Editing Van Morrison (section)

===Civil awards and honours===
Morrison received two civil awards in 1996: he was appointed Officer of the [[Order of the British Empire]] for services to music,<ref name="RoganPage443">Rogan (2006), page 443.</ref> and was also recognized with an award from the French government which made him an ''Officier de l'[[Ordre des Arts et des Lettres]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.independent.ie/national-news/van-and-jordan-honoured-by-france-437577.html|title=Van and Jordan honoured by France|date=1 July 1998|work=The Irish Independent|access-date=25 January 2009}}</ref> Along with these state awards he has two honorary degrees in music: an honorary doctorate in literature from the [[University of Ulster]],<ref name="RoganPage409">Rogan (2006), page 409.</ref> and an honorary doctorate in music from [[Queen's University Belfast|Queen's University]] in his hometown of Belfast.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/northern_ireland/1421036.stm|date=3 July 2001|title=Doctorate for Van the Man|work=BBC News|access-date=3 July 2008}}</ref>

In 2013, Morrison was awarded the [[Freedom of the City#Freedom of the City of Belfast|Freedom of Belfast]], the highest honour the city can bestow.<ref name="freedom">{{cite news|url=http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/local-national/northern-ireland/freedom-of-belfast-for-van-morrison-29518490.html|title=Freedom of Belfast for Van Morrison|author=McKeown, Lesley-Anne|date=22 August 2013|access-date=27 August 2013|newspaper=[[The Belfast Telegraph]]}}</ref> On 15 November 2013, Morrison became the 79th recipient of the award, presented at the [[Waterfront Hall]] for his career achievements. After receiving the award, he performed a free concert for residents who won tickets from a lottery system.<ref name="FOB">{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-24951763|title=Freedom of Belfast honour for Van Morrison|publisher=BBC|date=15 November 2013|access-date=23 November 2013}}</ref>

In August 2014, a "Van Morrison Trail" was established in East Belfast by Morrison in partnership with the Connswater Community Greenway. It is a self-guided trail, which over the course of {{convert|3.5|km}} leads to eight places that were important to Morrison and inspirational to his music.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.communitygreenway.co.uk/news/2014-08-21/van-morrison-returns-to-east-belfast-to-launch-his-first-ever-tourist-trail|title=Van Morrison returns to East Belfast to launch his first ever tourist trail|website=Communitygreenway.co.uk|access-date=25 August 2014|archive-date=25 August 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140825005315/http://www.communitygreenway.co.uk/news/2014-08-21/van-morrison-returns-to-east-belfast-to-launch-his-first-ever-tourist-trail|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Morrison was made a [[Knight Bachelor]] in the Queen's Birthday Honours List in 2015 for services to the music industry and to tourism in Northern Ireland.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/celebritynews/12140490/Newly-knighted-Van-Morrison-promises-Prince-Charles-he-wont-be-retiring.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220110/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/celebritynews/12140490/Newly-knighted-Van-Morrison-promises-Prince-Charles-he-wont-be-retiring.html |archive-date=10 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|title=Newly-knighted Van Morrison promises Prince Charles he won't be retiring|work=[[The Daily Telegraph]]|date=4 February 2016|access-date=4 February 2016|author=Furness, Hannah}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/434644/Birthday_Honours_2015_Higher_Awards_citations.pdf|title=The Queen's Birthday Honours List 2015 – Higher Awards|publisher=Government of the United Kingdom|year=2015|access-date=17 September 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-33112876|title=Van Morrison knighthood leads NI awards in Queen's Birthday Honours list – BBC News|work=bbc.co.uk|year=2015|access-date=13 June 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.thegazette.co.uk/notice/2589543|title=Central Chancery of the Orders of Knighthood|website=Thegazette.co.uk|access-date=4 July 2018}}</ref> The ceremony was performed by [[Charles, Prince of Wales|Prince Charles]].