Since 1993, the Jacobean routes have been recognized as World Heritage Sites, a recognition that would be extended in 1998 and 2015 with the French and northern Jacobean routes of the Peninsula
The Camino de Santiago has received numerous international awards in recent decades for the incalculable value of its cultural heritage for humanity; An example of this is its consideration as an Asset of Cultural Interest or having the honor of becoming the first European Cultural Itinerary, distinctive granted by the Council of Europe in 1987.
One of the most important recognitions in the history of the Camino de Santiago took place in 1993, when Unesco declared as a World Heritage Site the set of pilgrimage routes to Santiago de Compostela that goes from the Pyrenees to Galicia (that is, the one known as Camino Francés), a rating up to that same year reserved only for historical groups and cities of the world. The union of the Camino de Santiago to the World Heritage List was decided in the Colombian city of Cartagena de Indias coinciding with the end of the Year Xacobeo 1993, following the previous distinction granted to the city of Santiago de Compostela, in 1985.
The declaration of the end of 1993 was preceded by the distinction of the Camino de Santiago, on May 17 of the same year, as European Cultural Heritage in Brussels by the Ministers of Culture of the member countries of the European Economic Community (European Union). Five years later, in 1998, Unesco would extend its declaration including the so-called "Caminos de Santiago de Compostela in France", which cover the following Jacobean routes: Camino de Tuy, Camino de Limoges, Camino de Tours and Camino de Arles or Toulouse
However, it would not be until July 2015 when Unesco would end up extending the recognition of the Camino de Santiago on the List of World Heritage Sites with the so-called "Paths of Santiago del Norte de la Península". In this way, all the paths that comprise the routes of the Coastal North Road, the Primitive Way, the Basque-Riojan Way and the Way of Liébana would be added to the list. This extension, according to Unesco, is due to "the need to explain the origins of the Jacobean phenomenon", which was born around the ninth century with the possible discovery of the tomb of the Apostle in Santiago and the first pilgrimages from the kingdom of Asturias.
We already know when the declaration and its successive enlargements took place, in addition to the Jacobean routes recognized as World Heritage, but what criteria has Unesco taken into account to include the Camino de Santiago in its list? These are the reasons that guarantee that the Camino has all the necessary elements to express the Outstanding Universal Value:
© Copyright LA VOZ DE GALICIA S.A. Polígono de Sabón, Arteixo, A CORUÑA (ESPAÑA) Inscrita en el Registro Mercantil de A Coruña en el Tomo 2438 del Archivo, Sección General, a los folios 91 y siguientes, hoja C-2141. CIF: A-15000649