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Agios Chariton is a small Turkish Cypriot village in the Famagusta district, located ten kilometers north of Marathovounos/Ulukışla on the south side of the Five Finger mountain range. The name means “Saint Chariton,” and chariton means “grace” in Greek. Turkish Cypriots used to call the village Ayharita but in 1958 changed the name to Ergenekon. In ancient Turkish mythology, Ergenekon was the name of a secret valley. According to the legend, Ergenekon valley with its surrounding high mountains was for centuries a secret hideaway for a small number of Turks who had survived a Mongolian massacre and were enclaved there. During their enclavement, their numbers multiplied until the valley became too small for them. In order to get out of this enclave they melted an iron mountain. After they were released they began the conquest of the world under the guidance of a grey wolf named Asena.

 

 

Throughout the British period the village was almost solely inhabited by Turkish Cypriots. During the first half of the 20^th century, the village’s population steadly increased from 56 in 1901, to 114 in 1946. The first Republic of Cyprus census of 1960 put the village’s population at 119.

Displacement:

From its original population no one was displaced; however, the village served as a transitory reception centre for some displaced Turkish Cypriots in 1964. From 1964 to 1974, it was administratively part of the Turkish Cypriot Kiados(Chatos)/Serdarlı (135) enclave, for which it served as an outpost. Political geographer Richard Patrick estimated the village’s population at 116 in 1971, a small drop from 119 in the 1960 census.

Current Inhabitants:

Currently the village is mainly inhabited by its original villagers. Due to the migration of youth to find jobs in the cities and abroad, the village’s population has declined considerably, from 116 in 1971 to 96 in 2006.  

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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.
• Hart-Davis, C. H (1932), “Report of the Census of 1931,” Nicosia: Cyprus Government Printing Office.
• 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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• Mavrogordato, Alexander (1901), “Report and general abstracts of the census of 1901, taken on the 1st April, 1901,” Nicosia: Government Printing Office.
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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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• St John-Jones, L. W., 1983. “The Population of Cyprus: Demographic Trends and  Socio-Economic Influences” (with a foreword by W. H. Morris-Jones), Maurice  Temple, Smith Limited, London.
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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)