Folk music on Cyprus is similar to the folk music of Greece, and includes dances like the sousta, syrtos, zeimbekikos, dachas, and the kartsilamdhes.
The music of Cyprus includes a variety of classical, folk and popular genres. Recent trends have seen the rise of Ayia Napa, a resort, as a home for UK garage music, similar in its evolution to that of the island Ibiza.
The 1960 Cypriot Constitution provided for a presidential system of government with independent executive, legislative, and judicial branches, as well as a complex system of checks and balances, including a weighted power-sharing ratio designed to protect the interests of the Turkish Cypriots. The executive, for example, was headed by a Greek Cypriot president and a Turkish Cypriot vice president, elected by their respective communities for 5-year terms and each possessing a right of veto over certain types of legislation and executive decisions.
Cyprus has a well-developed system of primary and secondary education. The majority of Cypriots earn their higher education at Greek, Turkish, British, or American universities, while there are also sizeable emigrant communities in the United Kingdom and Australia. Private colleges and state-supported universities have been developed by both the Turkish and Greek communities.
In 1974, following a coup by the Greek backed National Guard and the arrival of Turkish troops (claiming their authority was as one of the 3 international guarantors of Cyprus), the Turkish Cypriots formally set up their own institutions with a popularly elected president and a Prime Minister responsible to the National Assembly exercising joint executive powers. In 1983, the Turkish Cypriots declared an independent "Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus" (TRNC). In 1985, they adopted a constitution and held elections--an arrangement recognized only by Turkey.
The metal "copper" in the english languages stems from the Latin word Cyprus. Large deposits of copper are found on the island.
Since 1974, Cyprus has been divided de facto into the government-controlled southern two-thirds of the island and the Turkish-Cypriot northern one-third. The Government of the Republic of Cyprus has continued as the internationally recognized authority; in practice, its power extends only to the Greek Cypriot-controlled areas.
The U.S. embassy in Nicosia sponsors a popular pavilion for American products at the annual Cyprus International State Fair, hosts the Commercial Awards dinner, and organizes other events to promote U.S. products throughout the year. Total U.S. exports to Cyprus were about $700 million in 1997 (compared with $670 million in 1996), making the U.S. Cyprus' number-one supplier of total imports for the third year in a row. Exports include American tobacco and tobacco products, automatic data processing and other machinery, and cereals. Principal U.S. imports from Cyprus consist of clothing, footwear, steel tubes and pipes, dairy products, and various food items.
EU law is currently not applied in the Turkish occupied north. The Union has promised to aid and to work towards lifting the trade sanctions imposed by the European Court, but they have ruled out diplomatic recognition of northern Cyprus.
Both greek and turkish cypriots use the violin as the main solo instrument, accompanied by laouto (form of lute) for greek cypriots and ud for turkish cypriots. Accordion, percussion and recorder (pithkiavli) are also used.
Greek language is predominantly spoken in the south, Turkish language in the north. This delineation of languages is true only in the present period, due to the post-1974 division of the island, which involved an expulsion of Greek Cypriots from the north and the analoguous move of Turkish Cypriots from the south. Historically however, Greek (its Cypriot dialect) was spoken by nearly 82% of the population, which was evenly distributed along the entire area of Cyprus, north and south. Similarly, Turkish speakers were evenly distributed. English is widely used.
The central plain (Mesaoria) with the Kyrenia/Girne and Pentadactylos/Besparnak mountains to the north and the Troodos mountain range to the south and west. There are also scattered but significant plains along the southern coast. The climate is temperate, Mediterranean with hot, dry summers and cool, variably rainy winters.
Cyprus is geographically in Western Asia. Historically, Cyprus has always been a bridgehead between Europe and Asia, with interchanging periods of Levantine, Anatolian, and Greek influences.
Cyprus (in Greek Kypros and in Turkish Kibris) is an island in the eastern Mediterranean Sea, 113 kilometres (70 miles) south of Turkey and around 120 km west of the Syrian coast.
The Republic of Cyprus is the internationally recognised government of the island, and it controls the southern two-thirds of the island. Almost all foreign governments and the United Nations recognise the sovereignty of the Republic of Cyprus over the whole island of Cyprus.