What is the capital of Cyprus?

The capital of Cyprus is Nicosia.

What is the population of Cyprus?

Cyprus has a population of about 1.37 million, the #155 largest of 225 countries in YearMaps. Source: World Bank, 2025.

Cyprus covers 9,242 km², ranking #170 by area, with about 148 people per square kilometre.

Which countries border Cyprus?

Cyprus shares a land or maritime border with Turkey, United Kingdom, Israel.

What is the largest city in Cyprus?

Nicosia is the largest city in Cyprus, with a metropolitan population of about 224,300.

What is the highest mountain in Cyprus?

The highest summit recorded for Cyprus in YearMaps is Olympus at 1,951 m (6,401 ft). Summits on a border are counted for both countries.

Cyprus Map — Cities, Rivers & History

Interactive Map of Cyprus

7.4

Centred on Nicosia at 35.1667° N, 33.3666° E. Use the layer panel to switch on rivers, dams, ports, peaks and historical borders.

About Cyprus

Cyprus, officially the Republic of Cyprus, is an island country in the eastern Mediterranean Sea, located off the coast of the Levant mainland in West Asia. The island of Cyprus, which is the third largest and third most populous island in the Mediterranean, is divided along the United Nations Buffer Zone between the internationally recognised Republic of Cyprus and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, which is recognised only by Turkey. The south of the island also hosts the British sovereign military bases of Akrotiri and Dhekelia. The capital and largest city of Cyprus is Nicosia.

Cyprus was first settled by hunter-gatherers around 13,000 years ago, with farming communities emerging by 8500 BC. The late Bronze Age saw the emergence of Alashiya, an urbanised society closely connected to the wider Mediterranean world. Cyprus experienced waves of settlement by Mycenaean Greeks at the end of the 2nd millennium BC. Owing to its rich natural resources (particularly copper) and strategic position at the crossroads of Europe, Africa, and Asia, the island was subsequently contested and occupied by several empires, including the Assyrians, Egyptians, and Persians, from whom it was seized in 333 BC by Alexander the Great. Successive rule by the Ptolemaic Empire, the Classical and Eastern Roman Empire, Arab caliphates, the French Lusignans, and the Venetians was followed by over three centuries of Ottoman dominion (1571–1878). Cyprus was placed under British administration in 1878 pursuant to the Cyprus Convention and formally annexed by the United Kingdom in 1914.

The island's future became contested by its Greek and Turkish communities. Greek Cypriots sought enosis, or union with Greece, which became a Greek national policy in the 1950s. Turkish Cypriots initially advocated for continued British rule, then demanded the annexation of the island to Turkey, with which they established the policy of taksim: partitioning Cyprus and creating a Turkish polity in the north. Following nationalist violence in the 1950s, Cyprus was granted independence in 1960. The crisis of 1963–64 brought further intercommunal violence between the two communities, displaced more than 25,000 Turkish Cypriots into enclaves, and ended Turkish Cypriot political representation. On 15 July 1974, a coup d'état was staged by Greek Cypriot nationalists and elements of the Greek military junta. This action precipitated the Turkish invasion of Cyprus on 20 July, which captured the present-day territory of Northern Cyprus and displaced over 150,000 Greek Cypriots and 50,000 Turkish Cypriots.

Summary adapted from Wikipedia: Cyprus (CC BY-SA 4.0).

Geography and Climate of Cyprus

A former British colony, Cyprus became independent in 1960 after years of resistance to British rule. Tensions between the Greek Cypriot majority and Turkish Cypriot minority came to a head in December 1963, when violence broke out in the capital of Nicosia. Despite the deployment of UN peacekeepers in 1964, sporadic intercommunal violence continued and forced most Turkish Cypriots into enclaves throughout the island. In 1974, a Greek Government-sponsored attempt to overthrow the elected president of Cyprus was met by military intervention from Turkey, which soon controlled more than a third of the island. In 1983, the Turkish Cypriot administered area declared itself the "Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus" (TRNC), but it is recognized only by Turkey. A UN-mediated agreement to reunite Cyprus, the Annan Plan, failed to win approval from both communities in 2004. The most recent round of reunification negotiations was suspended in 2017 after failure to achieve a breakthrough. The entire island joined the EU in 2004, although the EU acquis -- the body of common rights and obligations -- applies only to the areas under the internationally recognized government and is suspended in the TRNC. However, individual Turkish Cypriots able to document their eligibility for Republic of Cyprus citizenship have the same legal rights accorded to citizens of other EU states.

