TOKYO (Kyodo) -- An advisory panel to UNESCO has recommended six items from Japan be added under three categories already inscribed in the U.N. body's Intangible Cultural Heritage list, such as traditional festivals and paper making, Japan's culture agency said Tuesday.

The inscription of the six items -- festivals from Ibaraki, Niigata, Shiga and Toyama prefectures, as well as two types of craftsmanship related to handmade paper and tatami mat making -- are set to be formally endorsed at the U.N. Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization's intergovernmental committee session to be held in New Delhi from Dec. 8 to 13, the Agency for Cultural Affairs said.

The items fall under the categories of "Washi, craftsmanship of traditional Japanese handmade paper," "Yama, Hoko, Yatai, float festivals in Japan," and "Traditional skills, techniques and knowledge for the conservation and transmission of wooden architecture in Japan," already designated as on the intangible heritage list in 2014, 2016 and 2020, respectively.

The recommendation said the Otsu Hikiyama Festival in Shiga, the Ofune Festival of Hitachi Otsu in Ibaraki, the Murakami Yatai Festival in Niigata and the Hojozu Hachimangu Shrine Hikiyama Tsukiyama Festival in Toyama play a vital role in local community building, according to the agency.

The other two items -- techniques related to the manufacturing of Echizen "torinoko-shi" handmade paper in Fukui Prefecture and to crafting handwoven "nakatsugi-omote," a type of aesthetic and durable tatami mat surface -- have also satisfied safeguarding practices and other standards for the extended inscriptions, it said.

The government nominated the six items to UNESCO in March 2024.

In 2024, Japan's traditional knowledge and skills for the making of sake and shochu distilled spirits became its 23rd to be added to the Intangible Cultural Heritage list.

Since the latest six items would be treated as "extensions" of the already heritage-listed categories, the number of entries from Japan will remain unchanged at 23.

Japan has also requested "shodo" calligraphy to be listed as a new Intangible Cultural Heritage entry, with screening by the U.N. body expected in 2026.