People Of Cyprus Research Articles

Who are the people of Cyprus? The national identity building process in Cyprus from the late 19th to the early 20th century

Abstract This article offers a nuanced examination of the complex identity dynamics among the Christian and Muslim communities in Cyprus during the late 19th and early 20th century, particularly in the aftermath of British administration replacing Ottoman rule in 1878. The article draws attention to the profound impact of this historical transition on the identity formation processes of both communities. Despite the shared wartime experience of the First World War, the Christian and Muslim communities in Cyprus failed to construct a cohesive identity rooted in their common geographical space. Drawing on Zygmunt Bauman’s concept of ambivalence, the article explores the complex process by which Cypriot communities sought to align their identity with larger nations, namely Greece and Turkey, rather than grounding it in their local context. The article contends that the genesis of their ambivalence can be traced back to 1878 when British administration replaced Ottoman rule on the island.

“What, in a Town of War … to Manage Private and Domestic Quarrel?”: Othello and the Tragedy of Cyprus

ABSTRACT This essay reconsiders the significance of Cyprus as the location of Othello, arguing that awareness of the island’s capture by Ottoman forces in 1571 will have been central to the play’s early reception. This context broadens the significance of the tragedy beyond the original domestic focus of a plot borrowed by Shakespeare from an Italian novella by Cinthio – one that, significantly, plays out during a period of peace rather than war. Beginning with an analysis of the affective power of the alarm bells that ring out in the riot scene (2.3), it argues that through a combination of internal and external contextual signs, Shakespeare’s original Jacobean audiences will have become united in perspective with the people of Cyprus. The significance of the loss of Othello as the island’s most capable defender, combined with the inadequacy of Cassio as his replacement, is highlighted throughout the play. This enables the specific tragic potential of Cyprus as a location to be exploited by Shakespeare in a way that was simply unavailable to Cinthio, and that may not be automatically understood by later audiences.

First Chagos, Then Cyprus? Cyprus Gains Legal Tool in ICJ Ruling on Chagos Islands

The UK has been told by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to end its administration of the Chagos Islands in the Indian Ocean and relinquish them back to Mauritius as soon as possible. The ICJ advisory opinion was based on the fact that the colony of Mauritius agreed to the excision of the Chagos Islands from its territory when it was under the authority of the UK. Similarly, when the colony of Cyprus attained independence from the British rule in 1960, the Treaty it signed with Britain established two large British sovereign bases on the island, which remain to this day, occupying nearly three per cent of the island. That agreement could also now be challenged on the basis that, like Chagos detachment agreement, it was signed under conditions which were far removed from what could be considered as an ‘exercise in free will’ of the people of Cyprus.

CAARI at Forty: Celebrating a Place for Collaboration on Cyprus

Abstract The Cyprus American Archaeological Research Institute (CAARI) celebrates the 40th anniversary of its foundation in 2018. CAARI is the youngest of the U.S. Overseas Research Centers (ORCs) affiliated to ASOR, and one of the more recently established in the Near East and the Mediterranean. Over the past 40 years, CAARI has cemented its place in the cultural and heritage landscape of Cyprus, creating a space in which U.S. students and scholars share research and build friendships with Cypriot colleagues and those from around the world. Facilitated by our location in the center of the eastern Mediterranean region, CAARI on Cyprus has become a hub in which connections are made and international dialogue is fostered. This occurs despite the difficulties caused by the continued division of the island to the people of Cyprus, and to the preservation and interpretation of the island's heritage.

Typologies and Argumentation Tactics in Religious Polemics - An Analysis of al-Jawāb al Sahih and the Cyprus Letter

Christian-Muslim polemical exchanges and the relationship between the two faiths’ religious authorities in the medieval period were often rigid. One exchange between Christian theologians in Cyprus and Muslim theologians in Damascus is evidently polemical and exemplifies the difficult relations that occurred early in the fourteenth century and the nature of challenging religious arguments. That is The Letter from the People of Cyprus and Ibn Taymiyya’s response to it. This article offers a new analysis through the perspective of particular theoretical typologies of religious polemics. Accordingly, the article shows that these two polemicists adhere to multiple scriptural and rational tactics in support of their biased understanding of religious truth and the definition of impeccable revelations. It also shows that both theologians were involved in forceful and sometimes contradictory argumentative techniques.

Adherence to the Mediterranean diet by the Greek and Cypriot population: a systematic review.