Location: Middle East, island in the Mediterranean Sea, south of Turkey; note - Cyprus views itself as part of Europe; geopolitically, it can be classified as falling within Europe, the Middle East, or both.
Climate: Temperate; Mediterranean with hot, dry summers and cool winters.
Terrain: Central plain with mountains to north and south; scattered but significant plains along southern coast.
Highest point: Mount Olympus 1,951 m.
Lowest point: Mediterranean Sea 0 m.
Coastline: 648 km.
Land borders: Total: 156 km; border sovereign base areas: Akrotiri 48 km; Dhekelia 108 km.
Natural resources: Copper, pyrites, asbestos, gypsum, timber, salt, marble, clay earth pigment.
Land use: Agricultural land: 14% (2023 est.); arable land: 10.6% (2023 est.); permanent crops: 3.1% (2023 est.); permanent pasture: 0.2% (2023 est.); forest: 18.6% (2023 est.); other: 67.1% (2023 est.)
Natural hazards: Moderate earthquake activity; droughts.
Geographic note: The third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea (after Sicily and Sardinia)
Languages: Greek (official) 80.9%, Turkish (official) 0.2%, English 4.1%, Romanian 2.9%, Russian 2.5%, Bulgarian 2.2%, Arabic 1.2%, Filipino 1.1%, other 4.3%, unspecified 0.6% (2011 est.)
Religions: Eastern Orthodox Christian 89.1%, Roman Catholic 2.9%, Protestant/Anglican 2%, Muslim 1.8%, Buddhist 1%, other (includes Maronite Catholic, Armenian Apostolic, Hindu) 1.4%, unknown 1.1%, none/atheist 0.6% (2011 est.)
Ethnic groups: Greek 98.8%, other 1% (includes Maronite, Armenian, Turkish-Cypriot), unspecified 0.2% (2011 est.)
Economy: Services-based, high-income EU island economy; heavy tourism; sustained growth between recovery of national banking system and COVID-19 trade restrictions; high living standards; a known financial hub, its stock exchange functions as an investment bridge between EU-and EEU-member countries.

From the CIA World Factbook (public domain), archived edition of 2026-01-22. The Factbook is no longer updated, so figures reflect that edition.

Cyprus in Numbers

Population: 1.37 million
GDP: US$41.2 billion
GDP per person: US$41,783
Life expectancy: 81.8 years
Population growth: 0.91% a year
Population density: 147 per km²
Urban population: 66.7%
Surface area: 9,250 km²
Forest cover: 18.6%
Arable land: 10.4%
Access to electricity: 100.0%
Internet users: 89.6%

Indicators from World Bank Open Data (CC BY 4.0). The year under each figure is its reference year.

Cyprus in Depth

History

Hunter-gatherers first arrived on Cyprus around 13–12,000 years ago (11,000 to 10,000 BC), based on dating of sites like Aetokremnos on the south coast and the inland site of Vretsia Roudias. The arrival of the first humans coincides with the extinction of the 75 cm (2.46 ft) high Cypriot pygmy hippopotamus and 1 metre (3 ft 3 in) tall Cyprus dwarf elephant, the only large mammals native to the island. Neolithic farming communities emerged on the island by around 10,500 years ago (8500 BC).

Remains of an eight-month-old cat were discovered buried with a human body at a separate Neolithic site in Cyprus. The grave is estimated to be 9,500 years old (7500 BC), predating ancient Egyptian civilisation and pushing back the earliest known feline-human association significantly.

Geography

Cyprus is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after the Italian islands of Sicily and Sardinia, both in terms of area and population. It is also the world's 80th largest by area and world's 51st largest by population. It measures 240 kilometres (149 mi) long from end to end and 100 kilometres (62 mi) wide at its widest point. It lies between latitudes 34° and 36° N, and longitudes 32° and 35° E.

Economy

Cyprus' economy is dominated by the service sector, which employs around 82% of the country's workers as of 2026. Industry accounted for 16% of jobs and agriculture for 2%. By GDP, the biggest single sector was tourism (14% of GDP).

Cyprus was the wealthiest of the ten countries that joined the European Union in 2004 with a thriving services sector. However, the economy was damaged severely by the 2008 financial crisis and the Euro area crisis. In June 2012, the Cypriot government announced it would need €1.8 billion in foreign aid to support the Cyprus Popular Bank, and this was followed by Fitch downgrading Cyprus's credit rating to junk status.

