Geography
Area: 9,251 sq. km. (3,572 sq. mi.); about the size of Connecticut.
Cities: Capital--Nicosia (pop. 197,800, 2000 fig.). Other
cities--Limassol, Larnaca, Famagusta, Paphos, Kyrenia, Morphou.
Terrain: Central plain with mountain ranges to the north and south.
Climate: Mediterranean with hot, dry summers and cool, wet winters.
People
Nationality: Noun and adjective--Cypriot(s).
Population (2003 census): 818,200.
Annual growth rate: 2.1%.
Ethnic groups: Greek (77%), Turkish (18%), Armenian and other (4%).
Christian singles note-Religions: Greek Orthodox, Muslim, Maronite,
Roman Catholic, Armenian Orthodox.
Languages: Greek, Turkish, English.
Education: Years compulsory--6 in elementary; 3 in high school.
Attendance--almost 100%. Literacy--about 99%.
Health: Infant mortality rate--9/1,000. Life expectancy--73
yrs. males; 78 yrs. females.
Work force (2003): Government-controlled area, 317,000: agriculture
and mining--8.0%; manufacturing and utilities--11.6%; construction--9.4%;
trade, hotels, and restaurants--28.5%; transport--7.0%; finance,
real estate, and business--10.0%; government, education, and
health--17.2%; community and other services--8.2%. Turkish
Cypriot-administered area, 95,000: agriculture--14.5%; manufacturing
and utilities--9.3%; construction--19.7%; trade, and
tourism--11.2%; transport and communication--8.7%; finance--2.5%;
business and personal services--15.3%; public services--18.8%
Government
Type: Republic.
Independence: August 16, 1960.
Constitution: August 16, 1960.
Branches: Executive--President elected to 5-yr. term. Legislative--unicameral
House of Representatives, members elected to 5-yr. terms. Judicial--Supreme
Court; six district courts.
Administrative subdivisions: Six.
Political parties: Greek Cypriot Community--Democratic Rally (right);
Democratic Party (center-right); AKEL (communist); KISOS (socialist);
United Democrats (center-left). Turkish Cypriot Community--National
Unity (right); Democratic party (center-right); Republican Turkish
(left); Communal Liberation (center-left); National Revival
(center-right); Patriotic Unity Movement (left); National Justice
Party (ultra-nationalist).
Suffrage: Universal at age 18.
Economy*
GDP (2003): $12.7 billion.
Annual real growth rate (2003): 2.0%.
Per capita GDP income (2003): Greek Cypriots--$17,644; Turkish
Cypriots--about $5,949.
Agriculture and natural resources (4.6% of GDP): Products--potatoes
and other vegetables, citrus fruits, olives, grapes, wheat, carob
seeds. Resources--pyrites, copper, asbestos, gypsum, lumber, salt,
marble, clay, earth pigment.
Industry and construction (19.7% of GDP): Types--mining,
cement, construction, utilities, manufacturing, chemicals,
non-electric machinery, textiles, footwear, food, beverages, tobacco.
Services and tourism (75.7% of GDP): Trade, restaurants, and hotels
20.6%; transport 9.7%; finance, real estate, and business 21.4%;
government, education, and health 15.4%; and community and other
services 8.6%.
Trade (2003): Exports--$923 million: citrus, grapes, wine,
potatoes, clothing, footwear. Major markets--EU (especially the
U.K. and Greece), Middle East, Russia. Imports--$4.0 billion:
consumer goods, raw materials for industry, petroleum and lubricants,
food and feed grains. Major suppliers--Greece, Italy, Germany,
U.K. (U.S. trade surplus--projected for 2003: $168 million.)
* Section refers to the area controlled by the Republic of Cyprus
unless otherwise specified.
PEOPLE AND HISTORY
Christian singles note-Greek and Turkish Cypriots share many customs but
maintain distinct identities based on religion, language, and close
ties with their respective "motherlands." Greek is
predominantly spoken in the south, Turkish in the north. English is
widely used. Cyprus has a well-developed system of primary and
secondary education. The majority of Cypriots earn their higher
education at Greek, Turkish, British, and other European or American
universities. Both the Turkish and Greek communities have developed
private colleges and state-supported universities.
Cypriot culture is among the oldest in the Mediterranean. By 3700
BC, the island was well inhabited, a crossroads between East and West.
The island fell successively under Assyrian, Egyptian, Persian, Greek,
and Roman domination. For 800 years, beginning in 364 AD, Cyprus was
ruled by Byzantium. After brief possession by King Richard I (the
Lion-Hearted) of England during the Crusades, the island came under
Frankish control in the late 12th century. It was ceded to the
Venetian Republic in 1489 and conquered by the Ottoman Turks in 1571.
The Ottomans applied the millet system to Cyprus, which allowed
religious authorities to govern their own non-Muslim minorities. This
system reinforced the position of the Orthodox Church and the cohesion
of the ethnic Greek population. Most of the Turks who settled on the
island during the 3 centuries of Ottoman rule remained when control of
Cyprus--although not sovereignty--was ceded to Great Britain in 1878.
Many left for Turkey during the 1920s, however. The island was annexed
formally by the United Kingdom in 1914 at the outbreak of World War I
and became a crown colony in 1925.
