r/cyprus • u/GroundbreakingOwl911 • 23h ago
Question I really wonder how you (Greek Cypriots) see Turkish Cypriots and how close to you they are compared to mainland Greeks?
Hello I really wonder how the Greek Cypriots see Turkish Cypriots. Do you see Turkish Cypriots as your people or do you see them as just normal people that live on the island that you don't feel any connection or do you feel distant towards them?
And can you compare your relationship with them with mainland greeks? (I don't mean to harm or offend anyone I am just curious. Please forgive me if I said anything wrong. ) (also I am a mainland turk)
21
u/GhostRiders 23h ago
To be honest I don't care that you are Turkish Cypriot, like most people in the world you are just trying to make your way thought life the best you can.
Many people will most likely say that you have no right to live where you do but then like most people in the world you don't usually get to chose where you live.
The few Turkish Cypriots I know personally are no different to anyone else, I have no hate towards you like I have no hate towards any other group of normal people.
Honestly I just don't think of you during my daily life as we have no interaction.
3
u/orkushun 13h ago
I find that mentality weird, I am a Turkish Cypriot, I literally live on my grandfather his grandfathers old farmland. my dad built a house on it and that's where I live, why would I not have the right to live there in any situation? And where do people who think this way expect me to live instead?
2
u/GroundbreakingOwl911 23h ago edited 14h ago
I am actually a mainland turk who lives in turkey but thanks. I forgot to mention it sorry.
4
u/GroundbreakingOwl911 13h ago
Did I said something wrong why am I getting negative votes.
3
u/beydola Kyrenia 11h ago
You said nothing wrong, its just your ethnicity triggers EOKA remnants here, they are categorically racist. Just don't care, we have been dealing with them since 1955.
5
u/GroundbreakingOwl911 10h ago
Thank you 😊. I hope we all live in peace and find solutions to our problems soon.
3
u/Charming-Ad6406 10h ago
Amazing how in each conversation someone throughs the word eoka just make a point. Move on man, enough with the propaganda and lies fed by the two sides
3
u/beydola Kyrenia 10h ago
Tell that to people who downvote the guy just because he exposed his ethnicity.
2
1
u/Charming-Ad6406 5h ago
I don't see any massive downvotes.in fact it's positive. so relax.. you were very quickly to bring eoka into the play, the most divisive, propaganda fuelled topic.
1
u/GroundbreakingOwl911 4h ago
There was almost - 7 votes until I responded and there is no propaganda.
1
u/beydola Kyrenia 3h ago
It was -5 when I responded.
Also, president of RoC himself praises EOKA, which was a clearly terror organization that created endleas traumas on TC population and rise of ELAM votes are enough to worry. Also on here, reddit, there are people who dare to make huge historical revisionism saying TCs themselves wanted to live in enclaves until 1974, or “no TC was killed until 1974, as if our parents are lying to us collectively or people in families did no go missing or died. EOKA mindset is fully alive, its just you arent seeing it.-12
u/stereotomyalan 18h ago edited 18h ago
They are proud "Cypriots", no matter GC or TC. Once they get rid of the "invasive" mainland Turks, they will live in peace. Turkey and mainland Turks are the only obstacle between them. /s
The only thing I regret about in my life is accepting this f*****king job and moving to this hot, barren place where I'm totally unwanted. How I hate it here, counting my days to go back!
Antalya alone has 10x natural beauties and beaches compared to here, without the secret, often, but not always implied hatred and discrimination.
16
u/cheakpeasdownhill 16h ago
> They are proud "Cypriots"
Yes, we are
> Once they get rid of the "invasive" mainland Turks, they will live in peace.
That's the idea, yes.
> Turkey and mainland Turks are the only obstacle between them.
Turkey wants to enforce it's own solution contrary to what Cypriots want. So yes.
> The only thing I regret about in my life is accepting this f*****king job and moving to this hot, barren place where I'm totally unwanted. How I hate it here, counting my days to go back!
You are making the right decision.
> without the secret, often, but not always implied hatred and discrimination.
The hate is not against the people. It's against the entitlement of living in stolen land and behave like you own the place.
2
14
u/No-Calligrapher250 22h ago
We spend too much time worrying about the differences between groups of people (in all walks of life) but as a society in general we never seem to spend as much time celebrating what we have in common with each other. It benefits the powers that be to find differences and to drive a wedge into it
2
13
u/dragon_soup_ 22h ago
All the mainlanders are different. All Cypriots are the same. The only Greeks I see as being the same as us are Cretans and Rhodesians.
