Cyprus Postal Services, or Cyprus Post, is the postal operator of

Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is ge ...

and operates the government-operated Post Office. A legacy of

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

colonial Colonial or The Colonial may refer to: * Colonial, of, relating to, or characteristic of a colony or colony (biology) Architecture * American colonial architecture * French Colonial * Spanish Colonial architecture Automobiles * Colonial (1920 au ...

rule is the use of

pillar box A pillar box is a type of free-standing post box. They are found in the United Kingdom and British overseas territories, and, less commonly, in many members of the Commonwealth of Nations such as Cyprus, India, Gibraltar, Hong Kong, Malta, New Z ...

es (mail boxes) with the initials of the British monarch, although after independence they were painted yellow.

History

Modern postal services in Cyprus began with the takeover of the island by Britain in 1878. Almost immediately the British colonial administration under first British High Commissioner and Governor of Cyprus, Sir Garnet Wolseley, set about establishing a British-style postal service on the island, with S.R. French being dispatched from the General Post Office in London.Northwich Guardian (UK newspaper), 17 July 1878, p.7 In 1994 Cyprus adopted a new postcode. The alphanumerical code precedes the name of the town or city, hence: CY-1900 NICOSIA
CYPRUS
The 'CY' prefix is only required for mail originating from abroad. The postcode number ranges for the administrative areas are: * Nicosia District: 1000–2999 *

Limassol District Limassol District () or Lemesos ( el, Λεμεσός) is one of the six districts of Cyprus. , it had a population of 239,842, 77% of which was urban. Its main city is Limassol. Part of the British Overseas Territory of Akrotiri and Dhekelia form ...

: 3000–4999 * Famagusta District: 5000–5999 * Larnaca District: 6000–7999 *

Paphos District Paphos District ( el, Επαρχία Πάφου, tr, Baf kazası) is one of the six districts of Cyprus and it is situated in the western part of Cyprus. Its main town and capital is Paphos. The entire district is controlled by the internati ...

: 8000–8999 *

Kyrenia District Kyrenia District is one of the six districts of Cyprus. Its main town is Kyrenia ( el, Κερύνεια; tr, Girne). It is the smallest of Cyprus' districts, and is the only one controlled in its entirety by the unrecognised de facto state o ...

: 9000–9999 The system covers the entire island, including the disputed area under Turkish occupation known as the '

Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus Northern Cyprus ( tr, Kuzey Kıbrıs), officially the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC; tr, Kuzey Kıbrıs Türk Cumhuriyeti, ''KKTC''), is a ''de facto'' state that comprises the northeastern portion of the island of Cyprus. Reco ...

', but only a few have been allocated. Mail to that part of the island must be sent via 'MERSIN 10, TURKEY', as it is not recognised by the

Universal Postal Union The Universal Postal Union (UPU, french: link=no, Union postale universelle), established by the Treaty of Bern of 1874, is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) that coordinates postal policies among member nations, in addition to ...

References

External links

*
Department of Postal Services

Communications in Cyprus Postal system of Cyprus {{Cyprus-stub