KAİMAKLİ (BUYUK)

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Kaimakli is a neighborhood located in the northeastern section of the Greek Cypriot municipality of Nicosia, bordering the Green Line which divides the capital. It was incorporated into the city in 1968. Kaimakli derives from “kaymak” in Turkish, meaning “clotted cream.” Kaimakli is also known as Beuyuk Kaimakli. Beuyuk or Büyük means “large” in Turkish. This qualifier was used to differentiate the neighborhood from the village of Omorfita, also known to both Greek and Turkish Cypriots as Küçük, or small, Kaimakli. In the nineteenth century Kaimaklı was also known as Mesokelepsi. 
 
Historical Population:

The neighborhood has always been predominantly inhabited by Greek Cypriots, with a tiny Turkish Cypriot population that fluctuated between 40 and 60 persons. By 1960 there were only four Turkish Cypriots living in the village. In contrast, the total population of the neighborhood grew throughout the British period, rising from 1,093 in 1891 to 7,066 in 1960.

Displacement:

The first conflict-related displacement took place in 1958 when most of the Turkish Cypriot inhabitants of Kaimaklı left the neighborhood during the intercommunal disturbances. Many of them moved to the walled city of Nicosia. The second displacement took place in 1974, when many of the neighborhood’s Greek Cypriot inhabitants temporarily fled their homes until a ceasefire was announced.

Current Inhabitants:

Currently the village is mainly inhabited by its original Greek Cypriot inhabitants, displaced Greek Cypriots from the north, and other Greek Cypriots who have bought houses and settled there. The last census of 2001 puts the total population of the neighborhood at 10,864.   


 
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