BANGKOK, Thailand – Phuket Province is set to hold the “Phuket Creative City: Kebaya Festival 2025” from 20 to 21 September 2025, at the 72nd Anniversary of Queen Sirikit Park (Dragon Park) in Phuket to celebrate the kebaya—a traditional dress for women in southern Thailand—as Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
The two-day event will feature a kebaya parade on 20 September at 16.30 hr, baba-yaya or Thai-peranakan cultural performance, an exhibition, and a demonstration of making peranakan handicrafts.
In southern Thailand, the kebaya, known as “Thai-peranakan” or a “baba-yaya,” can be found in Phuket, Phang-nga, Ranong, Krabi, Trang, and Satun. Local women usually wear it on various special occasions, such as formal events, festivals, and parties. In 2024, UNESCO approved the inscription of kebaya as the shared intangible cultural heritage of five countries, namely Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand, on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. (PRD)
