Rizokarpasso, Cyprus

Rizokarpasso (Ριζοκάρπασο), Turkish Dipkarpaz is a town on the Karpass Peninsula in north Cyprus, since 1974 is under Turkish occupation. It is the biggest town on the Karpasia. The land around Rizokarpasso consists of terra fusca and is very fertile. Crops include carob, cotton, tobacco and grain. There is a tobacco-factory in the town. During the invasion of 1974, the peninsula was cut off by Turkish troops, and the Greek-speaking inhabitants could not flee to the South. Thus, Rizokarpasso has the biggest Greek-speaking population in the TCKK. The Greek-speaking inhabitants are still supplied by the UN, thus, Greek merchandise can be bought in some of the shops. Today, there is a large Kurdish minority as well, closely supervised by the TCKK police. The town has both a Kafeneion and a Kahvehane that seem to be used indiscriminately by both linguistic groups.

There are two churches in town: St. Synesios and the church of the Holy Trinity. They are built in the typically Cypriot mixed style, combining features of the late Gothic introduced by the Lusignans and the late Byzantine of the orthodox tradition. When the orthodox bishops were banished by the Lusignans in 1222, the Bishop of Famagusta was sent to Rizokarpasso and was based in St. Synesios, which is still the main orthodox church of the region.

Rizokarpasso is partly located in the ancient city of Karpasia at the West coast, founded by king Pygmalion.