Demographics

According to the Republic of Cyprus's website, the population in the government controlled areas was 918,100 at the 2021 Census, with the most populous district being Nicosia (38%), followed by Limassol (28%). The Nicosia Metropolitan area, consisting of seven municipalities, is the largest urban area on the island with a population of 255,309.

As per the first population census after independence, carried out in December 1960 and covering the entire island, Cyprus had a total population of 573,566, of whom 442,138 (77.1%) were Greeks, 104,320 (18.2%) Turks, and 27,108 (4.7%) others. The CIA World Factbook calculated that in 2001, Greek Cypriots comprised 77%, Turkish Cypriots 18%, and others 5% of the total Cypriot population.

Sections adapted from Wikipedia: Cyprus (CC BY-SA 4.0).

Cyprus: Key Facts

Key facts about Cyprus
Official languages	Modern Greek, Turkish
Head of state	Nicos Christodoulides
Head of government	Nicos Christodoulides
Form of government	republic, presidential system
Calling code	+357
Internet domain	.cy
Highest point	Mount Olympus
Lowest point	Mediterranean Sea
Established	16 August 1960

Facts from Wikidata Q229 (CC0).

History of Cyprus: Empires and States

The atlas records 23 polities whose mapped territory included part of Cyprus, from Greek Dark Ages in 1000 BCE to 2024 CE. They are listed in the order they first appear.

Polities that held Cyprus, in chronological order
Polity	Period here	Extent
Greek Dark Ages	1000–801 BCE	Nearly all
Phoenicia	800–531 BCE	A large part
Phoenician Empire	800–531 BCE	A large part
Greek City-States	800–308 BCE	Nearly all
Neo-Assyrian Empire	700–616 BCE	Nearly all
Phoenician Colonies	650–616 BCE	A large part
Twenty-sixth Dynasty of Egypt	550–501 BCE	Nearly all
Achaemenid Empire	500–332 BCE	Nearly all
Achaemenid Persian Empire	500–332 BCE	Nearly all
Ptolemaic Kingdom	307–31 BCE	Nearly all
The Macedonian Empire of Alexander	301–292 BCE	Nearly all
Roman Republic	50–32 BCE	Nearly all
The Roman Empire	30 BCE – 476 CE	Nearly all
Eastern Roman Empire	395–632 CE	Nearly all
The Byzantine Empire	395–1191 CE	Nearly all
The Umayyad Caliphate	656–691 CE	Nearly all
Cyprus Condominium	692–959 CE	Nearly all
Kingdom of Cyprus	1192–1491 CE	Nearly all
Republic of Venice	1492–1571 CE	Nearly all
The Ottoman Empire	1572–1879 CE	Nearly all
The British Empire	1880–1968 CE	Nearly all
Kingdom of Great Britain	1880–1968 CE	Nearly all
Republic of Cyprus	1961–2024 CE	Nearly all

Historical Maps of Cyprus

Cyprus on the world map in each year one of these states held it:

Derived by testing mapped cities against dated territorial polygons. Dates are when the polygons cover this place, not the polity's whole lifespan, and polities absent from the source dataset are not listed.

Visiting Cyprus

Cyprus (Greek: Κύπρος, Turkish: Kıbrıs) is an island in the eastern Mediterranean Sea, south of Turkey. It is one of the world’s oldest civilisations, with a history of over 11,000 years. Cyprus offers lots of archaeological sites, hiking trails through cedar forests, kilometres and kilometres of gorgeous beaches, and 300 days of sun a year.

Travel notes adapted from Wikivoyage: Cyprus (CC BY-SA 4.0).

Largest Cities in Cyprus

4 cities recorded. Ranked by metropolitan population. A port city's harbour is written up on the page of its sea.

Largest Cities in Cyprus
#	Name	Population	Region	Role
1	Nicosia	224,300	—	National capital
2	Lemosos	154,000	Limassol	Admin-1 capital
3	Larnaka	48,947	Larnaca	Admin-1 capital
4	Paphos	35,961	Paphos	Admin-1 capital

Highest Mountains in Cyprus

2 mountains recorded. Ranked by summit elevation above sea level. A summit on a border is listed under both countries.

Highest Mountains in Cyprus
#	Name	Elevation	Feet	Region
1	Olympus	1,951 m	6,401 ft	Europe
2	Selvili Tepe	1,023 m	3,356 ft	Europe

Selvili Tepe

Mountain · 1,023 m

Selvili Tepe is a mountain rising to 1,023 metres (3,356 ft) in Cyprus, in the Europe region. From PeakBagger.com, with kind permission..

