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Faleia or Falya (by Turkish Cypriots) is located on the southwest foothills of the Troodos mountain range, twenty kilometers northeast of Paphos (Ktima) and three kilometers southeast of Lemona. Faleia means “explosion” in Greek but Goodwin suggests that the name might derive from the word vallies, meaning “valley,” and that the place was once called Ballia. The Turkish Cypriots adopted the alternative name Gökçebel in 1958. The origin of the name is obscure.

 

 

According to the Ottoman census of 1831, the village was solely inhabited by Muslims. This trend did not change during the British period. Throughout the British period, the total population of the village constantly fluctuated.

Displacement:

No one was displaced during the tensions of the late 1950s. However, after intercommunal fighting began in late 1963, the Faleia Turkish Cypriots decided to evacuate the village and seek refuge in Axylou(297) on 7 February 1964. They returned to their village after three months, and the village served as a Turkish Cypriot enclave until 1975. During and immediately after the war in 1974, more than 100 of the Faleia Turkish Cypriots fled the village clandestinely, making their way through forests and mountains to the northern part of the divide. The remaining 88 persons were taken to the north under UNFICYP escort on 30 August 1975. Many of the Faleia villagers were resettled in Agios Ermolaos/Şirinevler(209). Others were settled in places such as Kyra/Mevlevi(055), Lysi/Akdoğan(167), Karavas/Alsancak(226) and Famagusta(140). The total number of the Faleia Turkish Cypriots who were displaced after 1974 was approximately 250 (247 in 1973 census).

Current Inhabitants:

After the departure of the Turkish Cypriots, for a long time no one settled in the village. The 2001 census put the village’s population at four. Apart from a few shepherds who use some of the buildings, the rest of the village is in ruins.  

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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)