Cypriot Americans

Phases of Emigration

Modern emigration from Cyprus is divided into five stages, based upon the events associated with each [Page 366]period: Early Beginnings (1900–1954), Emergency Years (1955–1959), Mass Exodus (1960–1963), Intercommunal Strife (1964–1974), and the Turkish Invasion and Its Aftermath (mid-1974-present).

In the first or Early Beginnings (1900–1954) phase, a total of 11,142 Cypriots immigrated mainly to Egypt, Greece, Australia, the Belgian Congo, Argentina, Britain, and the United States. In 1906, the first Cypriot set foot on American shores at a time when large numbers of immigrants from Greece and other southeastern European countries were arriving in the United States. More Cypriots immigrated to the United States, and during the 1910s, they organized their own coffeehouses. In 1930, according to British colonial sources, 1,000 Cypriots immigrated to the United States.

By the early 1930s, certain clusters of mostly young single male immigrants from the same village formed in New York City. These pioneers formed local societies (topika somatei), whose only criterion of membership was the village of origin. This type of activity was also common among other Greek immigrants. Several of these societies are still active. The main “push” factors of emigration were mostly economic, with the droughts of 1902 and 1932 to 1933 exacerbating a difficult rural life. The principal source areas were villages in the poorer rural districts of the island that historically supplied the bulk of emigrants.

In the second phase, or Emergency Years (1955–1959), a total of 29,135 Cypriots emigrated from their homeland, mainly because of the political upheavals that engulfed the island. The Greek Cypriots launched an anticolonial campaign with the goal of enosis (union) with Greece. After 4 years of bloody armed conflict, the Republic of Cyprus was born on August 16, 1960. Most of the immigrants settled in the United Kingdom, where a small community was already in existence. A total of 749 immigrants settled in the United States.

In the third phase, or Mass Exodus (1960–1963), a total of 37,288 Cypriots emigrated. The uncertainties surrounding the birth of the new republic, high unemployment, and the restrictive Commonwealth Immigration Act of 1962 that was passed by the British Parliament explain the heightened emigration. During 1960 and 1961, a record number of emigrants (14,589 and 13,489, respectively) left for the United Kingdom to beat the closing of the gates. Out of this total, 720 Cypriots arrived in the United States.

In the fourth phase, or Intercommunal Strife (1964–1974), a total of 30,545 Cypriots emigrated. The annual number of emigrants fluctuated, reflecting the rise and fall in fighting between the Greek and Turkish communities. Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) data show that a total of 3,361 Cypriots immigrated to the United States.

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