The Republic of Cyprus gained its independence in 1960, prior to which it was a British colony. At that time, 60% of its population lives in villages. The remaining 40% were spread across the five urban centers of Nicosia, Famagusta, Paphos, Limassol, and Larnaca. This ratio changed after the island was divided in 1974 following the inter-communal conflicts among the Greek and Turkish population residing in Cyprus. After that (since 1980) only half the population lives in rural areas with more than 51% preferring to live in the urban areas. Since the Turkish part of the population (about 12%) is so small an amount of the total population, the Turkish Cypriot urban centers are not as densely populated as the Greek Cypriot regions.
After the ceasefire in 1974, thousands of Turkish Cypriots moved from their original residences across the buffer zone occupied by the United Nations forces for the sake of keeping peace. Though most of these moved on their own, the rest needed international agreements and diplomatic initiatives before they could join their ethnic groups. Many Turkish Cypriots also had to take refuge in the British controlled bases. This is an important aspect because while most Turkish Cypriots sought to go over to the Turkish side of Cyprus, it should be noted that Greek Cypriots living in Turkish controlled areas did not move back and instead they continued to live in the Karpas Peninsula.
Even at the end of the 1980s, 49% of all Turkish Cypriots lived in regions that were classified as rural. This fall in ratio is an obvious indicator of the fall in agricultural employment but the employment statistics belie the claimed rate of urbanization. This was caused by the fact that the Turkish Cypriot urban centers were too close to the villages so that it did not matter where one stayed (urban or rural area) and where one worked. This meant that a worker did not have to migrate to his place of employment but relied on daily commuting to fulfill his/her duties. The benefit of this was that the changes that come with urbanization, for example, a change in the common outlook towards the need for basic education, were more diffused than they would have been in a relatively isolated urban setting.
All this has had a profound impact of Cypriot culture and the consequence is that it forces people to focus too intensely on the recent past than the fact that the cultural heritage of Cyprus comes from a history that has been active and shifting for over nine millennia.
The northern part of Cyprus (Turkish) is going through many changes as the efforts are being made to wipe out the recent upheavals and to make people realize and embrace the true identity of the island. To this effect, the names of cities and villages are being changed to their Turkish roots. The Republic of Cyprus is hard at work, trying to create a new identity that is more reflective of its rich culture than its recent troubles.
Cyprus Culture