Cyprus-Forum.com

[Piratis]

Why is it so difficult to be Cypriot?

It is not any more difficult than being Cretan or Athenian. In other words, not difficult at all.

The difficulty is in making Cypriots not Greek. And again, this is not any more difficult than trying to force Cretans or Athenians to stop being Greek. It is generally not easy to deprive people from their ethnic identity, especially when we are talking about an ethnicity as old as ours. (and I am referring about the main body of the population here, not small minorities that exist in Cyprus like they exist everywhere else)

Yet, Piratis, there are Cypriots who believe otherwise. Why?

There are always some people who believe otherwise for just about anything. There are many different reasons why a minority of people could believe otherwise in this case. The most obvious reason is that not all Cypriots are Greek. In Cyprus, just like in every other place there are minorities. Another reason is that some people were born and/or raised abroad, and they didn't acquire the same identity as the Cypriot people (who live in Cyprus) but they still consider themselves Cypriot because their ancestors came from here. Others choose to sacrifice their Greek identity because they falsely believe that by doing so they are helping unity on the island. And of course the foreign efforts to de-Hellenize Cyprus do have some effect as well on a small minority of Cypriots.

[Viewpoint]

Fucking enosis scum.

[Bananiot]

Of course Cypriots are not Greek. Even present day Greeks are not Greek. Read Jakob Philip Fallmerayer, the greatest anti-hellene ever, according to the purists, who tells a lot of truths for which we have no stomach, of course.

[Filitsa]

Fucking enosis scum.

I used to respect your opinion, but if you can't contribute intelligently, then get lost.

[AEKTZIS]

Bananiotaki you live in world where there are no defined ethnicities, it seems.

Be proud of your identity as a Cypriot, have your own political views, have your own perception of what it means to be Cypriot and how we should act, have your own opinion of Cypriot political hstory, Greek junta, ELDYK, Ioannides, Papadopoulos, have your own view of the Cyprus problem....

DO ALL OF THIS, and I still respect every word you say. But please, don't be ridiculous with crap like:

"Cypriots are not Greek. Present day Greeks are not Greek." I mean, Greeks are not Greek???? Are we meant to be spear-wielding Spartans or something? Is that a sufficiently satisfactory "Greek"? I mean, for God's sake...

[Piratis]

You won't find many Australians and Canadians claiming to be 'British' that's for sure.

The difference here is choice. The Australians choose to have a separate country, just like they choose to have the British flag embed in their own flag, and the Queen of England as their own Queen.

On the other hand the Liverpudlians didn't choose to have a separate country so they claim to be British.

The people of Cyprus, like the people of all other Greek islands, choose to be part of united Greek state. But our choice was denied to us and we were forced to be a separate country bnnm because this is what suited the interests of certain foreign imperialists.

This may be true politically, but natioanlity and culture are not necessarily one and the same.

Within the Greek nation there are of course variations in culture, language etc, just like in any other nation. Even within Cyprus there is variation. E.g. the culture and language in Paphos is a bit different than in Nicosia. Does this mean the Paphians should be "just Paphians" and not Cypriots and Greeks?

[AEKTZIS]

PAPHOS-KYPROS-ENWSIS

[Oracle]

Of course Cypriots are not Greek. Even present day Greeks are not Greek. Read Jakob Philip Fallmerayer, the greatest anti-hellene ever, according to the purists, who tells a lot of truths for which we have no stomach, of course.

Nobody is anybody any more. You read it in a book! It must be true. Back to Amoebae, everyone ...

[Filitsa]

You won't find many Australians and Canadians claiming to be 'British' that's for sure.

The difference here is choice. The Australians choose to have a separate country, just like they choose to have the British flag embed in their own flag, and the Queen of England as their own Queen.

On the other hand the Liverpudlians didn't choose to have a separate country so they claim to be British.

The people of Cyprus, like the people of all other Greek islands, choose to be part of united Greek state. But our choice was denied to us and we were forced to be a separate country bnnm because this is what suited the interests of certain foreign imperialists.

This may be true politically, but natioanlity and culture are not necessarily one and the same.

Within the Greek nation there are of course variations in culture, language etc, just like in any other nation. Even within Cyprus there is variation. E.g. the culture and language in Paphos is a bit different than in Nicosia. Does this mean the Paphians should be "just Paphians" and not Cypriots and Greeks?

Perhaps I should elaborate. One can be a citizen of a particular nation and practice a culture foreign to that nation. Maybe it would help to understand that my orientation is second generation American, and I still find it difficult to define American culture.

[Kikapu]

You won't find many Australians and Canadians claiming to be 'British' that's for sure.

The difference here is choice. The Australians choose to have a separate country, just like they choose to have the British flag embed in their own flag, and the Queen of England as their own Queen.

On the other hand the Liverpudlians didn't choose to have a separate country so they claim to be British.

The people of Cyprus, like the people of all other Greek islands, choose to be part of united Greek state. But our choice was denied to us and we were forced to be a separate country bnnm because this is what suited the interests of certain foreign imperialists.

This may be true politically, but natioanlity and culture are not necessarily one and the same.

Within the Greek nation there are of course variations in culture, language etc, just like in any other nation. Even within Cyprus there is variation. E.g. the culture and language in Paphos is a bit different than in Nicosia. Does this mean the Paphians should be "just Paphians" and not Cypriots and Greeks?

Perhaps I should elaborate. One can be a citizen of a particular nation and practice a culture foreign to that nation. Maybe it would help to understand that my orientation is second generation American, and I still find it difficult to define American culture.

It is said, that there is more culture in a tub of Cypriot yogurt, than there is in America!