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Varisha is a village situated in the Tylliria region, in the northern foothills of the Troodos mountains. It is located eight kilometers west of Xeros in the northern part of the Green Line. According to Goodwin, Varisha means “to become tired” in Cypriot Greek. This village is now situated within the UN buffer zone. Although there are no Turkish Cypriots currently living in the village, they changed its name to Şirinköy, meaning “a cute village” in Turkish.

 

 

According to the Ottoman census of 1831, the village was exclusively inhabited by Muslims. However, the second British census recorded that only 35% of the village’s population was Muslim. The British documents demonstrate that many of the villagers (re)converted to Christianity in 1882. Following this mass (re)conversion, the village’s Muslim population declined significantly. While the Christian population of the village increased steadily during the 20^th century, the Muslim population continued to decline until, by 1931, only two elderly Turkish Cypriots remained. The total population of Varisha/Şirinköy increased steadily from 79 in 1901 to 223 in 1960.

Displacement:

No one was displaced from this village during the intercommunal strife of the 1960s. However, in 1974 all of its inhabitants fled the village from the advancing Turkish army. Currently, like many Greek Cypriot refugees, the villagers of Varisha are scattered around south Cyprus, with pockets in towns.

Current Inhabitants:

The village is only used by UNFICYP.   

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Websites:

• http://www.cyprus-village.com/ (for the villages)
• http://news.karpasha.com/
• http://human-rights-archaeology.blogspot.com/
• http://kypros.org/Occupied_Cyprus/ (for the villages in the north)