Research flows and results of studies on intangible cultural heritage: A network analysis of articles in related international journals, 2002–2020

Next year is the 20th anniversary of the preparation and adoption of the Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage. It is necessary to ensure the sustainability of intangible cultural heritage (ICH) for the future beyond basic protective activities. Concerning this, it is important to increase higher education and academic systems in ICH. Although it has been almost 20 years since the Convention was prepared and adopted, the results addressing this issue are insufficient. This study collects previous ICH research results and accumulates and investigates the main research subjects, topics and the change and flow of research through the keyword network analysis method based on big data analysis. Through this research, this study contributes to the establishment of the academic system and status of ICH.