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Kivisili is a village situated in the Larnaca district, two kilometers south of Alethriko village and fifteen kilometers southwest of the town of Larnaca. The origin of the name is obscure. Some claim that the village used to belong to someone called Chiusull. Instead of Kivisili, Turkish Cypriots always used to call the village Civisil. However, in 1958 they adopted the alternative name Cevizli, meaning “place with walnuts.” Although the village is known for its almonds, there was no walnut cultivation there. Thus, the reason for choosing Cevizli must have been because of the similarity between this name and Civisil. 

 

 

As can be seen in the above chart, the village was mixed in 1831, but it seems that all the, Christians left the village prior to the 1891census. Throughout the British period, the population of the village fluctuated but gradually increased, rising from 137 persons in 1891 to 231 in 1960.

Displacement:

In 1963 and 1964 the village served as a reception centre for displaced Turkish Cypriot families who had evacuated their villages. Richard Patrick recorded 195 displaced Turkish Cypriots still living in the village in 1971, although the number of displaced persons was much higher in 1964-68. The majority of the displaced Turkish Cypriots derived from Softades/Düzova(373), Aplanta(344), Perviola/Bahçalar(369), Kalavasos(355) and Anafotida/Akkor(349). The second conflict-related displacement took place during the 1974 war, when in September of that year most of the Turkish Cypriots from the village fled to the north of the divide. Many also sought refuge in the British bases until they were resettled in the north. The remaining Turkish Cypriots were evacuated by UNFICYP in the autumn of 1975. The majority of the Kivisili/Cevizli Turkish Cypriots were resettled in Trikomo(198) village.

Current Inhabitants:

Currently the village is inhabited by displaced Greek Cypriot families from the north. The 2001 census puts the village’s population at 231.  

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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)