A United Nations expert group has commended the website of Cyprus’s Permanent Committee for the Standardization of Geographical Names, describing it as a best‑practice example for other countries.
The UN Group of Experts on Geographical Names (UNGEGN) expressed satisfaction with both the content and operation of the site, which has been running for roughly 12 years and is regularly updated.
The committee said the UN has repeatedly cited the platform as a model worth emulating.
The website includes information on the committee’s history, legislation, membership, announcements, conference papers, reports on efforts to counter the illegal alteration of historical place names in the island’s occupied areas, maps, publications, photographs and standardized lists of municipalities, districts and communities.
It also offers an online tool for automatic transliteration of Greek place names into Latin characters based on the ELOT 743 standard.
All official Cypriot geographical names are included in the country’s comprehensive toponymic dictionary, while maritime names and standardization guides in Greek and English are also available online.
The committee noted that all digital publications are freely accessible and downloadable.
The UNGEGN Bulletin archive from 1988 to 2025 is hosted on the site, including 19 articles contributed by the Cypriot committee.
Cyprus participates actively in UN working groups and conferences in New York and Europe through presentations, reports and other contributions.
The committee is responsible for recording, studying and recommending standardized geographical names to the competent authority, and advises local authorities on naming or renaming streets and on correct orthography.