Uzbekistan

Uzbekistan, officially the Republic of Uzbekistan (Uzbek: O‘zbekiston Respublikasi or Ўзбекистон Республикаси, O'zbekiston Respublikasi) is a doubly landlocked country in Central Asia and one of the six independent Turkic states. It shares borders with Kazakhstan to the west and to the north(Dell D6400 battery), Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to the east, and Afghanistan and Turkmenistan to the south. Prior to 1991, it was part of the Soviet Union. Uzbekistan is an observing member of the Turkic Council.

Once part of the Persian Samanid and later Timurid empires, the region was conquered in the early 16th century by Uzbek nomads, who spoke an Eastern Turkic language(Dell HF674 battery). Most of Uzbekistan’s population today belong to the Uzbek ethnic group and speak the Uzbek language, one of the family of Turkic languages.

Uzbekistan was incorporated into the Russian Empire in the 19th century and in 1924 became a constituent republic of the Soviet Union, known as the Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic (Uzbek SSR). It has been an independent republic since December 1991(Dell N3010 battery).

Uzbekistan's economy relies mainly on commodity production, including cotton, gold, uranium, potassium, and natural gas. Despite the declared objective of transition to a market economy, Uzbekistan continues to maintain rigid economic controls, which often repel foreign investors. The policy of gradual, strictly controlled transition has nevertheless produced beneficial results in the form of economic recovery after 1995(Dell Inspiron N4010 battery). Uzbekistan's domestic policies on human rights and individual freedoms are often criticised by international organizations.

Geography

Main article: Geography of Uzbekistan

See also: List of cities in Uzbekistan

Satellite map of Uzbekistan.

Uzbekistan has an area of 447,400 square kilometres (172,700 sq mi). It is the 56th largest country in the world by area and the 42nd by population. Among the CIS countries, it is the 5th largest by area and the 3rd largest by population(Dell INSPIRON 1100 battery).

Uzbekistan lies between latitudes 37° and 46° N, and longitudes 56° and 74° E. It stretches 1,425 kilometres (885 mi) from west to east and 930 kilometres (580 mi) from north to south. Bordering Kazakhstan and the Aral Sea to the north and northwest, Turkmenistan to the southwest, Tajikistan to the southeast, and Kyrgyzstan to the northeast(Dell Inspiron 1200 battery), Uzbekistan is not only one of the larger Central Asian states but also the only Central Asian state to border all the other four. Uzbekistan also shares a short border (less than 150 km or 93 mi) with Afghanistan to the south.

Uzbekistan is a dry, landlocked country; it is one of two doubly landlocked countries in the world, i.e., a country completely surrounded by landlocked countries (Dell Inspiron 1420 battery)– the other being Liechtenstein. Less than 10% of its territory is intensively cultivated irrigated land in river valleys and oases. The rest is vast desert (Kyzyl Kum) and mountains.

The highest point in Uzbekistan is the Khazret Sultan, located at 4,643 metres (15,233 ft) above sea level, located in the southern part of the Gissar Range in Surkhandarya Province, on the border with Tajikistan, just north-west of Dushanbe (formerly called Peak of the 22nd Congress of the Communist Party) (Dell Inspiron 1464 battery).

The climate in the Republic of Uzbekistan is continental, with little precipitation expected annually (100–200 millimeters, or 3.9–7.9 inches). The average summer high temperature tends to be 40 °C (104 °F), while the average winter low temperature is around −23 °C (−9 °F) (Dell Inspiron 1564 battery).

Major cities include Andijan, Bukhara, Samarkand, Namangan and the capital Tashkent.

Environment

Comparison of the Aral Sea between 1989 and 2008.

Decades of questionable Soviet policies in pursuit of greater cotton production have resulted in a catastrophic scenario. The agricultural industry appears to be the main contributor to the pollution and devastation of the air and water in the country(Dell Inspiron 1764 battery).

The Aral Sea disaster is a classic example. The Aral Sea used to be the fourth-largest inland sea on Earth, acting as an influencing factor in the air moisture. Since the 1960s, the decade when the misuse of the Aral Sea water began, it has shrunk to less than 50% of its former area and decreased in volume threefold(Dell Inspiron 1520 battery). Reliable or even approximate data have not been collected, stored or provided by any organization or official agency. Much of the water was and still continues to be used for the irrigation of cotton fields, a crop that requires a large amount of water to grow.

The numbers of animal deaths and human refugees from the area around the sea can only be guessed(Dell Inspiron 1521 battery). The question of who is responsible for the crisis remains open – the Soviet scientists and politicians who directed the distribution of water during the 1960s, or the post-Soviet politicians who did not allocate sufficient funding for the building of dams and irrigation systems.

Due to the virtually unsolvable Aral Sea problem, high salinity and contamination of the soil with heavy elements are especially widespread in Karakalpakstan, the region of Uzbekistan adjacent to the Aral Sea(Dell inspiron 1525 battery). The bulk of the nation's water resources is used for farming, which accounts for nearly 94% of the water usage and contributes to high soil salinity. Heavy use of pesticides and fertilizers for cotton growing further aggravates soil pollution.

History

Main article: History of Uzbekistan

Female statuette bearing the kaunakes. Chlorite and limestone, Bactria, beginning of the 2nd millennium BC.

Alexander at the Battle of Issus(Dell inspiron 1526 battery).

The earliest Bronze Age colonists of the Tarim Basin were people of Caucasoid physical type who entered probably from the north and west and probably spoke languages that could be classified as Pre- or Proto-Tocharian, ancestral to the Indo-European Tocharian languages documented later in the Tarim Basin(Dell Inspiron 1720 battery). These early settlers occupied the northern and eastern parts of the Tarim Basin, where their graves have yielded mummies dated about 1800 BC. They participated in a cultural world centered on the eastern steppes of central Eurasia, including modern northeastern Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan(Dell Inspiron 2000 battery).

At the eastern end of the Tarim Basin, people of Mongoloid physical type began to be buried in cemeteries such as Yanbulaq some centuries later, during the later second or early first millennium BC. About the same time, Iranian-speaking people moved into the Tarim Basin from the steppes to the west(Dell INSPIRON 2600 battery). Their linguistic heritage and perhaps their physical remains are found in the southern and western portions of the Tarim. These three populations interacted, as the linguistic and archaeological evidence reviewed by Mallory and Mair makes clear, and then Turkic people arrived and were added to the mix(Dell INSPIRON 3800 battery).

The first people known to inhabit Central Asia were Iranian nomads who arrived from the northern grasslands of what is now Uzbekistan sometime in the first millennium BC. These nomads, who spoke Iranian dialects, settled in Central Asia and began to build an extensive irrigation system along the rivers of the region. At this time, cities such as Bukhoro (Bukhara) and Samarqand (Samarkand) began to appear as centers of government and culture(Dell INSPIRON 4000 battery). By the 5th century BC, the Bactrian, Soghdian, and Tokharian states dominated the region.

As China began to develop its silk trade with the West, Iranian cities took advantage of this commerce by becoming centers of trade. Using an extensive network of cities and settlements in the province of Mawarannahr (a name given the region after the Arab conquest) in Uzbekistan and farther east in what is today China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region(Dell Inspiron 5000 battery), the Soghdian intermediaries became the wealthiest of these Iranian merchants. Because of this trade on what became known as the Silk Route, Bukhoro and Samarqand eventually became extremely wealthy cities, and at times Mawarannahr was one of the most influential and powerful Persian provinces of antiquity(Dell INSPIRON 500M battery).

Map of the Sassanid Empire.

The Registan.

The Russians taking over the city of Khiva.

Alexander the Great conquered Sogdiana and Bactria in 327 BC, marrying Roxana, daughter of a local Bactrian chieftain. The conquest was supposedly of little help to Alexander as popular resistance was fierce, causing Alexander's army to be bogged down in the region that became the northern part of Hellenistic Greco-Bactrian Kingdom(Dell INSPIRON 5100 battery). For many centuries the region of Uzbekistan was ruled by Persian empires, including the Parthian and Sassanid Empires.

In the 8th century Transoxiana (territory between the Amudarya and Syrdarya rivers) was conquered by Arabs.

In the 9th – 10th centuries Transoxiana was included into Samanid State.

The Mongol conquest under Genghis Khan during the 13th century, would bring about a dramatic change to the region. The brutal conquest and widespread genocide characteristic of the Mongols almost entirely exterminated the indigenous Indo-Persian (Scythian) people of the region(Dell INSPIRON 510M battery), their culture and heritage being superseded by that of the Mongolian-Turkic peoples who settled the region thereafter.

Following the death of Genghis Khan in 1227, his empire was divided among his four sons and his family members. Despite the potential for serious fragmentation, Mongol law of the Mongol Empire maintained orderly succession for several more generations(Dell INSPIRON 6000 battery), and control of most of Mawarannahr stayed in the hands of direct descendants of Chagatai Khan, the second son of Genghis Khan. Orderly succession, prosperity, and internal peace prevailed in the Chaghatai lands, and the Mongol Empire as a whole remained strong and united.

In the early fourteenth century, however, as the empire began to break up into its constituent parts, the Chaghatai territory also was disrupted as the princes of various tribal groups competed for influence(Dell INSPIRON 600M battery). One tribal chieftain, Timur (Tamerlane), emerged from these struggles in the 1380s as the dominant force in Mawarannahr. Although he was not a descendant of Chinggis, Timur became the de facto ruler of Mawarannahr and proceeded to conquer all of western Central Asia, Iran, Asia Minor, and the southern steppe region north of the Aral Sea. He also invaded Russia and India before dying during an invasion of China in 1405(Dell Inspiron 6400 battery).

Timur initiated the last flowering of Mawarannahr by gathering in his capital, Samarqand, numerous artisans and scholars from the lands he had conquered. By supporting such people, Timur imbued his empire with a very rich culture. During Timur's reign and the reigns of his immediate descendants, a wide range of religious and palatial construction projects were undertaken in Samarqand and other population centres(Dell INSPIRON 7000 battery). Timur also initiated exchange of medical thoughts and patronized physicians, scientists and artists from the neighboring countries like India; his grandson Ulugh Beg was one of the world's first great astronomers. It was during the Timurid dynasty that Turkish, in the form of the Chaghatai dialect, became a literary language in its own right in Mawarannahr—although the Timurids also patronized writing in Persian(Dell INSPIRON 700M battery). Until then only Persian had been used in the region. The greatest Chaghataid writer, Ali-Shir Nava'i, was active in the city of Herat, now in northwestern Afghanistan, in the second half of the fifteenth century.

The Timurid state quickly broke into two halves after the death of Timur. The chronic internal fighting of the Timurids attracted the attention of the Uzbek nomadic tribes living to the north of the Aral Sea(Dell Inspiron 710m battery). In 1501 the Uzbeks began a wholesale invasion of Mawarannahr. The slave trade in the Khanate of Bukhara became prominent and was firmly established. Estimates from 1821 suggest that between 25,000 and 40,000 Persian slaves were working in Bukhara at the time.

In the nineteenth century, the Russian Empire began to expand and spread into Central Asia. By 1912, Russians living in Uzbekistan numbered 210,306. The "Great Game" period is generally regarded as running from approximately 1813 to the Anglo-Russian Convention of 1907(Dell INSPIRON 8200 battery). Following the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917, a second, less intensive phase followed. At the start of the nineteenth century, there were some 3,200 kilometres (2,000 mi) separating British India and the outlying regions of Tsarist Russia. Much of the land in between was unmapped.

By the beginning of the twentieth century, Central Asia was firmly in the hands of Russia and, despite some early resistance to Bolsheviks, Uzbekistan and the rest of Central Asia became a part of the Soviet Union(Dell INSPIRON 8600 battery). On October 27, 1924 the Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic was created. On August 31, 1991, Uzbekistan declared independence, marking September 1 as a national holiday.

The country is now the world's third-largest exporter of cotton, and it is developing its mineral and petroleum reserves.

Politics

Main article: Politics of Uzbekistan

The Uzbek parliament.

Islam Karimov, president of Uzbekistan.

The first elections of the Oliy Majlis (Parliament) were held under a resolution adopted by the 16th Supreme Soviet in 1994(Dell INSPIRON 9100 battery). In that year, the Supreme Soviet was replaced by the Oliy Majlis. Since then Uzbekistan has held presidential and parliamentarian elections on regular basis but no real opposition candidates or parties are able to participate.

The third elections for the bicameral 150-member Oliy Majlis — the Legislative Chamber and the 100-member Senate — for five-year terms, were held on December 27, 2009, after the second elections that were held in December 2004–2005(Dell INSPIRON 9200 battery). The Oliy Majlis was unicameral up to 2004. Its strength increased from 69 deputies (members) in 1994 to 120 in 2004–05 and presently to 150.

