"Ibiza - a World Heritage Site" a Ibiza Travel Page by Tolik

The island of Ibiza belongs to the Pitiusan Islands situated in the south of the Balearic Islands. The name was given by the ancient Greeks – the Pitiaus – means ‘pine island’. Their geographical location, benefited by the sea currents, made them a strategic point on the westward Mediterranean navigation routes. This contributed to the establishment of several cultures which gave their own name to the main town - Greek: Ebysos, Punica: Ibosim, Arab: Yebisah, Castellana: Ibiza, Iberica: Eivissa.

Nostradamus, a 15C astrologer, predicted that life o Earth would be wiped out by nuclear war. Only unusual prevailing wind pattern over Ibiza save the island and its people from extinction: ‘Ibiza will be Earth final refuge’.

In 1999 UNESCO declared the southern area of the island a World Heritage Site. The area includes the walled site of Dalt Vila, the Necropolis of Puig des Molins, the Phonecian settlement of Sa Caleta and the fields of posidonia oceanica (seagrass). The fortified area of Eivissa, which retains its original 16th – century outline, was planned by the engineer Giovanni Batista Calvi and later modified and extended by Jacobo Fratin.