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Lakkia, or Latsia, is a suburb of Nicosia with a separate municipality. Lakkia, once a small village on the southeast outskirts of Nicosia, is today one of the largest and most populous suburbs of the capital. According to the Latsia municipality website, “The name “Latsia” is in fact pronounced “Lachia,” but it is conventionally written Latsia. The name derives from “lachin” (meaning a small well or shallow “lakkos”, i.e. a hole). Lachia comes from the numerous lachouthkia (i.e. small shallow holes) present in the area, used for irrigation and the hydration of the animals” (http://www.latsia.org.cy).
Historical Population:
As can be seen from the chart above, although Latsia is currently home to over 12,000 people, it was only a tiny hamlet in 1881 (17 persons). According to the Latsia municipality website, the village was developed out of a former çiftlik (farm) owned by a Muslim landlord called Köroğlu who decided to sell it to the local villagers. The same source also claims that the first settlers who bought most of the farmland from the above-mentioned landlord were Greek Cypriot farmers from Lythrodontas village, twenty-one kilometers southwest of Nicosia. In the second half of the 19th century, some of these new owners began to live in Latsia. Between 1921 and 1931, more Lythrodontas villagers bought land in Latsia and moved to the village. However, soon after, due to World War II and migration, the population of the village significantly declined. During this period, many Cypriots migrated to the US, Australia, the UK and the Middle East to seek better jobs and a better life. From 1946 until Independence in 1960, the population increased again because of the close proximity of Latsia to the capital city of Nicosia, which offered many job opportunities (www.latsia.org.cy/english/history.shtm).
Displacement:
There was no displacement during the 1963-64 intercommunal fighting, nor was there any in 1974. However the village became a very important reception center for many displaced Greek Cypriot families arriving from the north of Cyprus as they fled from the advancing Turkish army.
Current Inhabitants: Currently the town is mainly inhabited by its original Greek Cypriot villagers and displaced Greek Cypriots who moved there after the 1974 war. According to the Latsia municipality, In order to house the displaced families, the government built three large refugee housing estates in Latsia: “Ayios Eleftherios (with 796 housing units), Apostolos Andreas (with 236 housing units) and Apostolos Loukas (with 126 housing units). Moreover, the Archangelos Michael self-housing estate (two states) was financed by the government (247 housing units).” The municipality estimates that 76-82% of Latsia’s population can be traced to 125 villages in the north of the divide. This, in combination with the general trend of people from villages close to Nicosia to move to its suburbs, resulted in a population explosion that fueled Latsia’s rapid growth, turning it from a village into a town. The last census of 2001 puts the total population of the village at 12,195 (www.latsia.org.cy/english/history.shtm).
REFERENCES
Books and Reports:
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Colonial Office (1893), “Cyprus: Report on the census of Cyprus, taken 6th April 1891,” Mediterranean, No. 39. London: Colonial Office.
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Department of Statitstics and Research, 1997. Estimates of Turkish Cypriots and Settlers from Turkey, Ministry of Finance [Republic of Cyprus], Nicosia.
- Fehmi, Hasan (2003), “Güney’de Kalan Değerlerimiz,” Lefkoşa (Nicosia): Özyay Matbaacılık.
- Fellahoğlu, Esat (2010), “Ulusal Direnişte Baf Köyleri,” İstanbul: Bayrak Matbaacılık.
- Giray, Halil: KKTC Yerleşim Birimleri, Yürürlükteki ve Eski İsimler Listesi KKTC İskân Bakanlığı : KKTC Coğrafi İsimler Kataloğu : (Cilt – I and II), Lefkoşa.
- Goodwin, Jack C. (1984), “An Historical Toponymy of Cyprus (Forth edition),” Nicosia (copy number 6).
- Hart-Davis, C. H (1922), “Report and general abstracts of the census of 1921, taken on the 24th April, 1921,” London: Waterlow & Sons.