The executive holds a great deal of power, and the legislature has little power to shape laws. Under terms of a December 27, 1995 referendum, Islam Karimov's first term was extended. Another national referendum was held January 27, 2002 to extend the Constitutional Presidential term from 5 years to 7 years(Dell INSPIRON 9300 battery).

The referendum passed, and Karimov's term was extended by an act of parliament to December 2007. Most international observers refused to participate in the process and did not recognize the results, dismissing them as not meeting basic standards. The 2002 referendum also included a plan to create a bicameral parliament, consisting of a lower house (the Oliy Majlis) and an upper house (Senate) (Dell Inspiron 9400 battery). Members of the lower house are to be "full time" legislators. Elections for the new bicameral parliament took place on December 26, but no truly independent opposition candidates or parties were able to take part.

The OSCE limited observation mission concluded that the elections fell significantly short of OSCE commitments and other international standards for democratic elections. Several political parties have been formed with government approval(Dell Inspiron E1505 battery). Similarly, although multiple media outlets (radio, TV, newspaper) have been established, these either remain under government control or rarely broach political topics. Independent political parties were allowed to organise, recruit members and hold conventions and press conferences, but they have been denied registration under restrictive registration procedures(Dell Inspiron E1705 battery).

Human rights

Main article: Human rights in Uzbekistan

The Constitution of the Republic of Uzbekistan asserts that "democracy in the Republic of Uzbekistan shall be based upon common human principles, according to which the highest value shall be the human being, his life, freedom, honour, dignity and other inalienable rights(Dell Inspiron Mini 9 battery)."

The official position is summarised in a memorandum "The measures taken by the government of the Republic of Uzbekistan in the field of providing and encouraging human rights" and amounts to the following: the government does everything that is in its power to protect and to guarantee the human rights of Uzbekistan's citizens(Dell Latitude D400 battery). Uzbekistan continuously improves its laws and institutions in order to create a more humane society. Over 300 laws regulating the rights and basic freedoms of the people have been passed by the parliament. For instance, an office of Ombudsman was established in 1996. On August 2, 2005, President Islam Karimov signed a decree that was to abolish capital punishment in Uzbekistan on January 1, 2008(Dell STUDIO 1450 battery).

However, non-governmental human rights watchdogs, such as IHF, Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, as well as United States Department of State and Council of the European Union define Uzbekistan as "an authoritarian state with limited civil rights" and express profound concern about "wide-scale violation of virtually all basic human rights"(Dell Vostro 1400 battery). According to the reports, the most widespread violations are torture, arbitrary arrests, and various restrictions of freedoms: of religion, of speech and press, of free association and assembly. The reports maintain that the violations are most often committed against members of religious organizations, independent journalists, human rights activists and political activists, including members of the banned opposition parties(Dell Vostro 1500 battery). In 2005, Uzbekistan was included into Freedom House's "The Worst of the Worst: The World's Most Repressive Societies."

In October 2002 Craig Murray, the British Ambassador to the country, made a speech at a human rights conference hosted by Freedom House in Tashkent in which he asserted that "Uzbekistan is not a functioning democracy" and that the boiling to death of two members of Hizb ut-Tahrir "is not an isolated incident"(Dell XPS GEN 2 battery). Later, Secretary-General of the United Nations Kofi Annan confronted Uzbek President Islam Karimov with Murray's claims.

Murray was summoned to the FCO in London and on 8 March 2003 was reprimanded for writing in a letter to his employers, in response to a speech by President of the United States George W. Bush, "when it comes to the Karimov regime, systematic torture and rape appear to be treated as peccadilloes(Dell XPS M1210 battery), not to affect the relationship and to be downplayed in the international fora ... I hope that once the present crisis is over we will make plain to the US at senior level our serious concern over their policy in Uzbekistan".

The 2005 civil unrest in Uzbekistan, which resulted in several hundred people being killed, is viewed by many as a landmark event in the history of human rights abuse in Uzbekistan(Dell XPS M1330 battery). A concern has been expressed and a request for an independent investigation of the events has been made by the United States, European Union, the UN, the OSCE Chairman-in-Office and the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights. The government of Uzbekistan is accused of unlawful termination of human life and of denying its citizens freedom of assembly and freedom of expression(Dell XPS 1340 battery). The government vehemently rebuffs the accusations, maintaining that it merely conducted an anti-terrorist operation, exercising only necessary force. In addition, some officials claim that "an information war on Uzbekistan has been declared" and the human rights violations in Andijan are invented by the enemies of Uzbekistan as a convenient pretext for intervention into the country's internal affairs(Dell XPS M1530 battery).

Uzbekistan also does not allow Tajiks to teach their youth in their native language. There have been cases of destroying Tajiki (Persian-language) literary works.

Provinces and districts

Main articles: Provinces of Uzbekistan and Districts of Uzbekistan

Uzbekistan is divided into twelve provinces (viloyatlar, singular viloyat, compound noun viloyati e.g., Toshkent viloyati, Samarqand viloyati, etc.), one autonomous republic (respublika, compound noun respublikasi e.g. Qaraqalpaqstan Avtonom Respublikasi, Karakalpakistan Autonomous Republic, etc.) (Dell XPS M170 battery), and one independent city (shahar. compound noun shahri, e.g., Toshkent shahri). Names are given below in the Uzbek language, although numerous variations of the transliterations of each name exist.

Economy

Main article: Economy of Uzbekistan

Aerial view of Tashkent

Tashkent, the capital of Uzbekistan.

Samarkand

Along with many Commonwealth of Independent States economies, Uzbekistan's economy declined during the first years of transition and then recovered after 1995, as the cumulative effect of policy reforms began to be felt(Dell XPS M1710 battery). It has shown robust growth, rising by 4% per year between 1998 and 2003 and accelerating thereafter to 7%–8% per year. According to IMF estimates, the GDP in 2008 will be almost double its value in 1995 (in constant prices). Since 2003 annual inflation rates averaged less than 10%(Dell XPS M1730 battery).

Uzbekistan has a very low GNI per capita (US$610 in current dollars in 2006, giving a PPP equivalent of US$2,250). By GNI per capita in PPP equivalents Uzbekistan ranks 169 among 209 countries; among the 12 CIS countries, only Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan had lower GNI per capita in 2006. Economic production is concentrated in commodities(Dell XPS M2010 battery): Uzbekistan is now the world's sixth-largest producer and second-largest exporter of cotton, as well as the seventh largest world producer of gold. It is also a regionally significant producer of natural gas, coal, copper, oil, silver and uranium.

Agriculture employs 28% of Uzbekistan's labour force and contributes 24% of its GDP (2006 data). While official unemployment is very low, underemployment – especially in rural areas – is estimated to be at least 20%(Dell Latitude E5400 battery). Still, at cotton-harvest time, all students and teachers are mobilized and enslaved as unpaid labour to help in the fields. The use of child labour in Uzbekistan has led several companies, including Tesco, C&A, Marks & Spencer, Gap, and H&M, to boycott Uzbek cotton(Dell Latitude E5500 battery).

Facing a multitude of economic challenges upon acquiring independence, the government adopted an evolutionary reform strategy, with an emphasis on state control, reduction of imports and self-sufficiency in energy. Since 1994, the state-controlled media have repeatedly proclaimed the success of this "Uzbekistan Economic Model" and suggested that it is a unique example of a smooth transition to the market economy while avoiding shock, pauperism and stagnation(Dell Latitude E6400 battery).

The gradualist reform strategy has involved postponing significant macroeconomic and structural reforms. The state in the hands of the bureaucracy has remained a dominant influence in the economy. Corruption permeates the society and grows more rampant over time: Uzbekistan's 2005 Corruption Perception Index was 137 out of 159 countries, whereas in 2007 Uzbekistan was 175th out of 179 countries(Dell Latitude E6500 battery). A February 2006 report on the country by the International Crisis Group suggests that revenues earned from key exports, especially cotton, gold, corn and increasingly gas, are distributed among a very small circle of the ruling elite, with little or no benefit for the populace at large(Dell Inspiron Mini 12 battery).

According to the Economist Intelligence Unit, "the government is hostile to allowing the development of an independent private sector, over which it would have no control".Thus, the middle class is marginalised economically and, consequently, politically.

The economic policies have repelled foreign investment, which is the lowest per capita in the CIS(Dell XPS M140 battery). For years, the largest barrier to foreign companies entering the Uzbekistan market has been the difficulty of converting currency. In 2003, the government accepted the obligations of Article VIII under the International Monetary Fund. providing for full currency convertibility. However, strict currency controls and the tightening of borders have lessened the effect of this measure(Dell XPS 13 battery).

Uzbekistan experienced rampant inflation of around 1000% per year immediately after independence (1992–1994). Stabilisation efforts implemented with guidance from the IMF paid off. The inflation rates were brought down to 50% in 1997 and then to 22% in 2002. Since 2003 annual inflation rates averaged less than 10%(Dell XPS 16 battery). Tight economic policies in 2004 resulted in a drastic reduction of inflation to 3.8% (although alternative estimates based on the price of a true market basket, put it at 15%). The inflation rates moved up to 6.9% in 2006 and 7.6% in 2007 but have remained in the single-digit range(Dell XPS 1640 battery).

The government of Uzbekistan restricts foreign imports in many ways, including high import duties. Excise taxes are applied in a highly discriminatory manner to protect locally produced goods. Official tariffs are combined with unofficial, discriminatory charges resulting in total charges amounting to as much as 100 to 150% of the actual value of the product, making imported products virtually unaffordable(Dell XPS 1645 battery). Import substitution is an officially declared policy and the government proudly reports a reduction by a factor of two in the volume of consumer goods imported. A number of CIS countries are officially exempt from Uzbekistan import duties.

The Republican Stock Exchange (RSE) 'Tashkent' opened in 1994. It houses a securities exchange, real estate traders(Dell XPS 1647 battery), the national investment fund and the national securities depositary. It does not trade all joint-stock companies each month, and therefore market capitalisation varies widely.

Uzbekistan's external position has been strong since 2003. Thanks in part to the recovery of world market prices of gold and cotton (the country's key export commodities), expanded natural gas and some manufacturing exports, and increasing labour migrant transfers(Dell Latitude 131L battery), the current account turned into a large surplus (between 9% and 11% of GDP from 2003 to 2005) and foreign exchange reserves, including gold, more than doubled to around US$3 billion.

Demographics

Main article: Demographics of Uzbekistan

Shakh-i Zindeh mosque, Samarkand.

Uzbekistan is Central Asia's most populous country. Its 28.1 million people (July 2011 estimate) comprise nearly half the region's total population.

The population of Uzbekistan is very young: 34.1% of its people are younger than 14 (2008 estimate). According to official sources, Uzbeks comprise a majority (80%) of the total population. Other ethnic groups include Russians 5.5%, Tajiks 5%(official estimate and disputed), Kazakhs 3%, Karakalpaks 2.5% and Tatars 1.5% (1996 estimates) (Dell Latitude C400 battery).

There is some controversy about the percentage of the Tajik population. While official state numbers from Uzbekistan put the number at 5%, the number is said to be an understatement and some Western scholars put the number up to 20%–30%. The Uzbeks absorbed, among others, the Sarts, a Turko-Persian population of Central Asian peasants and merchants(Dell Latitude C500 battery). According to recent genetic genealogy testing from a University of Oxford study, the genetic admixture of the Uzbeks clusters somewhere between the Mongols and the Iranian peoples.

Uzbekistan has an ethnic Korean population that was forcibly relocated to the region by Stalin from the Soviet Far East in 1937–1938. There are also small groups of Armenians in Uzbekistan, mostly in Tashkent and Samarkand(Dell Latitude C510 battery). The nation is 88% Muslim (mostly Sunni, with a 5% Shi'a minority), 9% Eastern Orthodox and 3% other faiths. The U.S. State Department's International Religious Freedom Report 2004 reports that 0.2% of the population are Buddhist (these being ethnic Koreans). The Bukharan Jews have lived in Central Asia, mostly in Uzbekistan, for thousands of years(Dell Latitude C540 battery). There were 94,900 Jews in Uzbekistan in 1989 (about 0.5% of the population according to the 1989 census), but now, since the dissolution of the Soviet Union, most Central Asian Jews left the region for the United States or Israel. Fewer than 5,000 Jews remained in Uzbekistan in 2007.