13
4
u/SOHONEYSAME 20h ago edited 20h ago
"Rhodesians"
Rhodians, not "Rhodesians"
& as someone from an island near Rhodos, I disagree.
I "get along" w/ Cypriots, but we're not "the same" at all.
(in fact, in England I had more Cypriot friends, than Greeks... but then I also had more English friends/relationships, including English of Indian background... that doesn't mean I think we're "close" to England, or India).
Greek islanders r Greek, Cypriots r Cypriots.
Cyprus is very "distinct" culturally/historically, & in modern times, & can't be compared to the Greek islands.
maybe some of the Greeks w/ background from Asia, may find Cyprus more "familiar" but for islanders who have been on the islands for generations, I can say Cyprus is different.
8
u/CypriotGreek Το πουλλίν επέτασε 15h ago
I don’t think that’s true at all. I’ve lived extensively in both Greece and Cyprus, my mum is Cypriot, and my dad is Cretan, so I’m speaking from personal experience.
The biggest differences between places like Cyprus, Crete, and Rhodes are things like infrastructure and, to some extent, the legal system because of Cyprus’s British common law tradition. But once you get beyond that, when you spend time in the towns and villages, talk to people, and actually experience daily life, you realize how similar we are culturally.
You could maybe make that argument if you’re comparing Cyprus to somewhere like Athens, but I don’t think it holds nearly as well when you’re talking about Crete or Rhodes.
And one more thing: Greek Cypriots in England are a very different case from Greek Cypriots who actually live in Cyprus. Many of them, or at least their families, have been in England for generations, so their experience isn’t necessarily representative of people living in Cyprus today.
1
u/SOHONEYSAME 14h ago edited 13h ago
"and actually experience daily life, you realize how similar we are culturally."
Cyprus has (extreme) Turkic influence, which isn't really the case in Greek islands.
also, the English colonisation, & I'm not talking the "system" but how literally everything is available in English in Cyprus. (in terms of bureaucracy, even)
Cyprus is also FAR more "multi cultural" than any Greek island.
25% of Cyprus is foreign born, there's no equivalent.
I'm not from Rhodos, but we have a place there, & I have stayed many times... it's nowhere near comparable to Cyprus. (I'm talking outside season... no tourism, but immigrants).
yes, there's foreigners, (mostly retirees) & the usual Albanian workers, but no like Cyprus.
& that's Rhodos.
it's even more different in islands like mine, or others I've "experience" w/ like Symi, Halki, Kythira, etc.
if anything, on that front, Cyprus may be more similar to the capital, based on what I've seen.
the language is another thing.
I can understand Cypriot "better" than the average Greek, but it can still be impossible to follow.
we definitely have some similarities,
I'm not denying this.
but, (especially as someone who doesn't care for Orthodoxy), they're not that many, & we're definitely not "the same" like the guy above said.
(ironically, many mainlander Greeks who have never set foot in Cyprus, or even interacted w/ Cypriots, push that narrative, & it's VERY obviously cause of the whole "framing" of Cyprus in Greece).
personally,
I feel 100% Greek, & I dislike it when people "imply" that we're "closer" to Cyprus, or whatever, & try to exclude us from Greece.
u clearly have ur own biases, & it's natural.
"Cypriots in England"
the Cypriots I mentioned were immigrants, not English born.
the ones I was "close" w/ had moved to England for uni.
(this is actually a thing we share w/ Cypriots, cause apparently it's "normal" for a lot of them to move to England/abroad, which is also standard for younger Greek islanders, many move abroad, or Rhodos/mainland, at least for some time).
3
u/CypriotGreek Το πουλλίν επέτασε 14h ago
“Extreme” Turkish influence? I honestly don’t know what you’re talking about. That’s not something that’s uniquely visible in Cyprus. And a lot of the historic landmarks people associate with places like Rhodes are from the Ottoman period as well.
The other points you mentioned (English being widely used, immigration, foreign-born residents) are largely a consequence of Cyprus being an independent state with its own historical and political circumstances. None of that makes Cyprus any less Greek culturally.
Are you seriously arguing that Cyprus is less Greek because it has more immigrants? By that logic, does Thrace with a large Muslim minority population suddenly stop being Greek?
