From the Ottoman period, the town was inhabited both by Muslims and Christians. Christians always constituted the majority of the population. As can be seen from the Ottoman census of 1831, Christians (including foreign residents such as consuls) comprised almost 63% of the population. This percentage increased significantly during the British period, rising to 75% in 1891. The same percentage prevailed during the first half of the 20th century. The British census records began to separate the Greek Cypriot population from the total Christian population only in 1946. As a result, the 1946 census put the Greek Cypriot population at 71%; that number declined to 66% in 1960, when the island gained its independence. It is important to note that in 1960 there were also 1,786 British and 879 other ethnic groups (Armenians, Maronites, Latins, etc.) residing in the town, making it a very cosmopolitan place.
Displacement:
No one was displaced from the town during the 1950s emergency years. However, during the intercommunal strife of 1963-64, many Turkish Cypriots from nearby villages or suburbs fled their homes and sought refuge in the Turkish Cypriot quarter of the town. For instance, Richard Patrick claims that, after fighting broke out in Larnaca in December 1963, about 100 Turkish Cypriots were forced from their homes and became displaced within the Turkish Cypriot quarter. During this fighting, Turkish Cypriots evacuated the villages of Anglisides(350), Alethriko(348), Anafotida(349) and Aplanda(344). Patrick also recorded that in 1971 there were still 150 Turkish Cypriot displaced persons residing in the Turkish Cypriot neighborhood of the city, and that this enclave comprised the quarters of Skala and Tuzla. He explains that both were strongly “fortified by Fighter positions” and both were in turn “surrounded by National Guard posts.”
On 20 July 1974, in response to the Turkish military offensive in the island, fierce fighting began in and around the Turkish quarter of the town. The quarter was attacked from all sides, and Turkish Cypriot Fighters returned fire. After twenty-fours hours and 79 casualties, the Turkish Cypriot Fighters surrendered, and all men of fighting age were taken as prisoners of war. Almost 900 men were held in empty school buildings for 66 days, before the prisoner exchange in which the men were released and sent to the north. While the men were being held hostage, many of their families attempted to escape to the north either by purchasing transit—an often dangerous enterprise—or by taking refuge in the British Sovereign Base Area. Others were escorted to the north by UNFICYP in August 1975. Most of the Turkish Cypriot displaced persons from Larnaca later settled in the Trikomo/Yeni İskele(198) town and vicinity, though many were also resettled in the Famagusta(140), Kyrenia(236) and Karavas/Alsancak(226). The total number of the Turkish Cypriots displaced from Larnaca in 1975 was approximately 4,500 (4,058 in the 1960 Cypriot census).
Current Inhabitants:
Currently the city is inhabited by the original Greek Cypriots of Larnaca and many displaced Greek Cypriots who fled from the north of the divide. Most of the empty Turkish houses were allocated for the use of these Greek Cypriot displaced families. Many refugee housing complexes also were constructed near the city by 1980. The last census of 2001 put Larnaca’s population at 46,666.
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