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Agios Symeon or Aysimiyo (for Turkish Cypriots) village is situated on the Karpasia/Karpaz peninsula, only four miles southeast of Yialousa/Yeni Erenköy village and two miles northeast of Vathylakkas/Derince. It is located on the road to Galinoporni/Kaleburnu. It was always exclusively populated by Turkish Cypriots. The name Agios Symeon means “Saint Simon” in Greek. Turkish Cypriots adopted another name, Avtepe, meaning “hill for hunt” in 1958.

 

 

As can be seen from the chart above, Agios Symeon was always a Turkish Cypriot village with only an occasional small number of Greek Cypriots living in the village for short periods of time. During most of the British period the village’s population growth pattern fluctuated. Due to undetermined reasons, the village’s population showed a considerable decline in 1901, dropping from 271 persons to 180. The population was quite stagnant until 1946 when it showed some recovery, increasing from 198 to 240. Population growth continued until 1960, when it reached 333 persons.

Displacement:

From its original population no one was displaced; however, the village served temporarily as a reception centre for displaced Turkish Cypriots in 1958 and 1964. From 1964 to 1974, it was administratively part of the Turkish Cypriot enclave of Galatia. According to geographer Richard Patrick, in 1970 there were no displaced Turkish Cypriots residing in the village.

Current Inhabitants:

Currently the village is mainly occupied by its original inhabitants. Due to its isolated location and distance from the cities, most of the youth tend to migrate to cities or abroad. The population continuously declined after 1974, dropping from an estimated 350 persons to 305 in 1978 and then to 150 in 1996. The 2006 Turkish Cypriot census puts Avtepe’s population at 151.  

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  Perry, Frederic W., 1884. Report on the Census of Cyprus 1881, Eyre and Spottiswoode, London.
• Republic of Cyprus, 1961. “Census of Population and Agriculture, 1960: Volume I: Population by Location, Race, and Sex,” Nicosia
• TRNC 2006 census preliminary results can be found at:  www.devplan.org
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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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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)