Baklava becomes the subject of an international dispute: Turkey and Azerbaijan submit a joint UNESCO application

Turkey and Azerbaijan have submitted a joint application for the inclusion of baklava-making traditions in UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. If approved, international recognition will go not to the dessert itself, but to the culinary traditions, craftsmanship and cultural customs associated with it.

It is important to understand that UNESCO does not determine the “country of origin” of a dish and does not grant a state exclusive rights to it. The organization includes intangible cultural heritage on the list — knowledge, traditions and the ways they are passed down from generation to generation.

The reason for the application is the long-standing disputes over the origin of baklava. In Greece, it is believed that a prototype of the dessert existed in the time of the Byzantine Empire and was part of the local culinary tradition long before the emergence of the Ottoman Empire. Turkish researchers, by contrast, argue that modern baklava took shape precisely in the Ottoman palace kitchens of the 15th–17th centuries and then spread throughout the region.

At the same time, most gastronomic historians agree that baklava cannot be attributed to a single country. The modern recipe evolved over centuries under the influence of different cultures — Byzantine, Persian, Turkic and Middle Eastern. That is why today there are local versions of this dessert in Turkey, Azerbaijan, Greece, Armenia, the Balkans, the Middle East and North Africa.

Not only the recipes but also the ingredients differ. In Turkey, the best-known baklava is Gaziantep baklava with pistachios; in Greece, walnuts and honey are traditionally used; and in Azerbaijan, versions with saffron, cardamom and many thin layers of dough are popular.

It is worth noting that Turkey already has international recognition linked to this dessert. In 2013, Gaziantep Baklavası became the first Turkish product registered in the European Union as a protected geographical indication (PGI). However, this status applies only to baklava produced in the Gaziantep region and does not concern the origin of the dessert itself.

If the UNESCO Committee supports the joint application by Turkey and Azerbaijan, it will be the traditions of baklava-making that are included in the list of intangible cultural heritage. This does not mean that other countries will lose the right to consider it part of their national cuisine, but it will be an important cultural and diplomatic success for Ankara and Baku.