The Ministry of Culture plans to propose the Nang Yai shadow play to be inscribed on the UNESCO Register of Good Safeguarding Practices in March 2026.

The decision was made recently at a meeting of the Committee on the Promotion and Preservation of Intangible Cultural Heritage, which discussed the nomination of the “Community-based Revitalization of Nang Yai Tradition in Thailand” project to be submitted to UNESCO’s Register of Good Safeguarding Practices.

Nang Yai is a form of traditional Thai performing art, performed against a brilliant backlit white screen. It features large, intricately crafted figures made from cowhide or buffalo hide that cast dancing shadows on the screen. This form of traditional shadow puppetry has been performed outdoors in palaces, temples, or villages since the 15th century. It tells stories from Ramakian, the Thai version of the Indian epic Ramayana.

 Currently Nang Yai survives in only three communities, namely Wat Khanon in Ratchaburi Province, Wat Ban Don in Rayong, and Wat Sawang Arom in Sing Buri. The revival of Nang Yai is considered a good model for the preservation of living heritage, ensuring its spread to become better known at local, national, and international levels.

The Department of Cultural Promotion, under the Ministry of Culture, will prepare a document on the nomination of Nang Yai for Cabinet approval, before it is submitted to UNESCO around March 2026.

In addition, the meeting of the Committee on the Promotion and Preservation of Intangible Cultural Heritage also acknowledged the joint ASEAN nomination for the inclusion of Duman, known in Thai as Khao Mao, on the UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. The Philippines has invited Thailand and other ASEAN countries with cultural practices related to Duman to jointly submit this nomination for UNESCO’s consideration by 2026.