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Sinta, or Sinde, was a Turkish Cypriot village located in the Famagusta district. It is situated in the center of the Mesaoria plain, midway between Vatili and Prastio. The meaning of the name is obscure. In 1958, Turkish Cypriots adopted the alternative name İnönü. It has several meanings: it was the location of an important battle in the 1921 Greco-Turkish war; is the surname of Turkey’s first prime minister; and is also a place name in Anatolia. 

 

As can be seen from the chart above, in the Ottoman census of 1831, Muslims (Turkish Cypriots) constituted the only inhabitants of the village. Throughout the British period the village was solely inhabited by Turkish Cypriots, apart from a handful of Greek Cypriots who appear in the records at various points. During the 20^th century, the village’s population increased considerably, from 362 in 1901 to 803 in 1960.

Displacement:

From its original population no one was displaced; however, the village served as a reception centre for displaced Turkish Cypriots in 1964. From 1964 to 1974, it was administratively part of the Turkish Cypriot enclave of Mora/Meriç(071). Geographer Richard Patrick estimated the village’s population at 880 in 1971, a rise from 803 in 1960. He also claimed that there were twelve displaced Turkish Cypriots still living in Sinta in 1971.

Current Inhabitants:

Currently the village is mainly inhabited by its original villagers. Some displaced Turkish Cypriots from surrounding villages in the 1960s have also remained in the village, and some Turkish families from Turkey chose to move to the village after 1975. Recently some Turkish Cypriot returnees from England have chosen Sinta/İnönü as a location to build homes and settle. The 2006 Turkish Cypriot census puts the population at 933.  

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• Fehmi, Hasan (2003), “Güney’de Kalan Değerlerimiz,” Lefkoşa (Nicosia): Özyay Matbaacılık.
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• Hart-Davis, C. H (1922), “Report and general abstracts of the census of 1921, taken on the 24th April, 1921,” London: Waterlow & Sons.
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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.
• Hill, Sir George, (1952). A History of Cyprus, Vol. IV., Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
• Ioannides, Christos P., 1991. “In Turkey’s Image: The Transformation of Occupied Cyprus into a Turkish Province,” Aristide D. Caratzas, New York.
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• Menardos, Simos (2001), Τοπωνημικαι και Λαογραφικαι Μελεται (Topographical and Folkloric Studies), Nicosia: Centre for Scientific Studies
  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
  TRNC Prime Ministry State Planning Organisation Statistics and Research Department, Census of Population: Social and Economic Characteristics of Population, December 15, 1996, TRNC Prime Ministry, Nicosia, 1999.
• Standing Cypriot Commission for the Standardization of Geographical Names (2007), “Οδηγος Τυποποιησης Ονοματων (Guide to Standardized Names),” Nicosia: Ministry of Education and Culture.
• Ministry of Finance (1973), “Micro-Census (April 1973) Population by Village and Ethnic Group, Volume I.” Nicosia: Department of Statistics and Research.
• Özad, Murat Hüsnü (2002), “Baf ve Mücadele Yılları,” Lefkoşa (Nicosia): Akdeniz Haber Ajansı Yayınları.
• Patrick, Richard (1976), “Political Geography and the Cyprus Conflict: 1963-1971,” Department of Geography, Faculty of Environmental Studies, University of Waterloo.
• Percival, D.A. (1949), “Census of population and agriculture 1946 report,” Nicosia: Cyprus Government Printing Office.
• Republic of Cyprus (1962), “Census of population and agriculture, 1960,” Nicosia: Government Printing Office.
• 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)