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Prastio, or Prastion-Morphou, is a village located in the Nicosia district, six kilometers southwest of Morphou/Güzelyurt. Some claim that Prastio is a corruption of “prastij,” thus in Greek means “hamlet.” On the other hand, geographer Jack Goodwin proposes that the name could be a derivation from the ancient Greek, “pro-asti” meaning “towards the city.” In 1975, Turkish Cypriots changed the name to Aydınköy, meaning “bright village” or “enlightened village.” The Ottoman name of the village as recorded in the 1831 census was Prasko or Praşkü.

 

 

 

In the Ottoman census of 1831, the village is recorded as mixed, although Christians (Greek Cypriots) constituted almost 87% of the population. In 1891 there were no Turkish Cypriots living in Prastio. Throughout the British period the population of the village increased significantly, rising from 182 in 1891 to 545 in 1960.

Displacement:

In August 1974, the Greek Cypriots fled the village from the advancing Turkish army. Currently, like most of the displaced Greek Cypriots, the Greek Cypriots of Prastio are scattered throughout the island’s south, with large pockets in towns. The number of the Prastio Greek Cypriots who were displaced in 1974 was around 600 (545 in the 1960 census).

Current Inhabitants:

Currently the village is mainly inhabited by displaced Turkish Cypriots from Malia/Bağlarbaşı(270), Paramali/Çayönü(274), Kivides/Alsandık(267) and Silikou(280) in the Limassol district; Flasou/Flasu(034) in the Nicosia district; Chrysochou/Altıncık(299), Agios Ioannis/Aydın(285), Arodes/Kalkanlı(294), Agios Georgios/Kavaklı(284), Souskiou/Susuz(337), Marona/Uluçam(323), Pelathousa/Karaağaç(330), Makounta/Yakacık(319), Anadiou/Görmeli(290), Agios Nikolaos/Esentepe(287), Kidasi/Ceyhan(310) in the Paphos district. There are also displaced persons from Kokkina/Erenköy(050) and non-displaced Turkish Cypriots from Lefka/Lefke(060). In addition, amongst the village’s current inhabitants there are also some farmers from Turkey, who originate from places such as Adana, Kayseri, Silifke, Adıyaman and Alaşehir. They settled in the village in the late 1970s. During the orange-picking seasons, the village also hosts many seasonal workers from Turkey. They are lodged in tents or prefabricated accommodations specifically erected for them, usually located in the orange orchards where they work. The 2006 Turkish Cypriot census puts the village’s population at 1,154.  

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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.
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• 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.
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• Standing Cypriot Commission for the Standardization of Geographical Names (2007), “Οδηγος Τυποποιησης Ονοματων (Guide to Standardized Names),” Nicosia: Ministry of Education and Culture.
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• Republic of Cyprus (1984), “Census of population 1982,” Nicosia: Department of Statistics and Research, Ministry of Finance.
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• Yorgancıoğlu,  Oğuz: Kıbrıs’ta Türkçe Yer Adları ve Veriliş Yöntemleri Üzerine Bir Araştırma Kıbrıs Araştırmaları Dergisi, Cilt : 2, Sayı : 3, Yıl : 96

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)