Bologna is officially the "City of Porticoes" following its nomination as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, as announced on 28 July 2021 directly from Fuzhou in China. The inscription is a new recognition by UNESCO for the city of Bologna, which had already been declared Creative City of Music in 2006.
For ten centuries now, Bologna's porticoes have been playing a leading role in the city's hospitality and good living. Originally conceived as covered spaces of private property but nowadays used by the public, the porticoes are a symbol of sustainability and contemporaneity, still recognised by the people of Bologna and by visitors as identifying elements of the city.