# Koninklijk

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Honorary title for companies and non-profit organisations in Belgium and the Netherlands

***Koninklijk*** (pronounced [\[ˈkoːnɪŋklək\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:IPA/Dutch) [ⓘ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Nl-koninklijk.ogg), [Dutch](/source/Dutch_language) for 'royal')[a] is an [honorary title](/source/Title_of_honor) given to certain companies and [non-profit](/source/Non-profit) organisations in the [Netherlands](/source/Netherlands) and to a lesser extent [Belgium](/source/Belgium), by the monarchs of each country. It was first introduced by [Louis Bonaparte](/source/Louis_Bonaparte) in 1807, then [King of Holland](/source/Kingdom_of_Holland), who awarded the title to cultural associations. Companies awarded with the title may opt to use the English equivalent *royal* instead. It is comparable with the [Royal Warrant](/source/Royal_Warrant_of_Appointment_(United_Kingdom)) in the United Kingdom.

The word is also used in the names of some state-controlled organisations, such as service branches of the [Netherlands Armed Forces](/source/Netherlands_Armed_Forces) (e.g. *[Koninklijke Marine](/source/Koninklijke_Marine)*).

## In the Netherlands

The [monarch of the Netherlands](/source/Monarch_of_the_Netherlands) has the right to appoint the royal title to a company or organisation.

To qualify for a nomination, the company or organization has to meet the following conditions:

- it has to be leading in its field of expertise;

- it has to have national importance;

- it has to be in existence for at least 100 years (in principle).

As a rule, the monarch will award only one royal title per branch of business. Medical and financial corporations are excluded, as are organizations with [political](/source/Political) or [religious](/source/Religious) goals.

## In Belgium

The [King of the Belgians](/source/King_of_the_Belgians) can appoint the title to a company or association that has been in existence in Belgium for at least fifty years, although rare exceptions are made for newer recipients considered of great importance for society.

## See also

- [Royal charter](/source/Royal_charter)

- [List of companies with the title *Koninklijk* in Belgium](https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lijst_van_organisaties_met_het_predicaat_Koninklijk_in_Belgi%C3%AB) (Dutch Wikipedia)

- [List of companies with the title *Koninklijk* in the Netherlands](https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lijst_van_organisaties_met_het_predicaat_Koninklijk_in_Nederland) (Dutch Wikipedia)

## References

1. **[^](#cite_ref-1)** Also sometimes rendered in its inflected form ***Koninklijke*** (pronounced [\[ˈkoːnɪŋkləkə\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:IPA/Dutch) [ⓘ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Nl-koninklijke.ogg)) in English writing.

## External links

- [The designation "Royal"](https://web.archive.org/web/20110325012335/http://www.koninklijkhuis.nl/english/Monarchy/Decorations/The_designation_Royal.html) – website of the Dutch Royal House (archived 25 March 2011)

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Koninklijk](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Koninklijk) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Koninklijk?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.