During the Soviet period, Russians and Ukrainians constituted more than half the population of Tashkent(Dell Latitude C600 battery). The country counted nearly 1.5 million Russians, 12.5% of the population, in the 1970 census. After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, significant emigration of ethnic Russians has taken place, mostly for economic reasons.

In the 1940s, the Crimean Tatars, along with the Germans, Chechens, Greeks, Turks, Kurds and many other nationalities were deported to Central Asia. Approximately 100,000 Crimean Tatars continue to live in Uzbekistan(Dell Latitude C610 battery). The number of Greeks in Tashkent has decreased from 35,000 in 1974 to about 12,000 today. The majority of Meskhetian Turks left Uzbekistan after 1989.

At least 10% of Uzbekistan's labour force works abroad (mostly in Russia and Kazakhstan).

Uzbekistan has a 99.3% literacy rate among adults older than 15 (2003 estimate), which is attributable to the free and universal education system of the Soviet Union(Dell Latitude C640 battery).

Mosque of Bukhara.

Religion

Main article: Islam in Uzbekistan

Islam is by far the dominant religion in Uzbekistan, as Muslims constitute 90% of the population while 5% of the population follow Russian Orthodox Christianity, and 5% of the population follow other religion according to a 2009 US State Department release. However, a 2009 Pew Research Center report stated that Uzbekistan's population is 96.3% Muslim. An estimated 93,000 Jews were once present in the country(Dell Latitude C800 battery).

Despite its predominance, the practice of Islam is far from monolithic. Many versions of the faith have been practiced in Uzbekistan. The conflict of Islamic tradition with various agendas of reform or secularization throughout the 20th century has left the outside world with a confused notion of Islamic practices in Central Asia(Dell Latitude C810 battery).

In Uzbekistan the end of Soviet power did not bring an upsurge of fundamentalism, as many had predicted, but rather a gradual reacquaintance with the precepts of the faith. However after 2000, there seems to be a rise of support in favor of the Islamists.

Although constitutionally maintaining rights to freedom of religion, Uzbekistan maintains a ban on all religious activities not approved by that state(Dell Latitude C840 battery), with particularly harsh treatment of Protestant Christians being commonplace. See: Human Rights; Freedom of Religion, Uzbekistan

Languages

Main article: Uzbek language

The Uzbek language is the only official state language, and since 1992 is officially written in latin alphabet. The Tajik language is widespread in the cities of Bukhara and Samarkand because of their relatively large population of ethnic Tajiks(Dell Latitude CPX battery).

Russian is an important language for interethnic communication, especially in the cities, including much day-to-day technical, scientific, governmental and business use. Russian is the main language of over 14% of the population and is spoken as a second language by many more. The use of Russian in remote rural areas has always been limited(Dell Latitude D410 battery), and today school children have no proficiency in Russian even in urban centres. However, it was reported in 2003 that over half of the population could speak Russian, and a renewed close political relationship between Russia and Uzbekistan have meant that official discouragement of Russian has dropped off sharply(Dell Latitude D420 battery).

In 1992 Uzbekistan officially shifted back to Latin script, but many signs and notices (including official government boards in the streets) are still written in Uzbek Cyrillic script that had been used in Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic since 1940. Computers as a rule operate using the "Uzbek Cyrillic" keyboard, and Latin script is reportedly composed using the standard English keyboard(Dell Latitude D430 battery).

Communications

Main article: Communications in Uzbekistan

According to the official source report, as of March 10, 2008, the number of cellular phone users in Uzbekistan reached 7 million, up from 3.7 million on July 1, 2007. The largest mobile operator in terms of number of subscribers is MTS-Uzbekistan (former Uzdunrobita and part of Russian Mobile TeleSystems) and it is followed by Beeline (part of Russia's Beeline) and UCell (ex Coscom) (Dell Latitude D500 battery) (originally part of the U.S. MCT Corp., now a subsidiary of the Nordic/Baltic telecommunication company TeliaSonera AB).

As of July 1, 2007, the estimated number of internet users was 1.8 million, according to UzACI.

Transportation

Main article: Transportation in Uzbekistan

Central Station of Tashkent

Tashkent, the nation's capital and largest city, has a three-line rapid transit system built in 1977, and expanded in 2001 after ten years' independence from the Soviet Union. Uzbekistan is currently the only country in Central Asia with a subway system, which is promoted as one of the cleanest systems in the former Soviet Union(Dell Latitude D505 battery). The stations are exceedingly ornate. For example, the station Metro Kosmonavtov built in 1984 is decorated using a space travel theme to recognise the achievements of mankind in space exploration and to commemorate the role of Vladimir Dzhanibekov, the Soviet cosmonaut of Uzbek origin. A statue of Vladimir Dzhanibekov stands near one of the station's entrances(Dell Latitude D510 battery).

There are government-operated trams, buses and trolley buses running across the city. There are also many taxis, both registered and unregistered. Uzbekistan has car-producing plants which produce modern cars. The car production is supported by the government and the Korean auto company Daewoo. The Uzbek government acquired a 50% stake in Daewoo in 2005 for an undisclosed sum(Dell Latitude D520 battery), and in May 2007 UzDaewooAuto, the car maker, signed a strategic agreement with General Motors-Daewoo Auto and Technology (GMDAT, see: GM Uzbekistan also). The government also bought a stake in Turkey's Koc in SamKochAvto, a producer of small buses and lorries. Afterwards, it signed an agreement with Isuzu Motors of Japan to produce Isuzu buses and lorries(Dell Latitude D600 battery).

Train links connect many towns within Uzbekistan, as well as neighboring former republics of the Soviet Union. Moreover, after independence two fast-running train systems were established. Uzbekistan has launched first high-speed railway in Central Asia in September 2011 between Tashkent and Samarqand. The new high-speed electric train, call Afrosiyob, was manufactured by Patentes Talgo S.L. (Spain) and carried out its first trip from Tashkent to Samarkand on August 26 2011(Dell Latitude D610 battery).

There is also a large airplane plant that was built during the Soviet era – Tashkent Chkalov Aviation Manufacturing Plant or ТАПОиЧ in Russian. The plant originated during World War II, when production facilities were evacuated south and east to avoid capture by advancing Nazi forces(Dell Latitude D620 battery). Until the late 1980s, the plant was one of the leading airplane production centers in the USSR, but with dissolution of the Soviet Union its manufacturing equipment became outdated, and most of the workers were laid off. Now it produces only a few planes a year, but with interest from Russian companies growing in it, there are rumours of production-enhancement plans(Dell Latitude D630 battery).

Military

Main article: Military of Uzbekistan

Uzbek troop during a cooperative operation exercise.

Uzbekistan possesses the largest military force in the Central Asian region having around 65,000 people in uniform. Its structure was inherited from the Soviet Armed Forces' Turkestan Military District, although it is moving toward a fully restructured organisation, which is to be based on motor rifle troops (motorised infantry) with some light and Special Forces(Dell Latitude D800 battery). The Uzbek Armed Forces' equipment is not modern, and training, while improving, is neither uniform nor adequate for its new mission of territorial security.

The government has accepted the arms control obligations of the former Soviet Union, acceded to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (as a non-nuclear state), and supported an active program by the U.S. Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) in western Uzbekistan (Nukus and Vozrozhdeniye Island) (Dell Latitude D810 battery). The Government of Uzbekistan spends about 3.7% of GDP on the military but has received a growing infusion of Foreign Military Financing (FMF) and other security assistance funds since 1998.

Following the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in the U.S., Uzbekistan approved the U.S. Central Command's request for access to an air base, the Karshi-Khanabad airfield, in southern Uzbekistan(Dell Latitude D820 battery). However, Uzbekistan demanded that the U.S. withdraw from the airbases after the Andijan massacre and the U.S. reaction to this massacre. The last US troops left Uzbekistan in November 2005.

Foreign relations

Main articles: Foreign relations of Uzbekistan and International organization membership of Uzbekistan

Embassy of Uzbekistan in Washington, D.C..

Uzbekistan joined the Commonwealth of Independent States in December 1991. However, it is opposed to reintegration and withdrew from the CIS collective security arrangement in 1999(Dell Latitude D830 battery). Since that time, Uzbekistan has participated in the CIS peacekeeping force in Tajikistan and in UN-organized groups to help resolve the Tajikistan and Afghanistan conflicts, both of which it sees as posing threats to its own stability.

Previously close to Washington (which gave Uzbekistan half a billion dollars in aid in 2004, about a quarter of its military budget), the government of Uzbekistan has recently restricted American military use of the airbase at Karshi-Khanabad for air operations in neighboring Afghanistan(Dell Latitude 2100 battery). Uzbekistan was an active supporter of U.S. efforts against worldwide terrorism and joined the coalitions that have dealt with both Afghanistan and Iraq.

The relationship between Uzbekistan and the United States began to deteriorate after the so-called "colour revolutions" in Georgia and Ukraine (and to a lesser extent Kyrgyzstan). When the U.S. joined in a call for an independent international investigation of the bloody events at Andijon(Dell Latitude 2110 battery), the relationship took an additional nosedive, and President Islam Karimov changed the political alignment of the country to bring it closer to Russia and China, countries which chose not to criticise Uzbekistan's leaders for their alleged human rights violations.

In late July 2005, the government of Uzbekistan ordered the United States to vacate an air base in Karshi-Kanabad (near Uzbekistan's border with Afghanistan) within 180 days. Karimov had offered use of the base to the U.S. shortly after 9/11(Dell Latitude E4300 battery). It is also believed by some Uzbeks that the protests in Andijan were brought about by the U.K. and U.S. influences in the area of Andijan. This is another reason for the hostility between Uzbekistan and the West.

Uzbekistan is a member of the United Nations (UN) (since March 2, 1992), the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council (EAPC), Partnership for Peace (PfP), and the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) (Dell Vostro 1310 battery). It belongs to the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and the Economic Cooperation Organisation (ECO) (comprising the five Central Asian countries, Azerbaijan, Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan, and Pakistan). In 1999, Uzbekistan joined the GUAM alliance (Georgia, Ukraine, Azerbaijan and Moldova), which was formed in 1997 (making it GUUAM), but pulled out of the organization in 2005(Dell Vostro 1320 battery).

Uzbekistan is also a member of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) and hosts the SCO’s Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure (RATS) in Tashkent. Uzbekistan joined the new Central Asian Cooperation Organisation (CACO) in 2002. The CACO consists of Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. It is a founding member of, and remains involved in, the Central Asian Union, formed with Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, and joined in March 1998 by Tajikistan(Dell Vostro 1510 battery).

In September 2006, UNESCO presented Islam Karimov an award for Uzbekistan's preservation of its rich culture and traditions. Despite criticism, this seems to be a sign of improving relationships between Uzbekistan and the West.

The month of October 2006 also saw a decrease in the isolation of Uzbekistan from the West. The EU announced that it was planning to send a delegation to Uzbekistan to talk about human rights and liberties(Dell Vostro 1520 battery), after a long period of hostile relations between the two. Although it is equivocal about whether the official or unofficial version of the Andijan Massacre is true, the EU is evidently willing to ease its economic sanctions against Uzbekistan. Nevertheless, it is generally assumed among Uzbekistan's population that the government will stand firm in maintaining its close ties with the Russian Federation and in its theory that the 2004–2005 protests in Uzbekistan were promoted by the USA and UK(Dell Vostro 2510 battery).

Culture

Main article: Culture of Uzbekistan

See also: Kurash, Islam in Uzbekistan, and Scout Association of Uzbekistan

Traditional Uzbek pottery.

Old Uzbek man from central Uzbekistan.

Navoi Opera in Tashkent

Uzbekistan has a wide mix of ethnic groups and cultures, with the Uzbek being the majority group. In 1995 about 71% of Uzbekistan's population was Uzbek. The chief minority groups were Russians (8%), Tajiks (5–30%), Kazaks (4%), Tatars (2.5%) and Karakalpaks (2%). It is said, however, that the number of non-Uzbek people living in Uzbekistan is decreasing as Russians and other minority groups slowly leave and Uzbeks return from other parts of the former Soviet Union(Dell Vostro 1014 battery).

When Uzbekistan gained independence in 1991, there was concern that Muslim fundamentalism would spread across the region. The expectation was that a country long denied freedom of religious practice would undergo a very rapid increase in the expression of its dominant faith. As of 1994, well over half of Uzbekistan's population was said to be Muslim(Dell Inspiron 1410 battery), though in an official survey few of that number had any real knowledge of the religion or knew how to practice it. However, Islamic observance is increasing in the region.

