CoE, EC launch European Heritage Days 2024

It said that this year’s events will focus on the Heritage of Routes, Networks, and Connections to highlight inter-connections shaping Europe’s rich and diverse heritage, from ancient routes and trade networks to modern digital links.

“By exploring the 2024 theme, "Heritage of Routes, Networks, and Connections," people in more than 40 countries can discover how the movement of people, ideas, and cultures across time and space have shaped our continent. Learning about buildings, monuments, streets, networks, rituals, languages, and even food reveal how our national and European traditions and heritage are products of continuous exchanges and various influences,” the press release said.

It quoted CoE Secretary General Marija Pejcinovic Buric who said that “the 2024 theme of the European Heritage Days is a powerful reminder of how our shared heritage continues to connect us across borders and through time, enriching our collective European identity and supporting the foundations of democracy”.

European Commissioner Iliana Ivanova is quoted as saying that the “European Heritage Days unite millions of Europeans around their shared historical and cultural heritage” and adding that “the new pan- European theme will put the focus on a cornerstone of European history: routes, networks, and other bridges among European territories”. She added that this is a good way to protect and understand the common European heritage.

The European Heritage Days was launched by CoE in 1985 and has been organized as a joint initiative with the European Commission since 1999.