Living tradition

Traditional knowledge and skills

Traditions that are passed down orally, social customs and celebrations, linguistic diversity and traditional handicraft techniques are all part of our stock of intangible cultural assets. The Ahrntal Valley and Sand in Taufers are distinguished by their very own Teldra dialect, which is only spoken in this form here. As far as handicrafts are concerned, the production of cheese and especially grey cheesehave a long history here. As do lace making and wood carving. The locals have always lived in harmony with nature. Livestock such as cattle and sheep spend the summer months on the alpine pastures and their return to the valley in autumn is celebrated during the Kiehkemma (cattle drive). The knowledge gained over the centuries about uses for local herbs, both for culinary and health purposes, has been carefully preserved. And consciously handed down to the next generations.

Grey cheese - firmly rooted

The production of grey cheese, like cheese in general, has long been common in the alpine region as a way of using excess milk. Today in the Ahrntal Valley and Sand in Taufers, cheese is very important in our traditional cuisine as well as in high-class gastronomy. Producers guard their secret recipes closely, as the characteristics of grey cheese are surprisingly varied. Slowfood even gave the product its highest possible award, a Presidio. And every two years the Cheese Festival is a veritable who's who of national and international cheese connoisseurs and cheese lovers.

Living artisanry

Two kinds of handicraft, which arose from the need to develop an income source, are still present in the Ahrntal Valley and Sand in Taufers today: lace making and wood carving. Thread and wood were used to produce rare individual items with artistic merit and objects intended for use. The lace making school in Prettau and the wood carving symposiumbear witness to the importance of these handicrafts in the valley.

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The Teldra dialect

Speaking or hearing a dialect can trigger memories of childhood. Of the feeling of home – and of belonging to somewhere. In the Ahrntal, in the Toul (valley), and especially from Sand in Taufers to the Vetta d’Italia (the northernmost point in Italy), the locals speak a truly special dialect. A dialect that only those people who grew up here can speak. It is worth listening in when they speak among themselves. Words such as “Ti” (door), “diu” (you) or “söui” (so) give the Teldra dialect its characteristic sound: warm, rustic, melodic, unmistakeable and rooted to home.

Sung dialect: Listen to the real Teldra dialect spoken by the dialect artist “Oachale fan Toule”. Doesn’t it sound unique?

The Ahrn Pilgrimage – the “Ehrnburga Kreize”

For 650 years, the Ahrntal Valley natives have carried out a pilgrimage every Friday before Ascension Day from Prettau to Ehrenburg, to ask the “Corn Mother” for a good harvest. The pilgrims, exclusively men, cover the 106 kilometres in two days. The fact that this tradition is still practised without question today is testimony to the rural and religious nature of the culture in the valley.

The power of nature

The residents of the Ahrntal Valley have always had a deep understanding of the forces that shape nature. Across the generations they have studied the secrets of the mountains, forests and rivers and incorporated them in their traditions and customs. This knowledge is not only a source of inspiration, but also an inexhaustible fount of wisdom, which is still taken seriously and protected from being forgotten today.

Come face-to-face with the knowledge of herbs:

These cultural events are not to be missed

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