Editing Greek Cypriots (section)

==History==
{{see also|History of Cyprus}}

===Ancient Cyprus===
{{see also|Ancient history of Cyprus}}
[[File:Evagoras-Stater 733597 C.jpg|thumb|King [[Evagoras I]] of [[Salamis, Cyprus]]]]
Cyprus was part of the [[Mycenaean Greece|Mycenaean civilization]] with local production of Mycenaean vases dating to the [[Late Helladic III]] (1400–1050 BC). The quantity of this pottery concludes that there were numerous Mycenaean settlers, if not settlements, on the island.<ref name="Desborough2007">{{cite book|author=V. R. d'A. Desborough|title=The Last Mycenaeans and Their Successors: An Archaeological Survey, c.1200 – c.1000 B.C.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HO5JAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA196|date=5 February 2007|publisher=Wipf & Stock Publ|isbn=978-1-55635-201-0|pages=196–}}</ref> Archaeological evidence shows that Greek settlement began unsystematically in c. 1400 BC, then steadied (possibly due to Dorian invaders on the mainland) with definite settlements established in c. 1200 BC.<ref name="Hill2010">{{cite book|first=George |last=Hill|title=A History of Cyprus|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jYxi-PQiDL8C&pg=PA84|date=23 September 2010|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-1-108-02062-6|pages=84–}}</ref> The close connection between the [[Arcadocypriot Greek|Arcadian dialect]] and those of [[Pamphylia]] and Cyprus indicates that the migration came from [[Achaea (ancient region)|Achaea]].{{sfn|Hill|2010|p=85}} The [[Achaeans (tribe)|Achaean tribe]] may have been an original population of the Peloponnese, Pamphylia, and Cyprus, living in the latter prior to the [[Dorian invasion]], and not a subsequent immigrant group; the Doric elements in Arcadian are lacking in Cypriot.{{sfn|Hill|2010|p=85}} Achaeans settled among the old population, and founded [[Salamis, Cyprus|Salamis]].{{sfn|Hill|2010|pp=85–86}} The epic ''[[Cypria]]'', dating to the 7th century BC, may have originated in Cyprus.{{sfn|Hill|2010|pp=90–93}}

===Medieval Cyprus===
{{see also|Cyprus in the Middle Ages}}
[[File:Helena Palaiologina and daughters.jpg|thumb|upright=0.7|Byzantine princess [[Helena Palaiologina]], [[List of Cypriot royal consorts|Queen consort of Cyprus]]]]
The Byzantine era profoundly molded Greek Cypriot culture. The institution of Greek Orthodox Christianity soon became an integral part of Greek Cypriot identity during this period, and its legacy persisted under foreign domination throughout the succeeding centuries. Since Cyprus was never the "final goal" of any external ambitions – insofar as destroying its civilisation and citizenry did not become a military objective, or necessity – the island simply fell under the dominion of whichever power controlled the Eastern [[Mediterranean]] region at the time.

Greek Cypriots did, however, endure oppressive rule under both the [[Lusignan dynasty|Lusignans]] and successive [[Venetian Republic]], from the 1190s to 1570. King [[Aimery of Cyprus|Aimery]] – whom succeeded his brother, [[Guy of Lusignan]], in 1194 – was known for being particularly intolerant of the Orthodox Church, and saw Greek Cypriot land appropriated for use by newly-established Latin churches in major towns on the island. In addition, oppressive taxation was imposed upon locals by occupying forces, with tax collection conducted, by proxy, under administration of the Latin churches.

===Ottoman Cyprus===
{{see also|Ottoman Cyprus}}
[[File:2022 03 Hala Sultan Tekke 1.jpg|thumb|The [[Hala Sultan Tekke]] mosque, built in 1817, was one of many landmarks constructed by the Ottoman Turks in Cyprus.]]
The [[Ottoman Empire|Ottoman]] conquest of Cyprus in 1571 replaced Venetian rule. Despite the inherent oppression of foreign subjugation, the period of [[Cyprus under the Ottoman Empire|Ottoman rule]] (1570–1878) had a limited impact on Greek Cypriot culture. The Ottomans tended to administer their multicultural empire with the help of their subject ''[[Millet (Ottoman Empire)|millets]]'', or religious communities. The ''millet'' system allowed the Greek Cypriot community to survive,{{Citation needed|date=April 2020}} administered on behalf of [[Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople|Constantinople]] by the [[List of archbishops of Cyprus|Archbishop]] of the Church of Cyprus. Cypriot Greeks were now able to take control of the land they had been working on for centuries.{{Citation needed|date=April 2020}} Although religiously tolerant, Ottoman rule was generally harsh and inefficient. The [[Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople|patriarch]] serving the Ottoman [[List of sultans of the Ottoman Empire|sultan]] acted as ''[[ethnarch]]'', or leader of the Greek nation, and gained secular powers as a result of the gradual dysfunction of Ottoman rule, for instance in adjudicating justice and in the collection of taxes. [[Turkish people|Turkish]] settlers suffered alongside their Greek Cypriot neighbors, and the two groups together endured centuries of oppressive governance from [[Constantinople]].{{Citation needed|date=April 2020}} A minority of Greek Cypriots converted to [[Islam in Cyprus|Islam]] during this period, and are sometimes referred to as "neo-Muslims" by historians.<ref>Peter Alford Andrews, ''Ethnic Groups in the Republic of Turkey'', Dr. Ludwig Reichert Verlag, 1989, {{ISBN|3-89500-297-6}}</ref><ref>Savile, Albany Robert, ''Cyprus'', 1878, p.&nbsp;130</ref>

