YEREVAN (Moscow Times) — Lavash puts Armenia ahead of much of the pack with a total of four entries on the Intangible Cultural Heritage List.
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has decided to include Armenian flatbread on its intangible cultural heritage list, recognizing the importance of the foodstuff to the country’s inhabitants.
Lavash, a staple of Armenian cuisine, is a type of soft and very thin flatbread that can be consumed as a wrap for cheese, meat or vegetables. It is also popular throughout the South Caucasus, and in Iran and Turkey.
According to a note on the UNESCO website, preparation of lavash requires great effort, coordination, experience and special skills” and ”strengthens family, community and social ties.”
Lavash was accepted onto the list on Wednesday, with the UNESCO organization saying on its site that it acknowledged “the preparation, meaning and appearance of [the] traditional bread as an expression of culture in Armenia.”
