Potami, a community of the Nicosia District, is located approximately 40 kilometres southwest of the capital city of Nicosia. The village is built on a mean altitude of 215 metres, whereas its southern part reaches an altitude of 361 metres.
Images of the past “mingle” with images of the present, this way giving the village a special “character”. On the one side stand houses of traditional architecture, whereas on the other side stand houses of modern architecture.
Apart from the old and new neighbourhoods, at the village one can encounter several pieces of land covered by grains which are “dressed” with a green veil in spring and a golden one in the summer. Moreover, there are some loquats, lemon, orange, olive and almond trees, as well as some shrubs.
The church dedicated to Agios Georgios, which was built, according to tradition, by the queen of Cyprus Aekaterini Cornaro, stands dominating in the village.
Historical background
During the Frankish period, the village was a fief and fell under the province of Pentayia. However, as the Great Cyprus Encyclopaedia remarks, “the noble family that owned the fief” is not known.
Naming
The name of the village, according to the Great Cyprus Encyclopaedia, derives from the two small rivers, or, as Karouzis remarks, from the two streams which unite near the village.
What is noteworthy is that the village is mentioned on old 16th century maps by the same name. In particular, these maps have the name “Potami” marked in Latin letters.
Year | Population | Year | Population |
1881 | 119 | 1946 | 260 |
1891 | 130 | 1960 | 342 |
1901 | 167 | 1973 | 425 |
1911 | 198 | 1976 | 532 |
1921 | 263 | 1982 | 504 |
1931 | 231 | 2001 | 557 |
Population
From 1881 until 2001, as this table presents, the populating course of Potami was mainly upward. The population decreased in 1931 and 1982. The efforts of the Community Council to retain and increase the population of the village are remarkable. Referring to these efforts, Karouzis notes that Potami effectuated developmental plans which included the redistribution of land and the expansion of the irrigation networks. It is a fact that the population remained in the village due to the ease of access to the urban centres, since quite a few residents of the village work in the cities and have to go to and fro on a daily basis.
Sources:
Giorgos Karouzis, Reading through Cyprus, Lemesos, City and District, Nicosia 2001
Great Cyprus Encyclopaedia, vol.12
Potami Community Council