Uzbekistan has a high literacy rate, with about 99.3% of adults above the age of 15 being able to read and write. However with only 88% of the under-15 population currently enrolled in education, this figure may drop in the future. Uzbekistan has encountered severe budgeting shortfalls in its education program(Dell Vostro 1014N battery). The education law of 1992 began the process of theoretical reform, but the physical base has deteriorated and curriculum revision has been slow.

Uzbekistan's universities create almost 600,000 graduates annually.

Music

Dance of a Bacha in Samarkand between 1905 and 1915

Main article: Music of Uzbekistan

Central Asian classical music is called Shashmaqam, which arose in Bukhara in the late 16th century when that city was a regional capital. Shashmaqam is closely related to Azerbaijani Mugam and Uyghur muqam. The name, which translates as six maqams refers to the structure of the music(Dell Vostro 1015 battery), which contains six sections in six different Musical modes, similar to classical Persian traditional music. Interludes of spoken Sufi poetry interrupt the music, typically beginning at a lower register and gradually ascending to a climax before calming back down to the beginning tone.

Endurance of listening and continual audiences that attend events, such as Bazms or Weddings, is what makes the Folk-pop style of music so popular(Dell Vostro 1015N battery). The classical music in Uzbekistan is very different than that of the pop music. Mostly men listen to Solo or Duo shows during a morning or evening meeting amongst men. Shash maqam, which is the main component of the classical genre of music. The large support of the musicians from high class families, which meant the Patronage was to be paid to the Shash maqam above all things(Dell Inspiron 1088 battery). Poetry is where some of the music is drawn from. In some instances of the music, the 2 languages are even mixed in the same song. In the 1950s, the folk music became less popular, and the genre was barred from the radio stations. They did not completely dispel the music all together, although the name changed to Feudal music. Although banned, the folk musical groups continued to play their music in their own ways and spread it individually as well(Dell Vostro A840 battery). Many say that it was the most liberated musical experience in their lives.

Education

Uzbekistan has a high Literacy rate with about 88% of adults above the age of 15 being able to read and write. However with only 76% of the under 15 population currently enrolled in education this figure may drop in the future. Uzbekistan has encountered severe budgeting shortfalls in its education program(Dell Vostro A860 battery). The education law of 1992 began the process of Theoretical reform, but the physical base has deteriorated, and curriculum revision has been slow.

Cuisine

Palov

Main article: Uzbek cuisine

Uzbek Cuisine is influenced by local agriculture, as in most nations. There is a great deal of grain farming in Uzbekistan, so breads and noodles are of importance and Uzbek cuisine has been characterized as noodle rich. Mutton is a popular variety of meat due to the abundance of sheep in the country and it is part of various Uzbek dishes(Dell Inspiron Mini 1012 battery).

Uzbekistan's signature dish is Palov (Plov or Osh), a main course typically made with rice, pieces of meat, and grated carrots and onions. Oshi Nahor or morning Plov, is served in the early morning (between 6 and 9 am) to large gatherings of guests, typically as part of an ongoing wedding celebration. Other notable national dishes include(SONY PCG-5G2L battery): Shurpa (Shurva or Shorva), a soup made of large pieces of fatty meat (usually mutton), and fresh vegetables; Norin and Langman, noodle-based dishes that may be served as a soup or a main course; Manti, Chuchvara, and Somsa, stuffed pockets of dough served as an appetizer or a main course; Dimlama (a meat and vegetable stew) and various Kebabs, usually served as a main course(SONY PCG-5G3L battery).

Green tea is the national hot beverage taken throughout the day; teahouses (Chaikhanas) are of cultural importance. The more usual black tea is preferred in Tashkent, both green and black teas are taken daily without milk or sugar. Tea always accompanies a meal, but it is also a drink of hospitality, automatically offered - green or black - to every guest. Ayran, a chilled yogurt drink, is popular in summer, but does not replace hot tea(SONY PCG-F305 battery).

The use of alcohol is less widespread than in the west, but wine is comparatively popular for a Muslim nation as Uzbekistan is largely secular. Uzbekistan has 14 wineries, the oldest and most famous being the Khovrenko Winery in Samarkand (est. 1927). The Samarkand Winery produces a range of dessert wines from local grape varieties: Gulyakandoz, Shirin, Aleatiko(SONY PCG-5J1L battery), and Kabernet likernoe (literally Cabernet dessert wine in Russian). Uzbek wines have received international awards and are exported to Russia and other countries.

Sport

Djamolidine Abdoujaparov is the most famous cyclist in Uzbekistan, winning three Tour de France point contests. Abdoujaparov is one of the world's fastest cyclists.

Main article: Sport in Uzbekistan

Uzbekistan is home to former racing cyclist Djamolidine Abdoujaparov. Abdoujaparov has won the points contest in the Tour de France three times, each time winning the coveted green jersey(SONY PCG-5J2L battery). (The green jersey is second only to the yellow jersey.) Abdoujaparov was a specialist at winning stages in tours or one-day races when the bunch or peloton would finish together. He would often 'sprint' in the final kilometre and had a reputation as being dangerous in these bunch sprints as he would weave from side to side. This reputation earned him the nickname 'The Terror of Tashkent'(SONY PCG-5K2L battery).

Artur Taymazov won Uzbekistan's first wrestling medal at the 2000 Summer Olympic Games, as well as two gold medals at both the 2004 and 2008 Summer Olympic Games in Men's 120 kg.

Ruslan Chagaev is a professional boxer representing Uzbekistan in the WBA. He won the WBA champion title in 2007 after defeating Russian Nikolai Valuev. Chagaev defended his title twice before losing it to Vladimir Klitschko in 2009(SONY PCG-5L1L battery).

Michael Kolganov, sprint canoer, was world champion and won an Olympic bronze in K-1 500-meter. Gymnast Alexander Shatilov won a world bronze as an artistic gymnast in floor exercise.

Uzbekistan is the home of the International Kurash Association. Kurash is an internationalized and modernized form of the traditional Uzbek fighting art of Kurash(SONY PCG-6S2L battery).

Football is the most popular sport in Uzbekistan. Uzbekistan's premier football league is the Uzbek League which features 14 teams since 2010, before 16. The current champions (2011) are FC Bunyodkor, and the team with the most championships is FC Pakhtakor Tashkent with 8. The current Player of the Year (2010) is Server Djeparov(SONY PCG-6S3L battery). Uzbekistan football clubs regularly participates in the AFC Champions League and the AFC Cup. Nasaf won AFC Cup in 2011 which is first international club cup for Uzbek football.

Before Uzbekistan's independence in 1991, the country used to be part of the Soviet Union football, rugby, ice hockey, basketball, and handball national teams. After Uzbekistan got split up from the Soviet Union, Uzbekistan created its own football, rugby, and futsal national teams(SONY PCG-6V1L battery).

Other popular sports in Uzbekistan include rugby, team handball, baseball, ice hockey, basketball, and futsal.

Cyprus

Cyprus; Turkish: Kıbrıs Cumhuriyet, is a Eurasian island country located in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and Lebanon and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea and a member of the European Union(SONY Vaio VGN-NS38M Battery).

The earliest known human activity on the island dates back to around the 10th millennium BCE. Archaeological remains from this period include the well-preserved Neolithic village of Khirokitia, which has been declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO, along with the Tombs of the Kings(SONY Vaio VGN-NS31M Battery). Cyprus is home to some of the oldest water wells in the world, and is the site of the earliest known example of feline domestication. At a strategic location in the Middle East, Cyprus has been occupied by several major powers, including the empires of the Hittites, Assyrians, Egyptians, Persians, Rashidun and Umayyad Arab caliphates, Lusignans(SONY Vaio VGN-NS31Z Battery), Venetians, and Ottomans. Settled by Mycenean Greeks in the 2nd millennium BCE, the island also experienced long periods of Greek rule under the Ptolemaic Egyptians and the Byzantines. In 333 BCE, Alexander the Great conquered the island from the Persians. The Ottoman Empire conquered the island in 1571 and it remained under Ottoman control for over three centuries(SONY Vaio VGN-NS31S Battery). It was placed under British administration in 1878 until it was granted independence in 1960, becoming a member of the Commonwealth the following year.

In 1974, following 11 years of intercommunal violence between Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots, an attempted coup d'état by Greek Cypriot nationalists and elements of the Greek military junta with the aim of achieving enosis (union of the island with Greece) took place(SONY Vaio VGN-NS21Z Battery). Turkey used this as a pretext to invade the northern portion of the island. Turkish forces remained after a cease-fire, resulting in the partition of the island; an objective of Turkey since 1955. The intercommunal violence and subsequent Turkish invasion led to the displacement of hundreds of thousands of Cypriots and the establishment of a separate Turkish Cypriot political entity in the north(SONY Vaio VGN-NS21M Battery). These events and the resulting political situation are matters of ongoing dispute.

The Republic of Cyprus has de jure sovereignty over the island of Cyprus and its surrounding waters, except for the British military bases of Akrotiri and Dhekelia. The Republic of Cyprus is de facto partitioned into two main parts; the area under the effective control of the Republic of Cyprus, comprising about 59% of the island's area(SONY Vaio VGN-NS21S Battery), and the Turkish-controlled area in the north, calling itself the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus and recognised only by Turkey, covering about 36% of the island's area.

Cyprus is the third most populous island in the Mediterranean Sea and one of its most popular tourist destinations. An advanced, high-income economy with a very high Human Development Index, the Republic of Cyprus was a founding member of the Non-Aligned Movement until it joined the European Union on 1 May 2004. On January 1, 2008, Cyprus joined the euro(SONY Vaio VGN-NS12S Battery).

Etymology

A copper mine on Cyprus. In antiquity Cyprus was a major source of copper.

The earliest attested reference to Cyprus is the Mycenaean Greek ku-pi-ri-jo, meaning "Cypriot", written in Linear B syllabic script. The classical Greek form of the name is Κύπρος Kupros.

The etymology of the name is unknown. Suggestions include:

the Greek word for the Mediterranean cypress tree (Cupressus sempervirens), κυπάρισσος (kypárissos) (SONY Vaio VGN-NS12M Battery)

the Greek name of the henna plant (Lawsonia alba), κύπρος (kýpros)

an Eteocypriot word for copper. Georges Dossin, for example, suggests that it has roots in the Sumerian word for copper (zubar) or for bronze (kubar), from the large deposits of copper ore found on the island.

Through overseas trade, the island has given its name to the Classical Latin word for copper through the phrase aes Cyprium, "metal of Cyprus", later shortened to Cuprum(SONY Vaio VGN-NS11Z Battery). Cyprus, more specifically the shores of Paphos, was also one of the birthplaces of Aphrodite given in Greek mythology, who was known as Kupria, since according to Phoenician mythology, Astarte, goddess of love and beauty, was later identified with Aphrodite.

The standard demonym relating to Cyprus or its people or culture is Cypriot. The terms Cypriote and Cyprian are also, less frequently, used(SONY Vaio VGN-NS11M Battery).

History

Main articles: History of Cyprus and Timeline of Cypriot history

Ancient times

Main articles: Prehistoric Cyprus and Ancient history of Cyprus

The Neolithic archeological site at Khirokitia

The earliest confirmed site of human activity on Cyprus is Aetokremnos, situated on the south coast, indicating that hunter-gatherers were active on the island from around 10,000 BCE, with settled village communities dating from 8200 BC. The arrival of the first humans correlates with the extinction of the dwarf hippos and dwarf elephants(SONY Vaio VGN-NS11L Battery). Water wells discovered by archaeologists in western Cyprus are believed to be among the oldest in the world, dated at 9,000 to 10,500 years old.

Remains of an 8-month-old cat were discovered buried with its human owner at a separate Neolithic site in Cyprus. The grave is estimated to be 9,500 years old, predating ancient Egyptian civilization and pushing back the earliest known feline-human association significantly(SONY Vaio VGN-NS11J Battery). The remarkably well-preserved Neolithic village of Khirokitia is a UNESCO World Heritage Site dating to approximately 6800 BCE.

Temple to Apollo Ilatis outside the city of Limassol.

The island was part of the Hittite empire during the late Bronze Age until the arrival of two waves of Greek settlement. The first wave consisted of Mycenaean Greek traders who started visiting Cyprus around 1400 BCE. A major wave of Greek settlement is believed to have taken place following the Bronze Age collapse of Mycenaean Greece in the period 1100–1050 BCE, with the island's predominantly Greek character dating from this period(SONY Vaio VGN-NS11E Battery). Cyprus occupies an important role in Greek mythology being the birthplace of Aphrodite and Adonis, and home to King Cinyras, Teucer and Pygmalion. Beginning in the 8th century BCE Phoenician colonies were founded on the south coast of Cyprus, near present day Larnaca and Salamis(SONY Vaio VGN-NS10L Battery).

