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Ayios Theodoros Karpasias - a glance at its history
Ayios Theodoros Karpasias is a village at the base of the Karpas peninsula of Cyprus, which dates back, in the 2nd century B.C. It is built in an area rich in archaeological sites of the earliest periods in history and attesting to a highly developed civilisation in the area from the time of the Cretan-Mycean culture. Many ancient Greek tombs, one inscription dated in the 2nd century B.C. and a milestone of the 1st century indicate that people formed a community at the very same location for over 2000 years. Nearby is the famous Elaea Cape covered with low forest and thousands of olive trees. Not far from the seashores the remains exist of an ancient city, probably Elaea, which was destroyed by earthquakes in 343 A.D. After the city's destruction the survived inhabitants moved towards Ayios Theodoros.
During the 4th century A.D. the village has taken its modem Christian name after the Roman soldier Theodoros who became a martyr and a saint of Christianity.
During the Byzantine era and the Arab attacks against Cyprus (600 - 900A.D.) the village, well hidden from the sea, became the refuge for the people who lived near the seashore, who moved inland to escape the attacks. At that time many of the people of Ayia Theodora (a nearby town destroyed during the attacks) moved to Ayios Theodoros. It is known that during the Venetian period (1489-1570) the village became the agricultural centre of the area and rich landowners were established here.
After the Ottoman occupation of Cyprus in 1571 the village suffered destruction and for almost 400 years it disappeared from the maps. It has emerged during the 18th century with very few inhabitants, some of which were forced to change religion from Christian to Muslims. Those however remained "cryptochristians" until modem times. Evidence to this are the long underground corridors underneath the main village church of Aye Paraskevi, which were used as places of prayer.
The population of Ayios Theodoros has risen sharply during the 20th century and the village became a local centre maintaining a police station, courtrooms and forestry station. The first telegraph station in Cyprus connecting the island with Syria opened here at the beginning of the century. Kyriakos Rossides, a well-known politician and intellectual lived in Ayios Theodoros. He was one of the twelve members of the Legislative Council during the British rule of the island. His daughter, Thraki Rossidou-Jones has been established as the naive art painter of Cyprus. Kikis Photiatis is also a well-known artist from Ayios Theodoros and many of the themes of his paintings stem from his village life. Two other intellectuals, Constantinos Kentis and Antonis Dhiglis have played a major educational role at the beginning of this century.
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