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The UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) has designated 140 World Heritage Sites in all of the 15 sovereign countries (also called "state parties") of Southern Europe: Albania, Andorra, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece, Italy, Macedonia, Malta, Montenegro, Portugal, San Marino, Serbia, Slovenia, Spain and Vatican City, and one site in the British overseas territory of Gibraltar. Due to their geographical location, the Portuguese site on Madeira and four Spanish sites on the Canary Islands are not included here but in the List of World Heritage Sites in Africa.
The top two countries by number of World Heritage Sites are located in this region: Italy with 51 sites and Spain with 44 sites (40 sites not including those on the Canary Islands). Seven sites are shared between several countries: Prehistoric Rock Art Sites in the Côa Valley and Siega Verde (Portugal and Spain), Rhaetian Railway in the Albula / Bernina Landscapes (Italy and Switzerland), Monte San Giorgio (Italy and Switzerland), Historic Centre of Rome, the Properties of the Holy See in that City Enjoying Extraterritorial Rights and San Paolo Fuori le Mura (Holy See and Italy), Pyrénées - Mont Perdu (France and Spain), Prehistoric Pile dwellings around the Alps (Austria, France, Germany, Italy, Slovenia and Switzerland) and Heritage of Mercury - Almadén and Idrija (Slovenia and Spain). The first sites from the region were inscribed in 1979 a year after the list's conception, and included six sites in the former Yugoslavia and one site in Italy. Each year, UNESCO's World Heritage Committee may inscribe new sites on the list, or delist sites that no longer meet the criteria. Selection is based on ten criteria: six for cultural heritage (i–vi) and four for natural heritage (vii–x). Some sites, designated "mixed sites," represent both cultural and natural heritage. In Southern Europe, there are 130 cultural, 6 natural, and 4 mixed sites.
The World Heritage Committee may also specify that a site is endangered, citing "conditions which threaten the very characteristics for which a property was inscribed on the World Heritage List." One of the sites (Medieval Monuments in Kosovo) in Southern Europe is listed as endangered and four sites (Old City of Dubrovnik, Natural and Culturo-Historical Region of Kotor, Plitvice Lakes National Park and Butrint) were previously listed. Possible danger listing has been considered by UNESCO in a number of other cases.
Legend
The table is sortable by column by clicking on the at the top of the appropriate column; alphanumerically for the Site, Area, and Year columns; by state party for the Location column; and by criteria type for the Criteria column. Transborder sites sort at the bottom.
Site; named after the World Heritage Committee's official designation Location; at city, regional, or provincial level and geocoordinates Criteria; as defined by the World Heritage Committee Area; in hectares and acres. If available, the size of the buffer zone has been noted as well. A value of zero implies that no data has been published by UNESCO Year; during which the site was inscribed to the World Heritage List Description; brief information about the site, including reasons for qualifying as an endangered site, if applicable