- Hart-Davis, C. H (1932), “Report of the Census of 1931,” Nicosia: Cyprus Government Printing Office.
- Hatay, Mete, (2005). “Beyond Numbers: An Inquiery into the Political Integration of the Turkish ‘Settlers’ in Northern Cyprus,” PRIO/Cyprus Centre Report 4/2005, Nicosia/Oslo, PRIO.
- Hill, Sir George, (1952). A History of Cyprus, Vol. IV., Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
- Ioannides, Christos P., 1991. “In Turkey’s Image: The Transformation of Occupied Cyprus into a Turkish Province,” Aristide D. Caratzas, New York.
- KKTC Başbakanlık Devlet Planlama Örgütü Müsteşarlığı, “15 Aralık 1996 Genel Nüfus Sayımı Sonuçları (Özet), 26, November 1997,” Nicosia.
- Mavrogordato, Alexander (1901), “Report and general abstracts of the census of 1901, taken on the 1st April, 1901,” Nicosia: Government Printing Office.
- Mavrogordato, Alexander (1912), “Report and general abstracts of the census of 1911, taken on the 2nd April, 1911,” London: Waterlow & Sons.
- Menardos, Simos (2001), Τοπωνημικαι και Λαογραφικαι Μελεται (Topographical and Folkloric Studies), Nicosia: Centre for Scientific Studies
Perry, Frederic W., 1884. Report on the Census of Cyprus 1881, Eyre and Spottiswoode, London.
- Republic of Cyprus, 1961. “Census of Population and Agriculture, 1960: Volume I: Population by Location, Race, and Sex,” Nicosia
- TRNC 2006 census preliminary results can be found at: www.devplan.org
TRNC Prime Ministry State Planning Organisation Statistics and Research Department, Census of Population: Social and Economic Characteristics of Population, December 15, 1996, TRNC Prime Ministry, Nicosia, 1999.
- Standing Cypriot Commission for the Standardization of Geographical Names (2007), “Οδηγος Τυποποιησης Ονοματων (Guide to Standardized Names),” Nicosia: Ministry of Education and Culture.
- Ministry of Finance (1973), “Micro-Census (April 1973) Population by Village and Ethnic Group, Volume I.” Nicosia: Department of Statistics and Research.
- Özad, Murat Hüsnü (2002), “Baf ve Mücadele Yılları,” Lefkoşa (Nicosia): Akdeniz Haber Ajansı Yayınları.
- Patrick, Richard (1976), “Political Geography and the Cyprus Conflict: 1963-1971,” Department of Geography, Faculty of Environmental Studies, University of Waterloo.
- Percival, D.A. (1949), “Census of population and agriculture 1946 report,” Nicosia: Cyprus Government Printing Office.
- Republic of Cyprus (1962), “Census of population and agriculture, 1960,” Nicosia: Government Printing Office.
- Republic of Cyprus (1984), “Census of population 1982,” Nicosia: Department of Statistics and Research, Ministry of Finance.
- Republic of Cyprus (2003), “Census of population 2001,” Nicosia: Department of Statistics and Research, Ministry of Finance.
- St John-Jones, L. W., 1983. “The Population of Cyprus: Demographic Trends and Socio-Economic Influences” (with a foreword by W. H. Morris-Jones), Maurice Temple, Smith Limited, London.
- T.C. Başbakanlık Devlet Arşivleri Genel Müdürlüğü (2000), “Osmanlı İdaresinde Kıbrıs (Nüfus-Arazi Dağılımı ve Türk Vakıfları),” Ankara: Osmanlı Arşivi Daire Başkanlığı Yayın No: 43.
- Yorgancıoğlu, Oğuz: Kıbrıs’ta Türkçe Yer Adları ve Veriliş Yöntemleri Üzerine Bir Araştırma Kıbrıs Araştırmaları Dergisi, Cilt : 2, Sayı : 3, Yıl : 96
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