Cyprus was ruled by Assyria for a century starting in 708 BCE, before a brief spell under Egyptian rule and eventually Persian rule in 545 BCE. The Cypriots, led by Onesilus, king of Salamis, joined their fellow Greeks in the Ionian cities during the unsuccessful Ionian Revolt in 499 BCE against the Achaemenid Empire(SONY Vaio VGN-NS10J Battery). The revolt was suppressed, but Cyprus managed to maintain a high degree of autonomy and remained oriented towards the Greek world.

The island was brought under permanent Greek rule by Alexander the Great and the Ptolemies of Egypt following his death. Full Hellenization took place during the Ptolemaic period, which ended when Cyprus was annexed by the Roman Republic in 58 BCE(SONY Vaio VGN-NS10E Battery).

Middle Ages

Main article: Cyprus in the Middle Ages

Paphos Castle.

When the Roman Empire was divided into Eastern and Western parts in 395, Cyprus became part of the East Roman, or Byzantine Empire, and would remain part of it until the Crusades some 800 years later. Under Byzantine rule, the Greek orientation that had been prominent since antiquity developed the strong Hellenistic-Christian character that continues to be a hallmark of the Greek Cypriot community(SONY Vaio VGN-NS38M/W Battery). Beginning in 649, Cyprus suffered from devastating raids launched from the Levant, which continued for the next 300 years. Many were quick piratical raids, but others were large-scale attacks in which many Cypriots were slaughtered and great wealth carried off or destroyed(SONY Vaio VGN-NS38M/P Battery).

There are no Byzantine churches which survive from this period; thousands of people were killed, and many cities – such as Salamis – were destroyed and never rebuilt. Byzantine rule was restored in 965, when Emperor Nikephoros II Phokas scored decisive victories on land and sea(SONY Vaio VGN-NS31Z/W Battery). In 1191, during the Third Crusade, Richard I of England captured the island from Isaac Komnenos of Cyprus He used it as a major supply base that was relatively safe from the Saracens. A year later Richard sold the island to the Knights Templar, who, following a bloody revolt, in turn sold it to Guy of Lusignan. His brother and successor Amalric was recognized as King of Cyprus by Henry VI, Holy Roman Emperor(SONY Vaio VGN-NS31Z/S Battery).

Following the death in 1473 of James II, the last Lusignan king, the Republic of Venice assumed control of the island, while the late king's Venetian widow, Queen Catherine Cornaro, reigned as figurehead. Venice formally annexed Cyprus in 1489, following the abdication of Catherine. The Venetians fortified Nicosia by building the famous Venetian Walls, and used it as an important commercial hub(SONY Vaio VGN-NS31Z/P Battery). Throughout Venetian rule, the Ottoman Empire frequently raided Cyprus. In 1539 the Ottomans destroyed Limassol and so fearing the worst, the Venetians also fortified Famagusta and Kyrenia.

During the almost four centuries of Latin rule, there existed two societies on Cyprus. The first consisted of Frankish nobles and their retinue, as well as Italian merchants and their families(SONY Vaio VGN-NS31S/S Battery). The second, the majority of the population, consisted of Greek Cypriots, serfs and laborers. Although a determined effort was made to supplant native traditions and culture, the effort failed.

Ottoman Empire

Main article: Ottoman Cyprus

Historical map of Cyprus by Piri Reis

In 1570, a full scale Ottoman assault with 60,000 troops brought the island under Ottoman control, despite stiff resistance by the inhabitants of Nicosia and Famagusta. 20,000 Nicosians were put to death, and every church(SONY Vaio VGN-NS31M/W Battery), public building, and palace was looted. The previous Latin elite was destroyed and the first significant demographic change since antiquity took place when Ottoman Janissaries were settled on the island.

The Ottomans abolished the feudal system previously in place and applied the millet system to Cyprus, under which non-Muslim peoples were governed by their own religious authorities(SONY Vaio VGN-NS31M/P Battery). In a reversal from the days of Latin rule, the head of the Church of Cyprus was invested as leader of the Greek Cypriot population and acted as mediator between Christian Greek Cypriots and the Ottoman authorities. Ottoman rule of Cyprus was at times indifferent, at times oppressive, depending on the temperaments of the sultans and local officials, and during this period the island fell into economic decline(SONY Vaio VGN-NS21Z/S Battery).

In 1828, modern Greece’s first president Ioannis Kapodistrias whose maternal ancestors were Greek Cypriots, called for union of Cyprus with Greece, and numerous minor uprisings took place. Reaction to Ottoman misrule led to uprisings by both Greek and Turkish Cypriots, although none was successful. By 1872, the population of the island had risen to 144,000 comprising 44,000 Muslims and 100,000 Christians(SONY Vaio VGN-NS21S/W Battery). Centuries of neglect by the Turks, the unrelenting poverty of most of the people, and the ever-present tax collectors fuelled Greek nationalism, and by 19th century the idea of enosis, or union, with newly independent Greece was firmly rooted among Greek Cypriots.

British Empire

Main article: Modern history of Cyprus

Hoisting the British flag at Nicosia

In the aftermath of the Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878) and the Congress of Berlin, Cyprus was leased to the British Empire which de facto took over its administration in 1878 (though, in terms of sovereignty(SONY Vaio VGN-NS21S/S Battery), it remained a de jure Ottoman territory until 1914, together with Egypt and Sudan) in exchange for guarantees that Britain would use the island as a base to protect the Ottoman Empire against possible Russian aggression. The island would serve Britain as a key military base in its colonial routes. By 1906, when the Famagusta harbour was completed(SONY Vaio VGN-NS21M/W Battery), Cyprus was a strategic naval outpost overlooking the Suez Canal, the crucial main route to India which was then Britain's most important overseas possession. Following the outbreak of World War I and the entry into it of the Ottoman Empire on the side of the Central Powers, Great Britain formally annexed the island on 5 November 1914(SONY Vaio VGN-NS21M/P Battery).

Cypriot demonstrations for Enosis (Union) with Greece in 1930

In 1915, Britain offered Cyprus to Constantine I of Greece on condition that Greece join the war on the side of the British, which he declined. In 1923, under the Treaty of Lausanne, the nascent Turkish republic relinquished any claim to Cyprus, and in 1925 it was declared a British crown colony. Many Greek Cypriots fought in the British Army during both World Wars, in the hope that Cyprus would eventually be united with Greece(SONY Vaio VGN-NS12S/S Battery). During World War II many enlisted in the Cyprus Regiment.

In January 1959, the Church of Cyprus organized a referendum, which was boycotted by the Turkish Cypriot community, where over 90% voted in favor of "enosis", meaning union with Greece. Restricted autonomy under a constitution was proposed by the British administration but eventually rejected. In 1955 the EOKA organisation was founded, seeking independence and union with Greece through armed struggle(SONY Vaio VGN-NS12M/W Battery). At the same time the Turkish Resistance Organisation (TMT), calling for Taksim, or partition, was established by the Turkish Cypriots as a counterweight. Turmoil on the island was met with force by the British.

Independence

The first president of Cyprus Makarios III

On 16 August 1960, Cyprus attained independence after the Zürich and London Agreement between the United Kingdom, Greece and Turkey. The UK retained the two Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia(SONY Vaio VGN-NS12M/S Battery), while government posts and public offices were allocated by ethnic quotas, giving the minority Turkish Cypriots a permanent veto, 30% in parliament and administration, and granting the three mother-states guarantor rights.

In 1963, inter-communal violence broke out, partially sponsored by both "motherlands". As a result, Turkish Cypriots were forced into enclaves and Cypriot President Archbishop Makarios III called for unilateral constitutional changes as a means to ease tensions over the whole island(SONY Vaio VGN-NS11Z/S Battery). The United Nations deployed forces in Cyprus (UNFICYP) at flash points.

In 1964, Turkey tried to intervene in Cyprus[48] in response to the ongoing Cypriot intercommunal violence. But Turkey was stopped by a strongly worded telegram from the US President Lyndon B. Johnson on 5 June, warning that the United States would not stand beside Turkey in case of a consequential Soviet invasion of Turkish territory(SONY Vaio VGN-NS11ZR/S Battery).

Contemporary era

Main articles: Greek military junta of 1967–1974, Cypriot intercommunal violence, and Turkish invasion of Cyprus

Nicosia, the capital of Cyprus

On 15 July 1974, the Greek military junta carried out a coup d'état in Cyprus, to unite the island with Greece. The coup ousted president Makarios III and replaced him with pro-enosis nationalist Nikos Sampson. Five days later, on the 20th July 1974, the Turkish army invaded the island on the pretext of restoring the constitutional order of the Republic of Cyprus by claiming a right to intervene as one of the guarantors of the 1960 Treaty of Guarantee(SONY Vaio VGN-NS11S/S Battery).

The Turkish air force began bombing Greek positions on Cyprus, hundreds of paratroops were dropped in the area between Nicosia and Kyrenia, where well-armed Turkish Cypriot enclaves had been long-established, while off the Kyrenia coast, 30 Turkish troop ships protected by destroyers landed 6,000 men as well as tanks, trucks, and armored vehicles(SONY Vaio VGN-NS11SR/S Battery).

Three days later, when a ceasefire had been agreed, Turkey had landed 30,000 troops on the island and captured Kyrenia, the corridor linking Kyrenia to Nicosia, and Turkish Cypriot quarter of Nicosia itself. The junta in Athens, and then the Sampson regime in Cyprus fell from power. In Nicosia, Glafkos Clerides assumed the presidency and constitutional order was restored, removing the pretext for the Turkish invasion(SONY Vaio VGN-NS11M/S Battery). But during the negotiations, the Turks reinforced their Kyrenia bridgehead and prepared for a second invasion. The invasion began on 14 August and resulted in the seizure of Morphou, Karpass, Famagusta and the Mesaoria. The Greek-Cypriot forces were unable to resist the Turkish advance(SONY Vaio VGN-NS11MR/S Battery).

International pressure led to a ceasefire, and by then 37% of the island had been taken over by the Turks and 180,000 Greek Cypriots had been evicted from their homes in the north. At the same time, around 50,000 Turkish Cypriots moved to the areas under the control of the Turkish Forces and settled in the properties of the displaced Greek Cypriots(SONY Vaio VGN-NS11L/S Battery). Among a variety of sanctions against Turkey, in mid-1975 the US Congress imposed an arms embargo on Turkey for using American-supplied equipment during the Turkish invasion of Cyprus in 1974.

Cyprus foreign minster signing Lisbon Treaty in 2007

After the restoration of constitutional order and the return of Archbishop Makarios III to Cyprus in December 1974(SONY Vaio VGN-NS11J/S Battery), the Turkish troops remained on the island occupying the northeastern portion of the island. In 1983, Turkish Cypriots proclaimed the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, which is recognised only by Turkey. As of today, there are 1,534 Greek Cypriots and 502 Turkish Cypriots missing as a result of the fighting. The events of the summer of 1974 dominate the politics on the island, as well as Greco-Turkish relations(SONY Vaio VGN-NS11E/S Battery). Around 150,000 settlers from Turkey are believed to be living in the north in violation of the Geneva Convention and various UN resolutions. Following the invasion and the capture of its northern territory by Turkish troops, the Republic of Cyprus announced that all of its ports of entry in the north were closed, as they were effectively not under its control(SONY Vaio VGN-NS11ER/S Battery).

The Turkish invasion and occupation and the self-declaration of independence of the TRNC have been condemned by several United Nations Resolutions. The Security Council reaffirms this every year. The last major effort to settle the Cyprus dispute was the Annan Plan in 2004. It gained the support of the Turkish Cypriots but was rejected by the Greek Cypriots, who perceived it to disproportionately favor Turks(SONY Vaio VGN-NS115N/S Battery).

On May 1, 2004 Cyprus joined the European Union together with nine other countries. In July 2006, the island served as a safe haven for people fleeing Lebanon because of the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah.

In March 2008, a wall that for decades had stood at the boundary between the Republic of Cyprus and the UN buffer zone was demolished. The wall had cut across Ledra Street in the heart of Nicosia and was seen as a strong symbol of the island's 32-year division(SONY Vaio VGN-NS110E/W Battery). On 3 April 2008, Ledra Street was reopened in the presence of Greek and Turkish Cypriot officials.

Geography

Main article: Geography of Cyprus

Topographic map of Cyprus. Troodos Mountains in the southwest, Mesaoria plain in the middle, Kyrenia Mountains in the north.