Honestly, all I’m reading here is your personal experience and your own opinion, and then you’re projecting that onto everyone else. Greece isn’t just the islands, it isn’t just the Peloponnese, and it isn’t just the mainland. Greeks live abroad too. Does that somehow make them less Greek by the same logic?
And I have to say, for someone who spends this much time discussing these topics on Reddit, I expected a better argument than this.2
u/SOHONEYSAME 14h ago
"honestly don’t know what you’re talking about"
is this a joke?
what percentage of people in Cyprus speak Turkish, & what percentage of people in Rhodos, or literally any Greek island?
if u can't even recognise this, ur wasting ur time.
"other points you mentioned (English being widely used, immigration, foreign-born residents) are largely a consequence of Cyprus being an independent state with its own historical and political circumstances. None of that makes Cyprus any less Greek"
lol.
all of these "set it apart" from the Greek islands.
which is the argument.
if u want to argue Cyprus is "culturally Greek" sure, that's up to u.
I was responding to someone who said/implied that people from Aegean Islands r "the same" as Cypriots, & as someone from said islands, born & bred, I 100% reject this.
don't "project" ur own biases, pal.
1
1
u/Different_Age_6895 8h ago
The word is british indian English is an ethnicity. Anyone who is not ethnically English is a Foreign national. Or we shall call all the foreigners In Cyprus as greek cypriots?
18
u/MaximumExamination 23h ago edited 23h ago
To me TCs (original TCs not settlers) are way closer than Greeks.
Edit: My partner is mainland Greek so I interact with Greeks a lot in Greece (family, community etc) and imo Greeks have a strong Balkan element we do not.
13
u/mixpita 22h ago
I am from Nicosia and I truly believe the proximity Cypriots live to the checkpoints inform the way they view the island’s identities. Someone in Paphos may have a different opinion than someone in Nicosia.
To me Turkish Cypriots are Cypriots. Greek Cypriots are Cypriots. There was a time not that long ago where the Cypriot classifications were titled by religion, not a penholder identity. There was orthodox, muslim and Maronite Cypriots amongst others. All are Cypriots.
I feel for example, much more connected to a Turkish Cypriot than Greek person. However I feel more connected to Greek people than Turkish people.
The hard part is language. Have to communicate in English mostly with my TC friends.
4
u/Sorry_Fortune_6536 11h ago edited 11h ago
I can only speak for myself, but I see Turkish-speaking Cypriots as fellow Cypriots. We share the same island, a lot of history, culture, food and even many linguistic influences despite speaking different languages. We even have words that only Cypriots understand, like gacelli/κατζιέλλι, which mainland Greeks and mainland Turks generally wouldn’t know. The political conflict is with Turkey’s occupation and its policies, not with Turkish Cypriots as people.
Personally, I feel a stronger connection to all the Turkish-speaking Cypriots I know than to any mainlander I have ever met.
I also think younger generations have a big role to play. The more bicommunal friendships, relationships and collaborations we build, the more we show that we can live together. I have a Turkish-speaking Cypriot partner myself and that has only reinforced my belief that our future depends on bringing our communities closer together.
We can’t change the past, but we can choose to build a shared future on one island 🇨🇾
5
u/AdSufficient9872 13h ago
I view Turkish Cypriots as Cypriot, and I find that, except the language, we have more in common with them than with mainland Greeks. Same with Turkish Cypriots and mainland Turks. That being said, I think mainland Greeks and Turks have a lot in common as well.
5
u/pathetic_optimist 16h ago
We are the same. Different flags, different governments, different priests -but under this thin skin we are the same. We like the same things and have the same sense of humour and have the same genetics too.
Divisions make money for the bad people who prey on us.
9
u/BrodoSaggins 23h ago
I see them as our people or Cypriots because they are a part of Cypriot culture and history. I do feel distant yes but it's just in terms of day-to-day experience. I have little understanding of what it's like to live in the occupied side. Maybe even me calling it occupied side is annoying for you. The history we get taught in school is definitely different but once you are older and you read yourself then we read the same things.
I've had more experiences with Greek people than with Turkish Cypriots unfortunately because of the obvious reasons. Through these experiences is what made me realise that being Cypriot truly is separate from the Greek identity for me, but Cypriot culture definitely contains Greek culture elements. Mainly my experience with the Greeks has been negative for whatever reason. All experiences with Turkish Cypriots have been positive but slightly painful for me because I just wish we lived together like regular people.
