What title do they give non-british people who are knighted?

Question

Just a question my husband and I had... sorry if it seems silly!

Answer 1

Just to correct an answer, KBE means "Knight of the British Empire", and can be bestowed to any citizen of the Commonwealth (Canada, Australia, etc.)

Answer 2

Foreign nationals can also be knighted, but they are not allowed to use the title "Sir" or "Dame" before their names, although they can add "KBE" after their names. The U.K. Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs usually nominates foreigners for knighthood and similar honors. Foreign knighthoods are conferred based on a person's contribution to relations between their country and Britain.

For example, Bill Gates cannot use the title "Sir Bill Gates", he is simply, "Bill Gates, KBE" which stands for Knight Commander.

Answer 3

Well, in Spain, they would be don, as in Don Quixote.  Their title is caballero.

In France, they are chevaliers, though I can't tell you for sure what their address is...sieur, I think or monsieur (mr., nowadays...all these titles are related, you know) and I'm not sure they can still do it in France, because, well, there's no king to do the knighting.  They killed him and his descendents about 225 years ago, you know.

Answer 4

if they are knighted they become sir

Answer 5

I think it is SIR because after Queen Elizabeth knighted Paul McCartney then people started calling him Sir Paul McCartney. Since he is British and originally from England,he is actually knighted the proper way,and this can be his official title.  You don't have to be British to be knighted but if you aren't from that coun try the knighhood doesn't really mean as much--it is then more of an honor than a title. I don't think your question is silly at all.  You have to ask when u don't know something.  That is what Yahoo Q and A is all about.

Answer 6

Non-Brits (more accurately, people who are not from commonwealth states) cannot be officially knighted; they can only be given honorary knighthoods. Rudy Giuliani, for example, has an honorary knighthood. But he has no title from that, and is not allowed to call himself "Sir".

Answer 7

Any British OR Commonwealth subject may be knighted and use the title "SIR"

Non-commonwealth subjects may receive a KBE honorary knighthood (such as Bob Geldof, Terry Wogan, Rudi Giuliani etc) - these may not officially use the title "Sir" but the press and public do indeed label Bob Geldof KBE as "Sir Bob" and Terry Wogan as "Sir Terry".

Answer 8

Foreigners do not get to use a title.

From http://www:royal.gov/uk/output/Page4877....

"Foreign citizens occasionally receive honorary knighthoods; they are not dubbed, and they do not use the style 'Sir'.

Such knighthoods are conferred by The Queen, on the advice of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, on those who have made an important contribution to relations between their country and Britain.

Foreign citizens given knighthoods over the years include Chancellor Kohl, President Mitterrand and Mayor Giuliani of New York."

Read more about the honours process at

http://www.honours.gov/uk/