The Intangible Cultural Heritage Safeguarded by UNESCO - the Mexican case

The aim of the work is to evaluate to what degree the intangible UNESCO monument of the "Day of the Dead" (Día de Muertos) is indeed a living heritage. In the first chapter, it deals with UNESCO and the institution of intangible heritage and with an overview of the Mexican monuments thereof. The second chapter presents in its three parts analyses the present state of the "Day of the Dead" on the background of its historical development, and it evaluates the current impact of the UNESCO world heritage protection in relation to globalization and commercialization of the holiday. Keywords: Mexico, Day of the Dead, UNESCO, intangible cultural heritag