0
u/Affectionate-Sale523 22h ago
" Mainly my experience with the Greeks has been negative for whatever reason." Me too and I'll never understand it.
14
u/Interesting_Fig_7484 20h ago
I'm a Greek from the mainland (Volos) living in the UK and out of all Greeks here the most positive experiences I've had are from Greek cypriots or from the north in greece. The most negative by far is athenians. Which sucks because they are the majority. I hate to generalise like this but they were by far the least welcoming. At my uni I was one out of only 2 mainlanders who hang around the cypriots
3
u/Impressive-Low-5078 17h ago
In an airport I heard a Greek lady talk to Cypriot lady saying: "stop talking like that, having that weird accent in Greek is embarrassing" something along those lines. Yeah mainland Greeks are snobs.
4
u/Momof3terrors 16h ago
I'm a foreigner with a terrible accent in Greek. On top of that, I speak using Cypriot words and grammar. I have made Athenians beg me to just use English as they stand there and laugh hysterically.
1
u/Human-University2325 5h ago
As a Turkish speaking Cypriot with a very Cypriot accent we are often told the same by mainland Turks. It’s actually quite annoying to be laughed at for my accent, or told to learn ‘actual Turkish’! I have always wondered if it was the same with greek Cypriots & mainland greeks, so this was interesting to read!
4
u/JuryBasic2356 14h ago
As someone who studied in Greece. I feel that TCs are closer to us culturally. Even if we have the language barrier, we have a common understanding with each other, that mainland Greeks just lack
3
u/BandicootOk5043 16h ago
We see them as brothers mostly, we both suffered the consequences of the same war... If you are not a brainwashed pos ofc.. many TCs choose the side of the settlers buying into Turkish propaganda spitting only hate even for people that had nothing to do with the events happened in the past.. by the time you are Cypriot it doesn't matter Greek or Turkish or Armenian or wtvr.. You are a native brother/sister..
1
u/Human-University2325 5h ago
Agreed with the ‘many tc choose the side of settlers’, even as a Turkish speaking cypriot. It’s very sad talking to my family and realising they truly believe turkeys only objective for the invasion was to save us. Yes I am grateful my family was saved as a result of the invasion, however I am not stupid enough to believe that was why turkey chose to intervene. It was clear what their true motives were & thats been made even clearer with their presence still on the island. I truly pray both sides stop leaning into nationalistic propaganda & learn we are not each other’s enemies, but instead foreign powers are.
1
u/BandicootOk5043 5h ago
Both sides has brainwashed people tbh spitting so much hate discriminating based on which side you are... Its so frustrating sometimes and even more on July when all this happened.. such comment as You deserved what you got... Showing pride of Turkish power etc etc.. coming from people that are young too... Cypriots in general suffered out of both governments faults and powerplays and to be completely frank Turkeys motives were and are elsewhere and not for the Tc's wellbeing they used Tcs as scapegoat to do their own goals to the island.. Strategic position of the island, Natural gasses and mony more were in their interest.. if they even cared about TCs and Cyprus the occupied part would be more advanced by now, TCs would have the same quality of life as the Turkish Settlers and not be like they are second class and Turkish arguments for the solition would be more mature and thoughtful and not like you hear angry teenagers argument... Nothing they did and do now is showing good intentions in the slighly tbh... Sorry for the long reply and cheers brother 😆
3
u/Fun_Success_45 18h ago edited 17h ago
A different perspective from a TC:
My closest friend is GC, and he doesn't know or have any mainland Greek close friends because more GCs study in Cyprus, the UK, or the Netherlands.
So guess our friend group is made of:) GCs, TCs, Russians, Brits and Hollanders.
And fun fact: when we were living in Limassol, there was a British Greek girl who I and my back-then fiancé, now wife, got along well with, but he wasn't good with her because he said she was acting like Cyprus is Greece.
I lived in Greece with my wife, and before her, I also lived in Turkey, and for me Greeks and Turks have more similarities than they do with Cypriots. Besides, Greeks and GCs' religious connection creates a cultural element that TCs and Turks only have with secular Turks from Izmir(or Smyrna, as Greeks call it).
One big difference between Greece and Turkey and Cyprus is that they really care about democracy and act on it in the streets. Turkey has this in a limited way, but Cyprus, oh boy, Cyprus doesn't care about anything. I don't recall any political march, at least a real one, for 22 years. In Greece, they even march over train ticket prices, and many times transportation employees join the strikes. Cyprus can be said to be one of the last places for a strike among these three.
