A general and environmentally improved protocol for the cyanation of aryl halides with the nontoxic cyanide source potassium hexacyanoferrate(II) {K-4[Fe(CN)(6)]} using copper catalysis and a ligand system based on 1-alkyl-1H-imidazoles is presented. The advantages of this system are a wide substrate range, high selectivity, easy handling, and inexpensive reagents.