The Troodos Mountains experience heavy snowfall in winter.

Cyprus is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after the Italian islands of Sicily and Sardinia (both in terms of area and population). It is also the world's 81st largest by area and world's 49th largest by population. It measures 240 kilometres (149 mi) long from end to end and 100 kilometres (62 mi) wide at its widest point(SONY Vaio VGN-NS110E/S Battery), with Turkey 75 kilometres (47 mi) to the north. It lies between latitudes 34° and 36° N, and longitudes 32° and 35° E.

Other neighbouring territories include Syria and Lebanon to the east (105 kilometres (65 mi) and 108 kilometres (67 mi), respectively), Israel 200 kilometres (124 mi) to the southeast, Egypt 380 kilometres (236 mi) to the south, and Greece to the northwest: 280 kilometres (174 mi) to the small Dodecanesian island of Kastelorizo (Megisti), 400 kilometres (249 mi) to Rhodes, and 800 kilometres (497 mi) to the Greek mainland(SONY Vaio VGN-NS110E/L Battery).

The physical relief of the island is dominated by two mountain ranges, the Troodos Mountains and the smaller Kyrenia Range, and the central plain they encompass, the Mesaoria. The Mesaoria plain is drained by the Pedieos River, the longest on the island. The Troodos Mountains cover most of the southern and western portions of the island and account for roughly half its area(SONY Vaio VGN-NS10L/S Battery). The highest point on Cyprus is Mount Olympus at 1,952 m (6,404 ft), located in the centre of the Troodos range. The narrow Kyrenia Range, extending along the northern coastline, occupies substantially less area, and elevations are lower, reaching a maximum of 1,024 m (3,360 ft) (SONY Vaio VGN-NS10J/S Battery).

Geopolitically, the island is subdivided into four main segments. The Republic of Cyprus occupies the southern two-thirds of the island (59.74%). The Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus occupies the northern third (34.85%), and the United Nations-controlled Green Line provides a buffer zone that separates the two and covers 2.67% of the island. Lastly, two bases under British sovereignty are located on the island(SONY Vaio VGN-NS10E/S Battery): Akrotiri and Dhekelia, covering the remaining 2.74%.

Climate

Main article: Climate of Cyprus

Petra tou Romiou ("Rock of the Greek"), where according to mythology the goddess Aphrodite emerged from the sea.

The sandy beaches are often used as habitats for Green Turtles

Cyprus has a subtropical climate – Mediterranean and Semi-arid type (in the north-eastern part of island) – according to Köppen climate classification signes Csa and Bsh, with very mild winters (on the coast) and warm to hot summers. Snow is possible only in the Troodos Mountains in the central part of island. Rain occurs mainly in winter, with summer being generally dry(Sony VAIO VGN-SR94VS battery).

Cyprus has the warmest climate (and warmest winters) in the Mediterranean part of the European Union. The average annual temperature on the coast is around 24 °C (75 °F) during the day and 14 °C (57 °F) at night. Generally – summer's/holiday season lasts about 8 months, begins in April with average temperatures of 21–23 °C (70–73 °F) during the day and 11–13 °C (52–55 °F) at night(Sony VAIO VGN-SR94HS battery), ends in November with average temperatures of 22–23 °C (72–73 °F) during the day and 12–14 °C (54–57 °F) at night, although also in remaining 4 months temperatures sometimes exceeds 20 °C (68 °F). Among all cities in the Mediterranean part of the European Union, Limassol has the warmest winters, in the period January–February average temperature is 17–18 °C (63–64 °F) during the day and 8–9 °C (46–48 °F) at night(Sony VAIO VGN-SR94GS battery), in other coastal locations in Cyprus is generally 16–17 °C (61–63 °F) during the day and 7–9 °C (45–48 °F) at night. In March and December in Limassol average temperatures is 19–20 °C (66–68 °F) during the day and 10–11 °C (50–52 °F) at night, in other coastal locations in Cyprus is generally 17–19 °C (63–66 °F) during the day and 8–11 °C (46–52 °F) at night(Sony VAIO VGN-SR94FS battery). Middle of summer is hot – in July and August on the coast the average temperature is usually around 33 °C (91 °F) during the day and around 23 °C (73 °F) at night (inside the island, in the highlands average temperature exceeds 35 °C (95 °F)) while in the June and September on the coast the average temperature is usually around 30 °C (86 °F) during the day and around 20 °C (68 °F) at night(Sony VAIO VGN-SR93YS battery). Large fluctuations in temperature are rare. Temperatures inside the island are more stringent, with colder winters and more hot summers compared with the coast of the island.

Average annual temperature of sea is 21–22 °C (70–72 °F), from 17 °C (63 °F) in February to 27–28 °C (81–82 °F) in August (depending on the location). In total 7 months – from May to November – the average sea temperature exceeds 20 °C (68 °F).

Sunshine hours on the coast is around 3,400 per year, from average 5–6 hours of sunshine / day in December to average 12–13 hours in July(Sony VAIO VGN-SR93PS battery). This is about double that of cities in the northern half of Europe, for comparison: London – 1,461, however in winter up to some times more sunshine, for comparison: London has 37 hours while coastal locations in Cyprus has around 180 hours of sunshine in December (that is, as much as in May in London) (Sony VAIO VGN-SR93JS battery).

Water supply

Kouris Dam is the largest of a network of 107 dams in Cyprus.

Cyprus is suffering from an ongoing shortage of water. The country relies heavily on rain to provide household water and for many years now, the average annual rainfall seemed to be falling. Between 2001 and 2004, exceptionally heavy annual rainfall pushed water reserves up, with supply exceeding demand, allowing total storage in the island's reservoirs to rise to an all time high by the start of 2005(Sony VAIO VGN-SR93DS battery). However, since then demand has increased annually – a result of local population growth, foreigners relocating to Cyprus and the number of visiting tourists – while supply has fallen. Cyprus has a total of 107 dams (plus one currently under construction) and reservoirs, with a total water storage capacity of about 330,000,000 m3 (1.2×1010 cu ft) (Sony VAIO VGN-SR92US battery). Dams remain the principal source of water both for domestic and agricultural use. Water desalination plants are gradually being constructed in order to deal with recent years of prolonged drought. The Government has invested heavily in the creation of water desalination plants which have supplied almost 50 percent of domestic water since 2001(Sony VAIO VGN-SR92S battery). Efforts have also been made to raise public awareness of the situation and to encourage domestic water users to take more responsibility for the conservation of this increasingly scarce commodity.

Politics

Main article: Politics of Cyprus

The Presidential Palace (Residence) in Nicosia.

Cyprus is a Presidential republic. The head of state and of the government is elected by a process of Universal suffrage for a five-year term. Executive power is exercised by the government with legislative power vested in the House of Representatives whilst the Judiciary is independent of both the executive and the legislature(Sony VAIO VGN-SR92PS battery). The 1960 Constitution provided for a presidential system of government with independent executive, legislative and judicial branches as well as a complex system of checks and balances including a weighted power-sharing ratio designed to protect the interests of the Turkish Cypriots. The executive was led by a Greek Cypriot president and a Turkish Cypriot vice president elected by their respective communities for five-year terms and each possessing a right (Sony VAIO VGN-SR92NS battery)of veto over certain types of legislation and executive decisions. Legislative power rested on the House of Representatives who were also elected on the basis of separate voters' rolls.

Following clashes between the two communities the Turkish Cypriot seats in the House remain vacant since 1965. Turkish Cypriots refused to establish the state of affairs before the invasion of Cyprus as is evident in the Secretary-General of the United Nations who said "The Turkish Cypriot leaders have adhered to a rigid stand against any measures which might involve having members of the two communities live and work together(Sony VAIO VGN-SR91US battery), or which might place Turkish Cypriots in situations where they would have to acknowledge the authority of Government agents. Indeed, since the Turkish Cypriot leadership is committed to physical and geographical separation of the communities as a political goal, it is not likely to encourage activities by Turkish Cypriots which may be interpreted as demonstrating the merits of an alternative policy(Sony VAIO VGN-SR91S battery). The result has been a seemingly deliberate policy of self-segregation by the Turkish Cypriots." By 1974 the two communities had returned to a more tolerant state of living.

Cyprus president Dimitris Christofias and Cyprus first lady with U.S. President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama.

In 1974 Cyprus was divided de facto when the Turkish army occupied the northern third of the island. The Turkish Cypriots subsequently declared independence in 1983 as the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus but were recognized only by Turkey. In 1985 the TRNC adopted a constitution and held its first elections(Sony VAIO VGN-SR91PS battery). The United Nations recognises the sovereignty of the Republic of Cyprus over the entire island of Cyprus.

The House of Representatives currently has 59 members elected for a five year term, 56 members by proportional representation and 3 observer members representing the Armenian, Latin and Maronite minorities. 24 seats are allocated to the Turkish community but remain vacant since 1964(Sony VAIO VGN-SR91NS battery). The political environment is dominated by the communist AKEL, the liberal conservative Democratic Rally, the centrist Democratic Party, the social-democratic EDEK and the centrist EURO.KO. On 17 February 2008 Dimitris Christofias of the AKEL was elected President of Cyprus, on AKEL's first electoral victory without being part of a wider coalition(Sony VAIO VGN-SR90US battery). Christofias took over government from Tassos Papadopoulos of the Democratic Party who had been in office since February 2003.

Administrative divisions

Main articles: Districts of Cyprus and List of cities, towns and villages in Cyprus

The Republic of Cyprus is divided into six districts: Nicosia, Famagusta, Kyrenia, Larnaca, Limassol and Paphos. These are not the same as those of Northern Cyprus(Sony VAIO VGN-SR90S battery).

Exclaves and enclaves

Episkopi Cantonment in south-southwest Cyprus.

Cyprus has four exclaves, all in territory that belongs to the British Sovereign Base Area of Dhekelia. The first two are the villages of Ormidhia and Xylotymvou. The third is the Dhekelia Power Station which is divided by a British road into two parts. The northern part is an exclave, like the two villages, whereas the southern part is located by the sea and therefore not an exclave although it has no territorial waters of its own(Sony VAIO VGN-SR90NS battery).

The UN buffer zone runs up against Dhekelia and picks up again from its east side off Ayios Nikolaos and is connected to the rest of Dhekelia by a thin land corridor. In that sense the buffer zone turns the Paralimni area on the southeast corner of the island into a de facto, though not de jure, exclave(Sony VAIO VGN-SR90FS battery).

Foreign relations

Main article: Foreign relations of Cyprus

The island nation Cyprus is member of: Australia Group, CN, CE, CFSP, EBRD, EIB, EU, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ITUC, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ITU, MIGA, NAM, NSG, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO(Sony VAIO VGN-SR74FB battery).

Human rights

Supreme Court of Cyprus in Nicosia

Main article: Human rights in Cyprus

In "Freedom in the World 2011", Freedom House rated the democracy of Cyprus as "free". The constant focus on the division of the island can sometimes mask other human rights issues. Prostitution is rife in both the Republic of Cyprus and the Turkish-controlled regions leading to the government being criticised for its lack of controls and for the role of Cyprus in the sex trade as one of the main destinations for human trafficking from Eastern Europe(Sony VAIO VGN-SR74FB/S battery).

There have been reports of mistreatment to the Turkish Cypriots in the Republic of Cyprus. The US Department of State report about human rights in Cyprus in 2002 said that:

Some of the approximately 300 Turkish Cypriots living in the government-controlled area faced difficulties in obtaining identification cards and other government documents, especially if they were born after 1974. Turkish Cypriots also appeared to be subjected to surveillance by the Greek Cypriot police(Sony VAIO VGN-SR72B/S battery).

Domestic violence legislation remains largely unimplemented and mistreatment of domestic staff, mostly immigrant workers from developing countries, are sometimes reported in the Cypriot press and are the subject of several campaigns by the anti-racist charity KISA(Sony VAIO VGN-SR72B/P battery).

Military

Soldiers of Cypriot National Guard marching in Rome.