The traditional Mediterranean diet is defined as the dietary pattern in the countries of the Mediterranean basin between the 1950s and 1960s, and it is now widely accepted that has a beneficial effect on health. A debate exists from empirical and research data if the traditional Mediterranean diet remains the main dietary pattern of the region or if it has changed overtime. This systematic review addresses whether the people of Cyprus and Greece still follow the traditional Mediterranean diet or whether the diet has become more 'Westernised'. The MEDLINE database was searched using relevant free terms and independently reviewed by two authors. In addition, all reference lists of identified studies were hand-searched to identify additional, relevant studies. The review resulted in 18 research papers that met the inclusion and exclusion criteria and represented 15 independent studies. The main outcome was consistent between studies and indicated moderate adherence of the Greek, and (probably) of the Cypriot, population to the Mediterranean diet. The majority of studies found no statistically significant differences by gender. There was an observed inter-study lower adherence to the Mediterranean diet by the younger population. Few studies addressed intra-study variations by age. This review shows that adherence to the Mediterranean diet is moderate in Greece (and probably also in Cyprus).This suggests a continuing transition from dietary patterns in the 50 s-60 s towards a more Westernized diet.

Cyprus: From an Argued Past to a Shared Future

Most individuals face traumatic events during their lifetime, but when entire groups of people are trapped inside the width and breadth of a horrific atrocity, their experiences can also become a shared or “collective trauma.” If an aim of conflict analysis scholars is to contribute to a sustained and peaceful resolution, the psychological and social impact of violence – upon the individual as well as the community – must be broadly examined and synthesized into future strategies and recommendations. The island of Cyprus is home to one of the longest standing and intractable conflicts since the establishment of the United Nations. Its history includes forced occupation, invasion, being traded, and betrayed. There have been military coupes, unilateral decision makers, and aggressive military interventions. Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots have their own historical, fixed, and salient collective trauma. It is a stubborn memory; one that appears and reappears as an old and unhealed wound. The aim of this qualitative study is three-fold: (1) to elucidate the role and effect of opposing Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot trauma narratives upon the peace process; (2) to examine the dialectic exacerbation between the two narratives; and (3) to explore how these narratives have been transmitted to new generations. This research is especially focused on how collective trauma narratives shape perceptions, but at the same time, how they shape social identity, and perceptions of the self. Through a comparison of conflict narratives, this study elaborates on how invalidated or unresolved collective trauma can serve as an insidious source of distrust, enemy imaging, a clash of identities among parties, and how it can also serve to justify each party’s actions and reactions. Also, the research aims to explore specific ways the people of Cyprus might be able to move forward from their argued and vehemently opposed understandings of the past, toward a more shared and cohesive future. Keywords: Sustainable Peace, Peaceful Coexistence, Cyprus Conflict, Conflict Narratives, Collective Trauma

Multiculturalité à Chypre : réalité historique ou besoin politique

In the following article, an effort will be made in order to describe two different forms of multiculturalism in Cyprus. The first one, “ spontaneous popular” multiculturalism, refers to the form developed spontaneously by the people of Cyprus, mainly Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots, within the every day’s contact and relations along the past centuries until 1974. The second one, the “ learned” form of multiculturalism, describes the multicultural reality that appears during the last decade – since the opening of check points – as a result of concrete policies of the state but also of private initiatives of several intellectual and political elites. The main argument of the paper is that while policies followed by the elites of the two communities before 1974 contributed in a systematic weakening of the “ spontaneous” form of multiculturalism, after 2004, these same elites develop policies and strategies in order to strengthen this time, the “ learned” form of multiculturalism.” This is“ the cypriot paradoxe”.

The National Question in Cyprus and the Cypriot Communist Left in the Era of British Colonialism (1922–59)

This paper considers AKEL's (Progressive Party of the Working People) stance on Cyprus's national issue in the era of British colonialism (1922–59). For analytical purposes, the time span is divided into two periods. The first period covers the years 1922–41, the years during which the CPC (Communist Party of Cyprus) was functioning. The second period extends from AKEL's foundation in 1941 to the declaration of Cyprus's independence in 1959. The analytical framework focuses on five parameters that will illuminate the Cypriot communist left's strategies, tactics and responses to the various developments and phases of the national issue of Cyprus in the period under study: the age of the party; the colonial status of Cyprus; external influences; intra-party conflicts; political opposition. It is argued that the national issue precluded presentation of a socialist agenda to the people of Cyprus, but it also helped AKEL reach out for alliances with other political forces and personalities, and gain and retain a prominent role in Cypriot politics.

Cyprus small business ventures invigorate the economy

AbstractCyprus has managed to advance itself and be recognized as one of the world's 32 advanced economies. By supporting local and foreign socioeconomic interests over the years, the small island‐nation today boasts rapid growth, full employment conditions, external and internal stability, strong telecommunications infrastructure, and a society well prepared to embrace the emerging knowledge economy. Recognizing its susceptibility to external economic trends as well as its attraction for various migrant groups, however, the people of Cyprus have embraced the benefits of putting their social capital to financial gain and the improvement of quality of life by supporting local business and welcoming foreign investment. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Turkish Cypriots - A People Unfairly Treated And Isolated by the International Community