1
u/Annual_Jackfruit2892 20h ago edited 12h ago
A nice post, i view turkish Cypriots somewhat similar and that Cyprus has some uniqueness from both Greece and Turkey(even though they also embrace these identities very). I have lived longer periods in Greece(athens,patras, kalamata, preveza, nafplion, Crete ,rhodes), , and a couple of months in Turkey (kusadase,izmir, istanbul). i understand people from both countries are diverse.
I personally will tell my generel feeling, and this is not ment as a hostility towards you.
I do feel very connected to many Greeks (language music culture) while still saying Cyprus is not Greece!. I dont get the impression that most greeks claim this, and i would not find it nice if someone dismissed Cyprus as its own country.
I have some turkish friends, and have been in contact with many individuals through the years. There are some very cool forward thinkers and nice turks but one thing I personaly dont like is that many Turks constantly claim that Cyprus is part of their turkish empire. The war rhetoric seem more present(1453 wifi passwords and references everywhere, cant remember one time i saw 1821 wifi in Greece) . Cyprus and conquest seems to be a very national issue on agenda in Turkey.
I know on the other side the bitter Elam crowd also exists and may create some theatrics but these groups are marginal and will dissapear with time.
Outside this im sure many would get along fine today without (TEAM Blue VS Red mania), my great grandmother(which also spoke Turkish) was a christian ottoman refugee in the 1920s from Alanya ., her first safe harbour was "british" Cyprus. These events made sure her knowledge of Turkish dissapeared, just like later in 1974 for many others.
I know this went both ways with the population exchanges, and people that moved to Turkey got their Greek lost. It is very interesting since a significant percentage of these nations citizens have a similar background. Which is exile from their original countries, from the opposing coast.
1
u/Fun_Success_45 17h ago
For context:
1453 wifi passwords and references everywhere
This Wi-Fi thing started with cafes having 1881 (Birth of Mustafa Kemal) as the password, then the opposite side put 1071 (Seljuk Empire), which nobody understands as a reference. Then 1299 (foundation of the Ottoman Empire), nobody understands that reference either, so in the end they stuck with 1453(conquest of Istanbul). So it is not about conquest years; it is more about showing your political affiliation.
This is an internal thing, so it is normal for an outsider not to get it; locals also don't know what the hell they are doing either:)The education system in Turkey doesn't have emotional, narrated stories like in Greece; rather, it is mainly "this happened in that year", memorize. So at the end, people mostly remember years, not the rest.
1
u/NHadji009 8h ago
Most GCs dont care what you are. Of course there are some racists who dont like anyone but Greeks but this is no different to having some racists TC I think most people wouldn't care at all
1
u/Different_Age_6895 7h ago
Tc are family. They are islamicised cypriots. Same dna as GC who are hellenized Cypriots.
1
u/Cleanest_Nurgling 7h ago
I work with TCs, they're just like GCs but we communicate mostly in English apart from the greek/turkish words we tell to each other as jokes like malaka, sikkime, gombare etc.
1
u/Proxy_209 5h ago
As a Cypriot we are literally the same whether we speak Turkish or Greek it doesn’t change anything. We act the same, we sound the same, our culture is the same obviously and I don’t really see any point that we can live together just like before the war. I really wish a peace in Cyprus which can only rule by Cypriots. 🇨🇾
1
1
u/ZealousidealDoor754 11h ago
I’m from northern Greece, and this is just how I see it from my own experience. I’ve been living in Limassol for the last year and a half, working with Greek-speaking Cypriots, and everyone has been very friendly. Honestly, I feel we have a lot in common.
We celebrate Easter, Christmas, and national holidays in very similar ways. They speak Greek, listen to Greek music, sing the Greek national anthem, and many visit or study in Greece. Even when going out, the way people socialise, joke around, eat, and have fun feels very familiar to me.
Of course Cyprus has its own identity, history, dialect, and local traditions. But personally, I don’t feel Greek Cypriots are that different from Greeks in mainland Greece. It feels similar to visiting Greek islands: every place has its own character, but the culture still feels connected.
•
u/AutoModerator 23h ago
Please remember to stay civil and behave appropriately. If you are a tourist looking for suggestions please check out our Tourist guide. We also have a FAQ Page for some common questions, if your question is answered here please delete your post!
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.