About Nicosia

Lefkosia, the capital of Cyprus is better known to foreigners by its mediaeval name, Nicosia. It lies just to the north of the geographical centre of the island at an elevation of 160 meters and is being traversed by the seasonal stream of Pediaios. The city has a population of about 230.000, by far the biggest on the island. 195,000 live in the government-controlled southern quarter while the rest live in the Turkish-occupied northern quarter.  Nicosia hosts the seat of government, the House of Representatives, the Supreme Court, the Archbishopric of the Greek Orthodox Church, government services and foreign embassies, high commissions and consulates. Lefkosia also has an International Airport about 8 km west of the city centre, which remains closed since the 1974 Turkish-invasion as it is lying in the UN-controlled "buffer zone". Nicosia has the unenviable legacy of being the last divided capital of Middle East, and indeed the world.