Cultural Mapping Based on Community Capitals for Participatory Governance of Intangible Cultural Heritage: A Case Study of Sukhothai, Thailand

Abstract

This article addresses the challenge of top-down intangible heritage management in Sukhothai, Thailand, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and Creative Cities Network member. It examines Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) through the Community Capitals Framework (CCF), focusing on cultural, human, social, financial, and built capitals. The study draws on qualitative fieldwork in four key communities along the Phra Ruang corridor in Sukhothai Province and is based on in-depth interviews and focus group discussions. Findings identify three linked patterns. First, cultural capital and built capital serve as the operational base of ICH, allowing cultural practices and ritual traditions to remain active in communities. Second, human capital and social capital enhance the quality and continuity of transmission through intergenerational teaching and locally rooted learning networks. Third, visible outcomes in learning, livelihood, and local recognition of ICH assets attract financial support and policy attention. On this basis, the study develops a community capital map through participatory discussion with community leaders. The map makes local assets visible, allows communities to compare and reflect on their own and others' strengths, and helps set shared development priorities. This process provides an applied basis for participatory heritage management and for community-based heritage governance in Sukhothai.

Highlights
• This article proposes the Community Capitals Framework (CCF) to analyze Sukhothai ICH as an interconnected system of capitals, as mutually reinforcing components of a community’s capital system, rather than siloed safeguarding efforts.
• Comparative evidence from four communities along Phra Ruang Road shows (1) cultural and physical capital provide the material and spatial base for ICH practice, (2) human and social capital enable continuity via learning networks and collective participation, and (3) demonstrable outcomes help catalyze financial resources and policy recognition.
• Reframes ICH spaces (temples, ritual grounds, heritage sites, knowledge homes/centers, kilns) as learning infrastructures linking ritual calendars with iterative skill formation in a practice ecosystem.
• Methodologically, the research integrates qualitative fieldwork, in-depth interviews, focus groups, and participatory community capital mapping to make capital interrelations explicit and collectively validated.
• An applied output delivers a Community Capital Map, co-discussed with community leader groups, to prioritize actions, benchmark strengths across communities, and enable participatory ICH governance in Sukhothai.