The struggles of the Turkish people of Cyprus for their existence and human rights began immediately after the signing of the Cyprus Agreement, on 4 June 1878, between the Ottoman State and England (Britain), giving the latter the right to occupy Cyprus provisionally. These struggles accelerated following attempts by the Greek Cypriots, pampered by the British, to aspire for enosis (union with Greece), and reached the zenith after the establishment of the Republic of Cyprus in 1960. The Greek Cypriots, who believed that the establishment of the Republic of Cyprus was provisional, and dreamt of the Megali Idea (Great Ideal), in the fulfilment of Greek imperialism, prepared various secret plans and plots in order to cow down, and eliminate the Turkish Cypriots, which they began to implement in 1964. However, there were splits and divisions among them, which led to the Sampson coup d'etat in 1974. However, there were splits and divisions among them, which led to the Sampson coup d'etat in 1974, thereby causing Turkey to intervene, as one of the guarantor powers, in order to protect the Turkish Cypriots against the Greek-Cypriot plans to exterminate them. However, Western states and organisations, and particularly the European Union (EU), which admire, and are under the influence of, ancient Hellenes continued, and still continue, to recognise the government of South Cyprus as the 'legal government' of the whole island and refuse to recognise the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. As a result, the Turkish Cypriots have been subjected to isolation, unfairly and contrary to the principles of justice. In this monograph I shall try to reveal as to how and why the EU decided, with the pressure of Greece, to admit South Cyprus to membership contrary to the principles of fairness, justice and legality.

Kıbrıs Politikasının Annan Belgesi ile Başlayan Kırılma Noktaları

The Cyprus conflict and its stages have reached today gaining an international dimension by Greece’s application to the UN in 1954 in order to give the “People of Cyprus” a self determination right. The basis of this conflict is the ENOSIS struggle of Greece and the Greek Cypriots. Turkey’s stance against this policy has been to provide the Cypriots political equality and sovereignty in safety and peace, prevent the Island from being used against Turkey and to maintain the Greek –Turkish balance. There have been ruptures in the Cyprus policy after to the introduction of the Annan Plan and the EU focused initiative driven new policy that the new Turkish government has been pursuing since. One specific breaking point has been the acceptance of the Annan Plan by the Turkish government and its forcing the acceptance of the same plan in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC). Furthermore, the Loizidou case decision of the European Court of Human Rights, EU Council’s Brussels decision and the addendum made in 17th December 2004, the Negotiating Framework For Turkey acceptance on 3rd October 2005 have all been unfavorable breaking points for Turkey. Following the aforementioned breaking points, the January 2006 Action Plan, the Gambari Agreement (8 July 2006 procedure), and the acceptance of the 2006 Finnish suggestions as principles by the Turkish Foreign Ministry are all accepted as serious concessions given by Turkey regarding its Cyprus policy. As of November 2002, the Cyprus policies accepted by Turkey have shown some very basic mistakes and errors. Due to these policies, there have been serious choking points between the Turkey- EU relations and further friction in the Cyprus conflict with Greece and the Southern Greek Cypriot Administration. At the stage reached today, in order to reach a sustainable and realistic agreement regarding Cyprus, the realities in Cyprus must be taken into attention. The only way for this to happen is to agree that the two people of Cyprus are two politically equal masses, and that to establish a dualsoveriegn country, the nature of it has to accept a balance of Turkish and Greek influence where Turkey’s rights and influence on the island will continue as it is today.

Cyprus: What is to be Done?

C YPRUS I became independent in 1960 after agreement both on independence and the constitutional structure of the island was reached by Greece and Turkey without the direct participation of the people of Cyprus, either through representatives or otherwise, in the talks and discussions that led to the agreement. The resulting constitution, known as the 1960 or Zurich constitution, established a 'form of dual government by Greek and Turkish Cypriots ',2 80 per cent and 18 per cent respectively of the total population of the island. The independence, territo,rial integrity and security of the republic, as well as the state of affairs established by the Basic Articles of the constitution, were guaranteed by Greece, Turkey and the United Kingdom under the Treaty of Guarantee. Owing to its structural defects and the general state of relationships between the two communities at the time, the 1960 constitution not only failed to resolve the ethnic conflict but exacerbated it further. Its artificial and rigid structure could not absorb the inter-communal tension created by the difficulty of implementing and operating it. Almost everything became controversial, and the accumulation of unresolved issues resulted in the intensification of the existing differences. Thirteen proposals to amend the constitution were put forward by Archbishop Makarios, President of the Republic, but they were not accepted by the Turkish leadership. The eruption of violence in December 1963, signalled the degeneration of the conflict into crisis and overt confrontation. After the outbreak of disorder, the Turkish Cypriots followed a policy of self-segregation and withdrawal into several 'Turkish' enclaves where they set up their own governmental and administrative structures. The government of the republic came under the almost exclusive control of the Greek Cypriots who proceeded to invoke 'the principle of necessity' to justify the resulting deviations from the 1960 constitution. Various initiatives to resolve the crisis, including UN mediation, were launched between 1963 and 1968, and between 1968 and 1974 the two