Psiloritis and their families, whose cultural practices have shaped the character and identity of the area with an active imprint over time and place.
• The local government bodies of the area, specifically the Municipalities of Anogeia, Amari, Mylopotamos, Malevizi, Phaistos, and Gortyna, within whose jurisdiction the shepherds of Psiloritis primarily operate.
• The initial initiative was initiated by the Municipality of Anogeia, a member of the Psiloritis Municipalities network, which proposed the creation and drafting of a proposal for the National Inventory of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Greece in collaboration with the local Social Cooperative for Cultural Management, Androidus Project Tank.
• The Livestock Association of Amari, the Livestock Association of Anogeia, and the Livestock Association of Mylopotamos. Additionally, the Agricultural Cooperative of Mylopotamos based in Perama of the Municipality of Mylopotamos, and the newly established Agricultural Livestock Cooperative of Anogeia.
• The research project IDAology, during the implementation of which data and audiovisual recordings related to pastoral life across the geographical range of Psiloritis emerged and will continue to emerge.
• The authors of the Intangible Cultural Heritage element dossier are:
• Georgios Kalomoiris, Ph.D. candidate in Development Methodology of Cultural Planning Issues, University of the Aegean, Archaeologist - Cultural Manager, Curator of the cultural network Androidus Project Tank - Argestiri of Culture - Innovation Research.
• Marina Geronti, Communication Consultant - Cultural Manager, Communication Manager of the cultural network Androidus Project Tank - Argestiri of Culture - Innovation Research.
• The collection of audiovisual material and the organization of on-site research in the pastures of Psiloritis were overseen by Antonis Ntayiantas - Analyst programmer specializing in intelligent information systems, co-founder of the cultural network Androidus Project Tank - Argestiri of Culture - Innovation Research.
• The initiative for the drafting and research of the above proposal began in 2019 in collaboration with the Municipality of Anogeia and the then Mayor, Mr. Manolis Kallergis, and was completed in collaboration with the current Mayor of Anogeia, Mr. Sokratis Kefalogiannis, with the main focus being the philosophy of coexistence, networking, and interaction with the Municipalities and communities that comprise the mountainous massif of Psiloritis.
• The contribution of the Director of Research of the Center of Folklore of the Academy of Athens, Andromachi Oikonomou, the Director of the Directorate of Modern Cultural Heritage, Villy Fotopoulou, the head of the Intangible Cultural Heritage department, Yiannis Drinis, archaeologist E. Bazini, their collaborators, and the National Committee for Intangible Cultural Heritage, was crucial in shaping and completing the proposal.
• For the drafting of this dossier, the following individuals equally contributed:
• Associate Professor in the Department of Philosophy and Social Studies at the University of Crete, specializing in the cognitive subject "Social Anthropology," and director of the Visual Anthropology Center of the University of Crete, Aristeidis Tsantilopoulos, through significant contributions from his research and as a scientific collaborator of the research program IDAology.
• Ph.D. candidate in Folklore and Anthropology at the University of Ioannina, Thanos Kotsis, through his contribution to the scientific editing and structure of the proposal and significant supplementary additions to the scientific bibliography.
• The drafting and research team from the beginning of the proposal includes:Dimitris Kallergis, Livestock Shepherd - Farmer through the experiential approach to knowing and understanding shepherding and communicating with the carriers throughout the geographical range of Psiloritis.
• Maria G. Fasoula - Cultural Scientist, through her overall research contribution to the entire proposal and the authorship of the article "The role of women as weavers, from shearing to dyeing and weaving in Anogeia."
• Katerina Kalomoiri, Philologist, for the philological editing of the text and the intuitive view to see and include features and traditions that constitute the world of the shepherd.
• Kostis Patenas, Deputy Mayor of the Municipality of Amari - Livestock Shepherd, contributing to understanding shepherding through inviting traditions and practices such as sheep shearing, their hiking during the spring and autumn months, etc.

Shepherding remains, to this day, a crucial element for the stakeholders of the element and their communities, as despite socio-economic transformations, it constitutes a functional code for the preservation of interpersonal and intercommunal relations, with extrajudicial resolution of disputes among residents and the avoidance of internal social crises, enhancing the sense of belonging and community spirit.

This unwritten, in many ways, history of the mountain itself through its timeless protagonists, the shepherds of Psiloritis, is significant to form an integrated cultural proposal as a starting point for intercultural continuities through research and interaction.

The complete dossier of the Intangible Cultural Heritage  is on the website https://ayla.culture.gr/i-voskiki-kai-o-kosmos-tou-voskou-ston-psiloreiti-2021/