Main article: Cypriot National Guard

The Cypriot National Guard is the main military institution of the Republic of Cyprus. It is a combined arms force, with land, air and naval elements. The National Guard is a required 24 month service for all men upon completing their 18th birthday. The land forces of the Cypriot National Guard comprise the following units(Sony VAIO VGN-SR70B battery):

First Infantry Division (Ιη Μεραρχία ΠΖ)

Second Infantry Division (ΙΙα Μεραρχία ΠΖ)

Fourth Infantry Brigade (ΙVη Ταξιαρχία ΠΖ)

Twentieth Armored Brigade (ΧΧη ΤΘ Ταξιαρχία)

Third Support Brigade (ΙΙΙη Ταξιαρχία ΥΠ)

Eighth Support Brigade (VIIIη Ταξιαρχία ΥΠ)

The air force includes the 449th Helicopter Gunship Squadron (449 ΜΑΕ) – operating SA-342L and Bell 206 and the 450th Helicopter Gunship Squadron (450 ME/P) – operating Mi-35P, BN-2B and PC-9. Current Senior officers include Supreme Commander, Cypriot National Guard, Lt. General Stylianos Nasis,[82] and Chief of Staff, Cypriot National Guard: Maj. General Mihalis Flerianos(Sony VAIO VGN-SR70B/S battery).

Economy

Main article: Economy of Cyprus

The city of Limassol is a major port and tourist hub in the Mediterranean.

The city of Larnaca Another popular tourist destination

The Cypriot economy is prosperous and has diversified in recent years. According to the latest International Monetary Fund estimates, its per capita GDP (adjusted for purchasing power) at $28,381 is just above the average of the European Union. Cyprus has been sought as a base for several offshore businesses for its highly developed infrastructure(Sony VAIO VGN-SR59VG battery). Tourism, financial services, and shipping are significant parts of the economy. Economic policy of the Cyprus government has focused on meeting the criteria for admission to the European Union. The Cypriot government adopted the euro as the national currency on 1 January 2008.

Cyprus has been part of the Eurozone since 2008.

In recent years significant quantities of offshore natural gas have been discovered in the area known as Aphrodite in Cyprus' exclusive economic zone (EEZ) (Sony VAIO VGN-SR59VG/H battery), about 175 km south of Limassol at 33°5′40″N and 32°59′0″E. Cyprus demarcated its maritime border with Egypt in 2003, and with Lebanon in 2007. Cyprus and Israel demarcated their maritime border in 2010, and in August 2011, the US-based firm Noble Energy entered into a production-sharing agreement with the Cypriot government regarding the block's commercial development(Sony VAIO VGN-SR55TF/B battery).Turkey, which does not recognize the border agreements of Cyprus with its neighbors, threatened to mobilize its naval forces in the event that Cyprus would proceed with plans to begin drilling at Block 12. Cyprus' drilling efforts have the support of the US, EU, and UN, and on September 19, 2011 drilling in Block 12 began without any incidents being reported(Sony VAIO VGN-SR51MF battery).

The economy of the Turkish-occupied areas operates on a free-market basis although it continues to be handicapped by the lack of private and public investment, high freight costs and shortages of skilled labor. Despite these constraints the economy turned in an impressive performance in 2003 and 2004 with growth rates of 9.6% and 11.4%. The average income in the area was $15,984 (S₣16,289) in 2008(Sony VAIO VGN-SR51MF/W battery). Growth has been buoyed by the relative stability of the Turkish new lira and by a boom in the education and construction sectors. The island has witnessed a massive growth in tourism over the years and as such the property rental market in Cyprus has grown alongside. Added to this is the capital growth in property that has been created from the demand of incoming investors and property buyers to the island(Sony VAIO VGN-SR51B battery).

Transport

A map showing the main roads of Cyprus

Larnaca International Airport.

Port of Limassol, the busiest in Cyprus.

Main article: Transport in Cyprus

Main article: Motorways and roads in Cyprus

Available modes of transport are by road, sea, and air. Of the 10,663 km (6,626 mi) of roads in the Republic of Cyprus as of 1998, 6,249 km (3,883 mi) were paved, and 4,414 km (2,743 mi) were unpaved. As of 1996 the Turkish occupied area had a similar ratio of paved to unpaved, with approximately 1,370 km (850 mi) of paved road and 980 km (610 mi) unpaved(Sony VAIO VGN-SR51B/S battery). Cyprus is one of only four EU nations in which vehicles drive on the left-hand side of the road, a remnant of British colonisation, the others being Ireland, Malta and the United Kingdom.

There are several modern motorways in Cyprus. A series of motorways runs along the coast from Paphos east to Ayia Napa, with two motorways running inland to Nicosia, one from Limassol and one from Larnaca(Sony VAIO VGN-SR51B/P battery).

A1 Nicosia to Limassol

A2 connects A1 near Pera Chorio with A3 by Larnaca

A3 Larnaca to Agia Napa

A5 connects A1 near Kofinou with A3 by Larnaca

A6 Pafos to Limassol

A9 Nicosia to Astromeritis

Per capita private car ownership is the 5th highest in the world. There are approximately 344,000 privately owned vehicles, and a total of 517,000 registered motor vehicles in the Republic of Cyprus. In 2006 extensive plans were announced to improve and expand bus services and restructure public transport throughout Cyprus(Sony VAIO VGN-SR49VN/H battery), with the financial backing of the European Union Development Bank. In 2010 the new revised and expanded bus network was implemented. In 1999, Cyprus had six heliports and two international airports: Larnaca International Airport and Paphos International Airport. Nicosia International Airport has been closed since 1974 and although Ercan airport was still in use it was only for flights from Turkey(Sony VAIO VGN-SR49D battery).

The main harbours of the island are Limassol and Larnaca, which service cargo, passenger, and cruise ships.

Communications

Main article: Communications in Cyprus

Cyta, the state-owned telecommunications company, manages most Telecommunications and Internet connections on the island. However, following the recent liberalisation of the sector, a few private telecommunications companies have emerged including MTN, Cablenet, OTEnet Telecom, Omega Telecom and PrimeTel(Sony VAIO VGN-SR49D/Q battery). In the Turkish-controlled area of Cyprus, three companies are also present. These are Turkcell, Vodafone and Turk Telekom.

Demographics

Ethnographic map of Cyprus showing the distribution of the population during the 1960 census.

Cyprus general hospital

Population growth (numbers for the entire island, excluding in recent years some 150,000 Turkish settlers residing in Northern Cyprus).

Population structure

Main article: Demographics of Cyprus

It has traditionally been accepted that Greek Cypriots form up to 80%, Turkish Cypriots 18% (not including Turkish settlers), and Christian minorities (including Maronites, Latin Catholic and Armenians) 2% of the Cypriot population(Sony VAIO VGN-SR49D/J battery).

According to the first population census after the declaration of independence, carried out in December 1960 and covering the entire island, Cyprus had a total population of 573,566; of whom 442,138 (77.1%) were Greeks, 104,320 (18.2%) Turkish, and 27,108 (4.7%) others(Sony VAIO VGN-SR48J battery).

Due to the inter-communal ethnic tensions between 1963 and 1974, an island-wide census was regarded as impossible. Nevertheless, the Greek Cypriots conducted one in 1973, without the Turkish Cypriot populace. According to this census, the Greek Cypriot population was 482,000. One year later, in 1974, the Cypriot government's Department of Statistics and Research estimated the total population of Cyprus at 641,000(Sony VAIO VGN-SR48J/J battery); of whom 506,000 (78.9%) were Greeks, and 118,000 (18.4%) Turkish. After the partition of the island in 1974, Greeks conducted four more censuses: in 1976, 1982, 1992 and 2001; these excluded the Turkish population which was resident in the northern part of the island.

According to the Republic of Cyprus's latest estimate, in 2005, the number of Cypriot citizens currently living in the Republic of Cyprus is around 871,036 In addition to this the Republic of Cyprus is home to 110,200 foreign permanent residents and an estimated 10,000–30,000 undocumented illegal immigrants currently living in the south of the island(Sony VAIO VGN-SR48J/B battery).

According to the 2006 census carried out by Northern Cyprus, there were 256,644 (de jure) people living in Northern Cyprus. 178,031 were citizens of Northern Cyprus, of whom 147,405 were born in Cyprus (112,534 from the north; 32,538 from the south; 371 did not indicate what part of Cyprus they were from); 27,333 born in Turkey; 2,482 born in the UK and 913 born in Bulgaria. Of the 147,405 citizens born in Cyprus(Sony VAIO VGN-SR46TD/B battery), 120,031 say both parents were born in Cyprus; 16,824 say both parents born in Turkey; 10,361 have one parent born in Turkey and one parent born in Cyprus.

In 2010, the International Crisis Group estimated that the total population of Cyprus was 1.1 million, of which there was an estimated 300,000 residents in the north, perhaps half of whom were either born in Turkey or are children of such settlers. One source claims that the population in the north has reached 500,000, 50% of which are thought to be Turkish settlers or Cypriot-born children of such settlers(Sony VAIO VGN-SR46MD/B battery).

The village of Pyla in the Larnaca District is the only settlement in the Republic of Cyprus with a mixed Greek and Turkish Cypriot population.

Y-Dna haplogroups are found at the following frequencies in Cyprus : J (43.07% including 6.20% J1), E1b1b (20.00%), R1 (12.30% including 9.2% R1b), F (9.20%), I (7.70%), K (4.60%), A (3.10%). J, K, F and E1b1b haplogroups consist of lineages with differential distribution within Middle East, North Africa and Europe while R1 and I are typical in West European populations(Sony VAIO VGN-SR45T/W battery).

Outside Cyprus there is a significant and thriving Greek Cypriot diaspora and Turkish Cypriot diaspora in the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, the United States, Greece and Turkey.

Religion

Main article: Religion in Cyprus

Religion in Cyprus

Almost all Greek Cypriots are members of the autocephalous Greek Orthodox Church of Cyprus, whereas most Turkish Cypriots are adherents of Sunni Islam. According to Eurobarometer 2005, Cyprus is one of the most religious countries in the European Union, alongside Malta, Romania, Greece, and Poland. The first President of Cyprus, Makarios III, was an archbishop(Sony VAIO VGN-SR45T/P battery).

Lefkara's orthodox church in Troodos Mountains (left) and Hala Sultan Tekke near Larnaca Salt Lake (right).

Given the special legal status of the Church of Cyprus, the country is also one of only six EU states to have an established state church, alongside Finland (Finnish Evangelical Lutheran Church and Finnish Orthodox Church), Denmark (Danish National Church), Greece (Church of Greece), Malta (Roman Catholic Church), and within the United Kingdom: England (Church of England) and Scotland (Church of Scotland) (Sony VAIO VGN-SR45T/B battery) . In addition to the Greek Orthodox and Muslim communities, there are also small Hindu, Sikh, Bahá'í, Jewish, Protestant (including Pentecostal), Catholic (including Latin Rite and Maronite) and Armenian Apostolic communities in Cyprus.

Hala Sultan Tekke, situated near the Larnaca Salt Lake, is considered by some secular orientalists as the third holiest site in Sunni Islam and an object of pilgrimage for both Muslims and Christians(Sony VAIO VGN-SR45H battery).

The current leader of the Greek Orthodox Church of Cyprus is Archbishop Chrysostomos II. He is known for his right-wing nationalist views, branding for example, illegal immigrants as "‘interlopers’ who do not belong on the island" and admits espousing several other political ideas of Cyprus' National People’s Front (ELAM) (Sony VAIO VGN-SR45H/P battery).

According to the 2001 census carried out in the Government controlled area, 94.8% of the population are Christian Orthodox, 0.9% Armenians and Maronites, 1.5% Roman Catholics, 1.0% Church of England, and 0.6% Muslims. The remaining 1.3% adhere to other religious denominations or did not state their religion(Sony VAIO VGN-SR45H/N battery).

Languages

The country has two official languages: Greek and Turkish. Armenian, Cypriot Maronite Arabic and Romani are also recognized as minority languages. In addition to these languages – according the Eurobarometer by European Commission – 76% of the population of Cyprus speak English, 12% speak French, and 5% speak German(Sony VAIO VGN-SR45H/B battery).

Education

For a complete list, see List of universities and colleges in Cyprus.

Faneromeni School is the oldest all-girl primary school in Cyprus.

Cyprus has a highly developed system of primary and secondary education offering both public and private education. The high quality of instruction can be attributed to a large extent to the above-average competence of the teachers but also to the fact that nearly 7% of the GDP is spent on education which makes Cyprus one of the top three spenders of education in the EU along with Denmark and Sweden(Sony VAIO VGN-SR41M/W battery).

State schools are generally seen as equivalent in quality of education to private-sector institutions. However, the value of a state high-school diploma is limited by the fact that the grades obtained account for only around 25% of the final grade for each topic, with the remaining 75% assigned by the teacher during the semester(Sony VAIO VGN-SR41M/S battery), in a minimally transparent way. Cypriot universities (like universities in Greece) ignore high school grades almost entirely for admissions purposes. While a high-school diploma is mandatory for university attendance, admissions are decided almost exclusively on the basis of scores at centrally administered university entrance examinations that all university candidates are required to take(Sony VAIO VGN-SR41M/P battery).