===Modern history===
{{see also|Cyprus conflict}}
[[Image:Statue of Liberty Independence Woman statues Nicosia Republic of Cyprus.jpg|thumb|The Cypriot [[Liberty Monument (Nicosia)|Statue of Liberty]]]]
Politically, the concept of ''[[enosis]]'' – unification with the Greek "motherland" – became important to literate Greek Cypriots after [[Greece]] declared its independence from the Ottoman Empire in 1821. A movement for the realization of ''enosis'' gradually formed, in which the Church of Cyprus played a dominant role during the [[Cyprus dispute]].

{{Quote box
|quote =
"Hellenism is a race as aged as the world,
<br />Nobody could be found to eliminate it,
<br />Nobody, for it is protected from above by my God,
<br />Hellenism will be lost, only when the world is gone."
|source = {{small|Archbishop Kyprianos' fictional response to Kucuk Mehmet's threat to execute the Greek Orthodox Christian bishops of Cyprus, in [[Vasilis Michaelides]]' epic poem "The 9th of July of 1821 in Nicosia, Cyprus", written in 1884–1895. The poem is considered a key literary expression of Greek Cypriot Enosis sentiment.}}<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.apotipomata.com/ennati-iouliou-vasilis-michaelidis/ |title=Η 9η Ιουλίου του 1821 εν Λευκωσία Κύπρου – Βασίλης Μιχαηλίδης |website=ςww.apotipomata.com|date=9 July 2017 |access-date=2018-10-14 |author1=Admin }}</ref>
|width = 24em
}}

During the period of [[British Cyprus|British colonial rule]] (1878–1960), an efficient colonial administration was established, but government and education were administered along ethnic lines, accentuating differences. For example, the education system was organized with two Boards of Education, one Greek and one Turkish, controlled by [[Athens]] and [[Istanbul]], respectively. {{Citation needed|date=July 2009}} The resulting Greco-Turkish educational systems emphasized linguistic, religious, cultural, and ethnic differences and downplayed traditional ties between the two Cypriot communities. {{Citation needed|date=July 2009}} The two groups were encouraged to view themselves as extensions of their respective motherlands, leading to the development of two distinct nationalities with antagonistic loyalties.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Xypolia |first=Ilia |title=Cypriot Muslims among Ottomans, Turks and Two World Wars |journal=Bogazici Journal |year=2011 |volume=25 |issue=2 |pages=109–120 |doi=10.21773/boun.25.2.6 |doi-access=free }}</ref>

The importance of religion within the Greek Cypriot community was reinforced when the Archbishop of the Church of Cyprus, [[Makarios&nbsp;III]], was elected the first president of the Republic of Cyprus in 1960. For the next decade and a half, ''enosis'' was a key issue for Greek Cypriots, and a key cause of events leading up to the [[1974 Cypriot coup d'état|1974 coup]], which prompted the [[Turkish invasion of Cyprus|Turkish invasion and occupation]] of the northern part of the island. Cyprus remains divided today, with the two communities almost completely separated. Many of those whom lost their homes, lands and possessions during the Turkish invasion, emigrated mainly to the United Kingdom, United States, Australia, South Africa and Europe, although most left Cyprus before 1974. There are today estimated to be 335,000 [[Greek Cypriot diaspora|Greek Cypriot emigrants]] living in Great Britain. The majority of the Greek Cypriots in [[Great Britain]] currently live in [[England]]; there is an estimate of around 3,000 in [[Wales]] and 1,000 in [[Scotland]].
By the early 1990s, Greek Cypriot society enjoyed a high standard of living. Economic modernization created a more flexible and open society and caused Greek Cypriots to share the concerns and hopes of other secularized West European societies. The Republic of Cyprus joined the [[European Union]] in 2004, officially representing the entire island, but suspended for the time being in Turkish-occupied [[northern Cyprus]].