TRADICIONAL CRAFTS IN
LITHUANIA:
SITUATION AND PERSPECTIVES
E. Ribašauskiene

Lithuanian Institute of Agrarian Economics
International Scientific Conference
EU Support for 2007-2013: New Challenges and Innovations for agriculture and food industry
27 – 29 May 2009

Globalization processes, cultural influence of other countries,
insufficient dissemination of knowledge about the national
material and immaterial heritage create problems related to
national identity, retention and promotion of ethnic-cultural
heritage, threatening ethnic culture, where traditions and
customs mingle, regional ethnographic differences disappear.
Such situation encourages to appreciate ethnic-cultural heritage
and seek for possibilities of using it.
On the other side, the reducing employment in commercial
agriculture may offer an alternative of traditional crafts, which, as
an integral part of economic and social rural life, may become
one of the most attractive activities in rural areas. Moreover, that
Lithuanian ethnic culture was formed on the basis of the
community of farmers through ages.
Traditional crafts – an individual or collective activity,
based on experience and specific skills transferred
through generations, is aimed at making and selling
products historically characteristic of Lithuania or a
separate ethnographic region produced in a particular
traditional form, composition and marked by other
peculiarities.

LEGAL PRECONDITIONS FOR THE
DEVELOPMENT OF TRADICIONAL
CRAFTS

• The Law on products of national heritage (enforced since 1 January
2008);
• Rules for certifying products of national heritage, training
programmes of traditional crafts and traditional fairs, including the
certification and attestation of craftsmen;
• Description of the classificator of traditional crafts and the
procedure of classification;
• Indicators for assessing correspondence of the National heritage
products to the Lithuanian ethnic culture;
• Long-term Strategy on retaining, promoting, creating and selling
products of national heritage, and the 2008 – 2015 Programme on the
protection of products of national heritage, and the development of
the market and crafts.
The Description of the classification of traditional crafts
and the Classificator of traditional crafts cover 65 types
of crafts and products historically developed in
Lithuania.
Products made by craftsmen are recognized as
traditional articles, provided they are:
• produced by the generations of craftsmen for no less
than 100 years in the entire Lithuania or in a certain
ethnographic region;
•hand made using old production technologies or are
made with the help of modern technologies
corresponding to the old ones retaining the unique
traditional features and the composition of products.

MARKING OF TRADICIONAL
PRODUCTS

In 2008 craftsmen submitted 46 applications for the assessment of
experts on 77 traditional products (experts stated that 58 products
were recognized as products of national heritage, including 39 food
products, 7 products of carving, 6 of pottery and cross-making).
Over 40 applications concerning the recognition of 150 traditional
articles as products of national heritage were submitted during the
period of January – April 2009. According to the experts more than
100 articles were recognized as products of national heritage. The
first 9 craftsmen, who have collected vast experience and are going
to teach others in their crafts, were assessed.

NATIONAL MEASURES FOR
SUPPORTING TRADITIONAL CRAFTS

The support is aimed at:
•certification of products of national heritage, training programmes of
traditional crafts and traditional fairs, including the certification and
attestation of craftsmen,
• development of programmes for training and upgrading of skills,
and scientific possibility studies for further development of crafts,
• improvement of skills of the present and the potential future
craftsmen,
• establishment and equipment of specialized market places, where
products of national heritage could be sold,
• measures for promoting products of national heritage and
traditional services (fairs, exhibitions, conferences, production of
publications introducing and promoting products of national
heritage, descriptions of products of national heritage, including
maps of their prevalence, etc., and marketing),
• awarding the most successfully working craftsmen and craft
centres.

EU MEASURES FOR SUPPORTING
TRADITIONAL CRAFTS

Crafts will be also supported under Axis III of the Lithuanian Rural
Development Programme for 2007–2013:
Measure 1: ,,Diversification of economic activities“,
Measure 2: ,,Support for business creation and development “,
Measure 3: ,,Encouragement of rural tourism activities “.
Priorities in the above measures are given to applicants asking for
support for the development of craftsmanship activities.
Support to the development of craft centres will be provided under
measure 4 “Village renewal and development”.
Support is aimed at:
•Restoration of craftsmanship technologies,
•Creating conditions for representing and selling craftsmanship
articles and products,
•Establishment of traditional crafts centres and supporting their
activities.