Kythrea (Kythréa)
Kythrea (Κυθρέα or Κυθραία; Değirmenlik) is a small town in Cyprus, 10 km northeast of Nicosia. Kythrea is under the de facto control of Northern Cyprus.
Kythrea is situated near the ancient Greek city-kingdom of Chytroi, which was founded by Chytros, son of Alexander and grandson of the grandson of the Athenian King Akamas. According to one tradition, the name Kythrea derives from Chytroi (Χύτροι > *Χυτρέα > Κυθρέα). According to another tradition, it derives from the name of the Greek Ionian island Kythera, from where millstones were transferred to Kythrea's watermills. In Delphic Theorodochoi inscription, one inscription mentions the Chytroi.
The small town was watered for millennia by the Kefalovrysos spring; however, shortly after the 1974 Turkish invasion, the water stopped flowing. Other forms of the name include Chytri, Cythraia, Cythereia, Cythroi, Chytrides, Chytros and Chytria.
With the spread of Christianity in Cyprus, Chytroi became a bishopric. The first bishop, whose name is known is Pappus, is mentioned in the Life of Epiphanius of Salamis as having been bishop for 58 years of the "miserable town of Chytria", and as having died a martyr at some unspecified date, which must have been under either the pagan emperors Licinius or Maximinus II, or the Arian Constantius II. The acts of the Council of Chalcedon (451) show that Bishop Photinus was represented there by his deacon Dionysius, and those of the Second Council of Nicaea in 767 that Bishop Spyridon attended in person.
Contemporary documents are lacking concerning Demetrianus, whom Henri Grégoire described as perhaps the most obscure of the local saints of Cyprus. The medieval Leontios Machairas is the earliest writer to make even a brief mention of his name. According to the oldest Life of Demetrianos, published in the 18th century, he became bishop in around 885, was captured by Arabs and taken to Egypt with many of his faithful, but by his prayers obtained the liberation of all.
No longer a residential bishopric, Chytri is today listed by the Catholic Church as a titular see.
Kythrea is a remarkable archaeological area. One outstanding statue discovered in the area is the bronze statue of Roman Emperor Septimius Severus, exhibited in the Cyprus Museum in Nicosia.
In the Middle Ages, Kythrea hosted flourmills that belonged to the King of Cyprus, powered by its water springs. At the end of the 13th century, flour produced in the Kythrea mills provided the supply for the production of bread in the capital, Nicosia.
The Kythrea municipality was established in 1915.
Kythrea is situated near the ancient Greek city-kingdom of Chytroi, which was founded by Chytros, son of Alexander and grandson of the grandson of the Athenian King Akamas. According to one tradition, the name Kythrea derives from Chytroi (Χύτροι > *Χυτρέα > Κυθρέα). According to another tradition, it derives from the name of the Greek Ionian island Kythera, from where millstones were transferred to Kythrea's watermills. In Delphic Theorodochoi inscription, one inscription mentions the Chytroi.
The small town was watered for millennia by the Kefalovrysos spring; however, shortly after the 1974 Turkish invasion, the water stopped flowing. Other forms of the name include Chytri, Cythraia, Cythereia, Cythroi, Chytrides, Chytros and Chytria.
With the spread of Christianity in Cyprus, Chytroi became a bishopric. The first bishop, whose name is known is Pappus, is mentioned in the Life of Epiphanius of Salamis as having been bishop for 58 years of the "miserable town of Chytria", and as having died a martyr at some unspecified date, which must have been under either the pagan emperors Licinius or Maximinus II, or the Arian Constantius II. The acts of the Council of Chalcedon (451) show that Bishop Photinus was represented there by his deacon Dionysius, and those of the Second Council of Nicaea in 767 that Bishop Spyridon attended in person.
Contemporary documents are lacking concerning Demetrianus, whom Henri Grégoire described as perhaps the most obscure of the local saints of Cyprus. The medieval Leontios Machairas is the earliest writer to make even a brief mention of his name. According to the oldest Life of Demetrianos, published in the 18th century, he became bishop in around 885, was captured by Arabs and taken to Egypt with many of his faithful, but by his prayers obtained the liberation of all.
No longer a residential bishopric, Chytri is today listed by the Catholic Church as a titular see.
Kythrea is a remarkable archaeological area. One outstanding statue discovered in the area is the bronze statue of Roman Emperor Septimius Severus, exhibited in the Cyprus Museum in Nicosia.
In the Middle Ages, Kythrea hosted flourmills that belonged to the King of Cyprus, powered by its water springs. At the end of the 13th century, flour produced in the Kythrea mills provided the supply for the production of bread in the capital, Nicosia.
The Kythrea municipality was established in 1915.
Map - Kythrea (Kythréa)
Map
Country - Cyprus
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| Flag of Cyprus | |
The earliest known human activity on the island dates to around the 10th millennium BC. Archaeological remains include the well-preserved ruins from the Hellenistic period such as Salamis and Kourion, and Cyprus is home to some of the oldest water wells in the world. Cyprus was settled by Mycenaean Greeks in two waves in the 2nd millennium BC. As a strategic location in the Eastern Mediterranean, it was subsequently occupied by several major powers, including the empires of the Assyrians, Egyptians and Persians, from whom the island was seized in 333 BC by Alexander the Great. Subsequent rule by Ptolemaic Egypt, the Classical and Eastern Roman Empire, Arab caliphates for a short period, the French Lusignan dynasty and the Venetians was followed by over three centuries of Ottoman rule between 1571 and 1878 (de jure until 1914).
Currency / Language
| ISO | Currency | Symbol | Significant figures |
|---|---|---|---|
| EUR | Euro | € | 2 |
| ISO | Language |
|---|---|
| EN | English language |
| EL | Greek language |
| TR | Turkish language |