Cyrprus´capital is Nicosia; other famous cities are
Famagusta, Limassol, Larnaca and Kirenya.
Its inhabitants are Cypriote; nevertheless, people who
live in the Southern part consider themselves Greeks and a little part of
population who reside in the Northern part of the isle are considered Turkish
because here there is an independent region known as Turkish Republic of Northern
Cyprus. Therefore, the languages which are spoken in Cyprus
are Greek and Turkish. In Cyprus it is established a democratic presidential
republic (this is a system of
government where an executive branch is led by a person who serves as both
head of state and head of
government. That person is
usually elected and titled "president", but can also be an unelected
monarch).
Cyprus is
a very small country with an area of 9.250 km²; taking
this into account its population density is considerably high as it has 84
inhabitants per km² and its total
population is about 784.301 citizens in the whole country.
Cyprus does border
with the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus and with British Sovereign Bases
in Acrotiri y Dekheila. Cyprus belongs to the European Union then; its currency
is the euro as in the rest of member states.
The most important
history facts took place during the XX century, although Cyprus has been
inhabited since the Neolithic period and it also was a part of the Hellas. In addition,
in the Middle Age French and Italians arrived in the isle until the year 1751
when the first ottoman invasion took place. In 1878 the British Empire assumed
the administration of the country. This annexation to the British Empire was interrupted
several times and it lasted until the second half of the XX century, moreover,
Turkey tried to get the control of the isle striving against Great Britain and
finally in 1974 the Turkish army invaded the isle establishing the Turkish Republic
of Northern Cyprus at the beginning of 1975.
Famous people from Cyprus:
Melinda
Leigh McGraw (October 25, 1963) is a Cypriot-born American
actress.
Evagoras of Salamis (410–374 BC), king of the city-state of Salamis, conquered much of Cyprus,
but was defeated when rival city Amathous allied itself with the Persian
Empire.
Alexander the Great. Cyprus welcomed Alexander as a liberator from Persian dominance in 325 BC.
St Barnabas with the
Apostle Paul, brought Christianity to Cyprus in 45 AD.
Selim the Sot The Muslim
sultan drove the Venetians from Cyprus after a 10-month siege.
Archbishop Makarios (1913–77)
led the independence campaign and was Cyprus’s first president.
Traditional Cypriot meals:
Meze: Literally means "small dishes." A style of eating that has
many different courses, but each course contains just a little of each item,
enough for everyone to have a taste.
Feta: A salty, white cheese made from sheep's or goat's milk that is cured
in a brine solution.
Sheftalia: A grilled Cypriot sausage made of pork, lamb, onions and
parsley.
Zivania:
a potent Cypriot alcohol made from
grapes.
Souzouko: a favorite at Cyprus festivals and fairs, it is made by
dipping strings of nuts in heated grape juice until it solidifies.
Here you have a video which shows amazing images from Cyprus with traditional Cypriot music:
Finally, I would love to live in Cyprus because it is an amazing country. I love its culture, traditions and overall it is an authentic Mediterranean country. In my view, living in Cyprus would be an interesting experience which I would like to carry out.
Very good post, Elvira. This is a country I would really love to visit too!
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