Settler colonialism or a hybrid case? Dimensions of colonization in Cyprus and Turkish Cypriot-settler antagonism

Bibliographic Data

ID3077495
AuthorsNikos Moudouros (0000-0001-8095-5234, University of Cyprus, corresponding author)
Year2025
Volume9
Issue1
Publication date2025-08-13
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueInternational Journal of Anthropology and Ethnology (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2366-1003 • E-ISSN: 2366-1003
PublisherSpringer Science and Business Media LLC (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1186/s41257-025-00137-7
OpenAlexW4413141665
LanguageEN
Citations received2
References cited11

This article explores the colonization of northern Cyprus by Turkey after the 1974 war through the analytical lens of settler colonialism. Drawing on comparative frameworks, it investigates whether Cyprus represents a classical case of settler colonialism or a hybrid model combining elements of both settler and traditional colonial strategies. The analysis foregrounds Turkey's systematic policy of population transfer, state-building, and demographic engineering to transform the island's northern part. The study emphasizes the colonization process's political, social, and economic dimensions, including the class origins of settlers, the evolving antagonism between Turkish Cypriots and settlers, and the emergence of a contested social and political order. Highlighting the persistence of settler colonial dynamics well into the twenty-first century, the article argues that the Cyprus case illustrates a fluid and ongoing struggle involving the metropolitan centre (Turkey), the local administration, the indigenous Turkish Cypriot population, and the settler community. It concludes that Cyprus embodies a hybrid formation, characterized by persistent tensions over unresolved identity, authority, and self-determination

Ancient history · Antagonism · Archaeology · Colonialism · Colonization · Geography · Linguistics · Sociology · Turkish · Cyprus History, Politics, Society · History · Island Studies and Pacific Affairs · Medicine · Peacebuilding and International Security · Philosophy · Internal Medicine

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