Cyrus has granted honorary citizenship to 45 individuals between 2008 and 2018. In 2012 maximum number 10 people received honorary citizenship, according to cyprus mail. Recently a iranian 16 year old student granted cypriot honorary citizenship for his outstanding skills in mathematics.
A Honorary citizenship is a status bestowed by a country on a foreign individual whom it considers to be especially admirable or exceptional, worthy of the distinction.
This type of citizenship not just limited to Cyprus, it is granted to outstanding persons of merit in several countries.
In Germany honorary citizenship is awarded by cities, towns and sometimes federal states. In Ireland, honorary citizenship bestowed on a foreigner is full legal citizenship including the right to reside and vote.
Some of the well known people who received honorary citizenship from various countries.
- Berlin awarded Lucius D. Clay 1962 for his role as military governor and for creating the Berlin airlift and Mikhail Gorbachev for his change in world politics that led to the fall of the Berlin Wall and the reunification of Germany.
- In 2002 South Korea awarded honorary citizenship to Dutch football (soccer) coach Guus Hiddink who successfully and unexpectedly took the national team to the semi-finals of the 2002 FIFA World Cup. Honorary citizenship was also awarded to Hines Ward, a black Korean American football player, in 2006 for his efforts to minimize discrimination in Korea against half-Koreans.
- Nepalese government conferred honorary citizenship upon Hillary at a special Golden Jubilee celebration in Kathmandu, Nepal. He was the first foreign national to receive that honour.
- In 2005, actress Angelina Jolie received an honorary Cambodian citizenship in 2005 for her humanitarian efforts
- In March 2007, cricketers Matthew Hayden and Herschelle Gibbs were awarded honorary citizenship of St. Kitts and Nevis, following their record-breaking innings in the 2007 Cricket World Cup
- In April 2013, Raoul Wallenberg became the first person to be granted an honorary Australian citizenship.
- In August 2013, French actor Gérard Depardieu received an honorary citizenship by Belgium.
- In October 2013, Argentinian football coach José Pekerman received Colombian citizenship after he qualified Colombia to the 2014 FIFA World Cup, the first World Cup for the country after a 16-year hiatus.
- On 12 April 2017, Malala Yousafzai Of Pakistan was awarded honorary Canadian Citizenship by PM Justin Trudeau for her work on providing education to girls in her hometown Swat during Taliban occupation.
- On 12 July 2017, Ariana Grande was made an honorary citizen of Manchester for her efforts to raise funds for victims of the 22 May 2017 terrorist attack in Manchester Arena.
There is also a Honorary Citizen of Europe, an honour bestowed by the European Council of the European Union, for extraordinary work to promote European cooperation.
It has only been bestowed on three people:
- Jean Monnet (2 April 1976, during the meeting of the council in Luxembourg)
- Helmut Kohl (11 December 1998, during the meeting of the council in Vienna)
- Jacques Delors (25 June 2015, for “his remarkable contribution to the development of the European project”)
