Culture Vannin is the trading name for the Manx Heritage Foundation, established in 1982 by the

Isle of Man Government The Isle of Man Government () is the government of the Isle of Man. The formal head of the Isle of Man Government is the Lieutenant Governor of the Isle of Man, Lieutenant Governor, the personal representative of the Lord of Mann (currently Char ...

to promote Manx

culture Culture ( ) is a concept that encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and Social norm, norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, Social norm, customs, capabilities, Attitude (psychology), attitudes ...

, heritage and

language Language is a structured system of communication that consists of grammar and vocabulary. It is the primary means by which humans convey meaning, both in spoken and signed language, signed forms, and may also be conveyed through writing syste ...

. It was rebranded in February 2014, having previously been known as the "Manx Heritage Foundation" (), since the former title "held connotations more towards the cultural history of the island" which were not felt to be accurate to the organisation's progressive approach to invigorating Manx culture.'Re-brand to better reflect its work'
News item on IOM Today, published 18 February 2014 Culture Vannin's motto is "Taking our culture forward".

Organisation

The management board of the Foundation consists of two MHKs appointed by

Tynwald Tynwald (), or more formally, the High Court of Tynwald () or Tynwald Court, is the legislature of the Isle of Man. It consists of two chambers, known as the branches of Tynwald: the directly elected House of Keys and the indirectly chosen Leg ...

, three members of the general public nominated by the

Council of Ministers Council of Ministers is a traditional name given to the supreme Executive (government), executive organ in some governments. It is usually equivalent to the term Cabinet (government), cabinet. The term Council of State is a similar name that also m ...

and approved by Tynwald, and a representative from both the Isle of Man Arts Council and Manx National Heritage. It is chaired by Chris Thomas MHK. The Foundation currently employs four members staff: * Director: Dr Breesha Maddrell * Manx Language Development Officer: Ruth Keggin Gell * Manx Music Development Officer: Dr Chloë Woolley Its offices are based in Fairfield House, St. John's, opposite Tynwald Hill and next to Bunscoill Ghaelgagh. Having announced plans for this relocation in June 2015, Culture Vannin opened its doors to the public at Fairfield House on Tynwald Day 2016. It was previously located at The Nunnery, Douglas.

Activities

Culture Vannin's policy states that its four main aims are:

1) To identify the unique areas of Manx Heritage and Culture and;
2) To find practical ways of making them relevant to today's society;
3) To support the Manx identity and contemporary Manx culture.

The Foundation sets out to achieve these aims by offering financial assistance through grants or loans, by undertaking and commissioning its own research/publishing, and by offering practical advice and assistance where appropriate. The Foundation considers

Manx culture The culture of the Isle of Man is influenced by its Celtic and, to a lesser extent, its Norse origins, though its close proximity to the United Kingdom, popularity as a UK tourist destination, and recent mass immigration by British migrant wor ...

to include all of the following:

crafts A craft or trade is a pastime or an occupation that requires particular skills and knowledge of skilled work. In a historical sense, particularly the Middle Ages and earlier, the term is usually applied to people occupied in small scale pr ...

history History is the systematic study of the past, focusing primarily on the Human history, human past. As an academic discipline, it analyses and interprets evidence to construct narratives about what happened and explain why it happened. Some t ...

natural history Natural history is a domain of inquiry involving organisms, including animals, fungi, and plants, in their natural environment, leaning more towards observational than experimental methods of study. A person who studies natural history is cal ...

music Music is the arrangement of sound to create some combination of Musical form, form, harmony, melody, rhythm, or otherwise Musical expression, expressive content. Music is generally agreed to be a cultural universal that is present in all hum ...

literature Literature is any collection of Writing, written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially novels, Play (theatre), plays, and poetry, poems. It includes both print and Electroni ...

, folk-lore,

art Art is a diverse range of cultural activity centered around ''works'' utilizing creative or imaginative talents, which are expected to evoke a worthwhile experience, generally through an expression of emotional power, conceptual ideas, tec ...

folk dance A folk dance is a dance that reflects the life of the people of a certain country or region. Not all ethnic dances are folk dances. For example, Ritual, ritual dances or dances of ritual origin are not considered to be folk dances. Ritual dances ...

architecture Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and construction, constructi ...

archaeology Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts or ecofacts, ...

, industrial development,

law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior, with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been variously described as a science and as the ar ...

and

ecology Ecology () is the natural science of the relationships among living organisms and their Natural environment, environment. Ecology considers organisms at the individual, population, community (ecology), community, ecosystem, and biosphere lev ...

. Examples of key work carried out by the Foundation includes: * The awarding of '' Reih Bleeaney Vanannan'' (Manannan's Choice of the Year) in recognition of an outstanding contribution to Manx culture. This has been awarded annually since 1987. * Support of events that celebrate the Manx language, music and dance, including: Shennaghys Jiu, Yn Chruinnaght, Cooish and Bree. * The publication or support for publication of a number of books, CDs and DVDs. * Commissioning and supporting a number of oral history projects.'Oral History'
on the ''Manx Heritage Foundation'' website (accessed May 15, 2013)

References

External links

Official website
{{Coord, 54.203107, -4.641731, display=title, region:IM Cultural organisations based in the Isle of Man Organizations established in 1982 Manx language Celtic language advocacy organizations 1982 establishments in the Isle of Man Government of the Isle of Man