The majority of Cypriots receive their higher education at Greek, British, Turkish, other European and North American universities. It is noteworthy that Cyprus currently has the highest percentage of citizens of working age who have higher-level education in the EU at 30% which is ahead of Finland's 29.5%. In addition 47% of its population aged 25–34 have tertiary education, which is the highest in the EU(Sony VAIO VGN-SR3CW/B battery). The body of Cypriot students is highly mobile, with 78.7% studying in a university outside Cyprus.

Culture

Typical Cypriot architecture in old part of Nicosia, Cyprus

The culture of Cyprus is divided between the two distinct cultures of Greek and Turkish Cypriots. Each community maintains its own culture, linked to the cultures of Greece and Turkey, and there is little cultural interchange between the two groups. The Greek culture first has been present on the island since antiquity(Sony VAIO VGN-SR39XN/S battery). The Turkish culture arrived with the invasion of the Ottoman Empire in 1570, and it was under this rule that the divide between the two communities became prominent and encouraged by government policies. The British did nothing to change this, leaving the island in its divided state with no unified culture(Sony VAIO VGN-SR39VN/S battery).

Art

Aphrodite; Greek goddess of love, beauty and sexuality is said to be born in Cyprus.

The art history of Cyprus can be said to stretch back up to 10,000 years, following the discovery of a series of Chalcolithic period carved figures in the villages of Khoirokoitia and Lempa and the island is also the home to numerous examples of high quality religious icon painting from the Middle Ages(Sony VAIO VGN-SR39D battery). Cypriot architecture was heavily influenced by French Gothic and Italian renaissance introduced in the island during the era of Latin domination (1191–1571).

In modern times Cypriot art history begins with the painter Vassilis Vryonides (1883–1958) who studied at the Academy of Fine Arts in Venice. Arguably the two founding fathers of modern Cypriot art were Adamantios Diamantis (1900–1994) who studied at London's Royal College of Art and Christopheros Savva (1924–1968) who also studied in London, at St Martins School of Art(Sony VAIO VGN-SR39D/Q battery). In many ways these two artists set the template for subsequent Cypriot art and both their artistic styles and the patterns of their education remain influential to this day. In particular the majority of Cypriot artists still train in England although art schools in Greece are also popular and local art institutions such as the Cyprus College of Art, University of Nicosia and the Frederick Institute of Technology are becoming more popular(Sony VAIO VGN-SR39D/J battery).

One of the features of Cypriot art is a tendency towards figurative painting although conceptual art is being rigorously promoted by a number of art “institutions” and most notably the Nicosia Municipal Art Centre. Municipal art galleries exist in all the main towns and there is a large and lively commercial art scene(Sony VAIO VGN-SR38 battery). Cyprus was due to host the international art festival Manifesta in 2006 but this was cancelled at the last minute following a dispute between the Dutch organizers of Manifesta and the Cyprus Ministry of Education and Culture over the location of some of the Manifesta events in the Turkish sector of the capital Nicosia(Sony VAIO VGN-SR38/Q battery).

Other notable Cypriot artists include Rhea Bailey, Mihail Kkasialos, Ioannis Kissonergis, Theodoulos Gregoriou, Helene Black, George Skoteinos, Kalopedis family, Nicos Nicolaides, Stass Paraskos, Arestís Stasí, Telemachos Kanthos, Konstantia Sofokleous and Chris Achilleos.

Music

National Orchestra of Cyprus at the International Day of Peace

Bouzouki, the mainstay of most Cypriot folk music(Sony VAIO VGN-SR38/P battery).

Main article: Music of Cyprus

The traditional folk music of Cyprus has several common elements with Greek, Turkish, and Arabic music including Greco-Turkish dances such as the sousta, syrtos, zeibekikos, tatsia, and kartsilamas as well as the Middle Eastern-inspired tsifteteli and arapie. There is also a form of musical poetry known as chattista which is often performed at traditional feasts and celebrations(Sony VAIO VGN-SR38/B battery). The instruments commonly associated with Cyprus folk music are the bouzouki (pictured), oud ("outi"), violin ("fkiolin"), lute ("laouto"), accordion, Cyprus flute ("pithkiavlin") and percussion (including the "toumperleki"). Composers associated with traditional Cypriot music include Evagoras Karageorgis, Marios Tokas, Solon Michaelides and Savvas Salides(Sony VAIO VGN-SR37TN/B battery).

Popular music in Cyprus is generally influenced by the Greek Laïka scene with several artists including Anna Vissi, Evridiki, and Sarbel earning widespread popularity in Cyprus, Greece and parts of the Middle East. Hip Hop, R&B and reggae are also very popular genres on the island and have been supported by the emergence of Cypriot rap and the urban music scene at Ayia Napa(Sony VAIO VGN-SR36GNS battery). Cypriot rock music and Éntekhno rock is often associated with artists such as Michalis Hatzigiannis and Alkinoos Ioannidis. Metal also has a small following in Cyprus represented by bands such as Armageddon(rev.16:16), Blynd, Winter's Verge and Quadraphonic(Sony VAIO VGN-SR35T/S battery).

Literature

Main article: Cypriot literature

Zeno of Citium, founder of the Stoic school of philosophy.

Ioannis Kigalas ( ca. 1622–1687) was a Nicosia born Greek Cypriot scholar and professor of Philosophy who was largely active in the 17th century.

Literary production of the antiquity includes the Cypria, an epic poem, probably composed in the late seventh century BCE and attributed to Stasinus. The Cypria is one of the very first specimens of Greek and European poetry. The Cypriot Zeno of Citium was the founder of the Stoic School of Philosophy(Sony VAIO VGN-SR35T/P battery).

Epic poetry, notably the "acritic songs", flourished during Middle Ages. Two chronicles, one written by Leontios Machairas and the other by Georgios Voustronios, cover the entire Middle Ages until the end of Frankish rule (4th century – 1489). Poèmes d'amour written in medieval Greek Cypriot date back from 16th century. Some of them are actual translations of poems written by Petrarch, Bembo, Ariosto and G. Sannazzaro(Sony VAIO VGN-SR35T/B battery). Many Cypriot scholars fled Cyprus at troubled times such as Ioannis Kigalas ( ca. 1622–1687) who migrated from Cyprus to Italy in the 17th century, several of his works have survived in books of other scholars.

Hasan Hilmi Efendi, a Turkish Cypriot poet, was rewarded by the Ottoman sultan Mahmud II and said to be the "sultan of the poems".

Modern literary figures from Cyprus include the poet and writer Kostas Montis, poet Kyriakos Charalambides, poet Michalis Pasiardis, writer Nicos Nicolaides, Stylianos Atteshlis, Altheides, Loukis Akritas and Demetris Th. Gotsis(Sony VAIO VGN-SR35M/B battery). Dimitris Lipertis, Vasilis Michaelides and Pavlos Liasides are folk poets who wrote poems mainly in the Cypriot-Greek dialect. Lawrence Durrell lived in Northern Cyprus from 1952 until 26 August 1956 and wrote the book Bitter Lemons concerning his time there which won the second Duff Cooper Prize in 1957. The majority of the play Othello by William Shakespeare is set on the island of Cyprus(Sony VAIO VGN-SR35G/S battery). Cyprus also figures in religious literature such as the Acts of the Apostles according to which the Apostles Barnabas and Paul preached on the island.

Cinema

The Cypriot cinema was born much later than the cinema of other countries and in the last decades the first coordinated steps have been taken to create a distinct Cypriot cinematography. The main reason for this delay was the belated entry of Cyprus into international society as an independent state in 1960, and the dramatic events that followed which left the island divided in a Greek and Turkish zones that remain divided(Sony VAIO VGN-SR35G/P battery).

During the late 60s and early 70s production showed a richer crop of films. George Filis produced and directed Gregoris Afxentiou, Etsi Prodothike i Kypros (Cyprus Betrayal), and the Mega Document.

Cinematographic production in Cyprus received a boost in 1994 with the establishment of the Cinema Advisory Committee. The annual amount currently set aside (2000) in the national budget stands at Cy Pounds 500,000 (about 850,000 Euros) (Sony VAIO VGN-SR35G/B battery). In addition to government grants Cypriot co-productions are eligible for funding from the Eurimages Fund, a Council of Europe institution financing European film co-productions. To date four feature-length films in which a Cypriot was executive producer have received funding from Eurimages. The first was I Sphagi tou Kokora (1992) which has been completed in 1996(Sony VAIO VGN-SR33H battery), Hellados (And the trains fly to the sky, 1995), which is currently in the post-production phase and O Dromos gia tin Ithaki (The Road to Ithaka, 1997) of Costas Demetriou which was premiered in March 2000. In September 1999, To Tama (The Promise) of Andreas Pantzis has also received funding from the Eurimages Fund.

Cuisine

Orange (fruit) in a tree in Omodos. The Mediterranean climate of Cyprus is suitable for orange production(Sony VAIO VGN-SR33H/S battery).

Main article: Cypriot cuisine

Halloumi cheese originated in Cyprus and was initially made during the Medieval Byzantine period, subsequently gaining popularity throughout the Middle-East. Halloumi (Hellim) is commonly served sliced, either fresh or grilled, as an appetiser.

Modern Cypriot style tavern in Sirena Bay, Paralimni

Seafood and fish dishes of Cyprus include squid, octopus, red mullet, and sea bass. Cucumber and tomato are used widely in salads. Common vegetable preparations include potatoes in olive oil and parsley, pickled cauliflower and beets(Sony VAIO VGN-SR33H/P battery), asparagus and Taro. Other traditional delicacies of the island are meat marinated in dried coriander, seeds and wine, and eventually dried and smoked, such as lountza (smoked pork loin), charcoal-grilled lamb, souvlaki (pork and chicken cooked over charcoal), and sheftalia (minced meat wrapped in mesentery). Pourgouri (bulgur, cracked wheat) is the traditional carbohydrate other than bread, and is used to make the Cypriot delicacy koubes(Sony VAIO VGN-SR33H/B battery).

Fresh vegetables and fruits are common ingredients in Cypriot cuisine. Frequently used vegetables include courgettes, green peppers, okra, green beans, artichokes, carrots, tomatoes, cucumbers, lettuce and grape leaves, and pulses such as beans, broad beans, peas, black-eyed beans, chick-peas and lentils. The commonest among fruits and nuts are pears, apples, grapes, oranges, mandarines, nectarines, mespila, blackberries(Sony VAIO VGN-SR31M/S battery), cherry, strawberries, figs, watermelon, melon, avocado, lemon, pistachio, almond, chestnut, walnut, hazelnut.

Cyprus is also well known for its desserts, including lokum (also known as Turkish Delight) and Soutzoukos. This island has protected geographical indication (PGI) for its lokum produced in the village of Geroskipou(Sony VAIO VGN-SR29XN/S battery).

Sports

Petter Solberg driving his Citroën Xsara WRC in Cyprus Rally.

Marcos Baghdatis, Cypriot professional tennis player

Governing bodies of sports in Cyprus include the Cyprus Football Association, Cyprus Basketball Federation, Cyprus Volleyball Federation, Cyprus Automobile Association, Cyprus Badminton Federation, Cyprus Cricket Association and the Cyprus Rugby Federation(Sony VAIO VGN-SR29VN/S battery).

Football is by far the most popular spectator sport. The Cyprus League is nowadays considered as quite competitive and includes notable teams such as AC Omonia, APOEL FC, AEL Lemesos, Apollon FC, Anorthosis Famagusta FC, Nea Salamis Famagusta FC and AEK Larnaca FC. Stadiums or sports venues in Cyprus include the GSP Stadium (the largest in Cyprus), Tsirion Stadium (second largest) (Sony VAIO VGN-SR290NTB battery), Neo GSZ Stadium, Antonis Papadopoulos Stadium, Ammochostos Stadium and Makario Stadium. Cyprus, also has a football national team which in the last decade has evolved to a promising squad within the European rankings.

Apart from the main interest in football, Cyprus has exhibited certain accomplishments in other sports. Marcos Baghdatis is one of the most successful tennis players in international stage(Sony VAIO VGN-SR28/J battery). He was a finalist at the Australian Open in 2006, and reached the Wimbledon semi-final in the same year. Also Kyriakos Ioannou a Cypriot high jumper achieved a jump of 2.35 m at the 11th IAAF World Championships in Athletics held in Osaka, Japan, in 2007 winning the bronze medal. He was recently ranked as 3rd at international level and 2nd in Europe(Sony VAIO VGN-SR28/B battery).