Kyparissovouno (Greek: Κυπαρισσόβουνο, romanized: Kyparissovouno, Turkish: Selvili Tepe) is the highest peak of the unrecognised Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus at an altitude of 1,024 metres (3,360 ft), situated in the Kyrenia Mountains. It is located in the Kyrenia District.

Adapted from Wikipedia: Mount Selvili (CC BY-SA 4.0).

Elevation: 1,023 m (3,356 ft)
Global rank: #555 of 641 indexed
Region: Europe (#65)
Subregion: Mediterranean Sea
Country: Cyprus
Coordinates: 35.3201°, 33.1700°

Of the 641 named summits indexed in YearMaps, Selvili Tepe ranks #555 by elevation, below Carrauntoohil (1,038 m) and above Mont Nabeba (1,020 m).

Ranges:: Taurus Mountains (Asia), Lebanon Mountains (Asia)
Neighbouring summits:: Qurnat as Sawdā (3,088 m), Har Meron (1,208 m), Demirkazik (3,756 m)
Settlements below:: Nicosia (25 km), Larnaka (62 km), Lemosos (73 km)

View on the live map

More about Selvili Tepe

Selvili Tepe: Key Facts

Key facts about Selvili Tepe
Mountain range	Kyrenia Mountains

Facts from Wikidata Q6578056 (CC0).

Ports in Cyprus

6 ports recorded. Ranked by approach channel depth, the figure that limits which ships can call. Harbours link to their write-up on the page of the sea or coast they lie on.

Ports in Cyprus
#	Name	Channel Depth	Class	Sea	Max Vessel
1	Kyrenia	42.1 m	Very Small	Eastern Mediterranean	medium vessels
2	Dhekelia	38.4 m	Very Small	Eastern Mediterranean	medium vessels
3	Famagusta	38.4 m	Small	Eastern Mediterranean	medium vessels
4	Larnaca	31.1 m	Small	Eastern Mediterranean	medium vessels
5	Limassol	27.4 m	Small	Eastern Mediterranean	medium vessels
6	Xeros	5.5 m	Very Small	Eastern Mediterranean	large vessels

UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Cyprus

3 World Heritage Sites recorded. Listed by year of inscription, earliest first. Sites shared with another country appear under each.

UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Cyprus
#	Name	Inscribed	Type	Criteria
1	Paphos	1980	Cultural	(iii) (vi)
2	Painted Churches in the Troödos Region	1985	Cultural	(ii) (iii) (iv)
3	Khirokitia	1998	Cultural	(ii) (iii) (iv)

Largest Islands of Cyprus

1 island recorded. Ranked by mapped area. An island divided between countries is listed under each, with the area of the whole island.

Largest Islands of Cyprus
#	Name	Area	Type
1	Cyprus	9,234 km²	Island

Cyprus

Island · 9,234 km²

Cyprus is an island in Asia (Mediterranean Sea), covering an estimated 9,234 km².

Cyprus, officially the Republic of Cyprus, is an island country in the eastern Mediterranean Sea, located off the coast of the Levant mainland in West Asia. The island of Cyprus, which is the third largest and third most populous island in the Mediterranean, is divided along the United Nations Buffer Zone between the internationally recognised Republic of Cyprus and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, which is recognised only by Turkey. The south of the island also hosts the British sovereign military bases of Akrotiri and Dhekelia. The capital and largest city of Cyprus is Nicosia.

Cyprus was first settled by hunter-gatherers around 13,000 years ago, with farming communities emerging by 8500 BC. The late Bronze Age saw the emergence of Alashiya, an urbanised society closely connected to the wider Mediterranean world. Cyprus experienced waves of settlement by Mycenaean Greeks at the end of the 2nd millennium BC.

Adapted from Wikipedia: Cyprus (CC BY-SA 4.0).

Feature class: Island
Mapped extent: 9,234 km²
Size rank: #155 of 445 islands
Region: Asia
Subregion: Mediterranean Sea
Coordinates: 35.0436°, 33.2305°

Summits:: Selvili Tepe (1,023 m), Qurnat as Sawdā (3,088 m), Har Meron (1,208 m)
Ranges:: Taurus Mountains (Asia), Lebanon Mountains (Asia)
Settlements:: Nicosia (18 km), Larnaka (40 km), Lemosos (45 km)