Geography of Cyprus
Cyprus is an island in the Eastern Basin of the Mediterranean Sea. It is the third-largest island in the Mediterranean, after the Italian islands of Sicily and Sardinia, and the 80th-largest island in the world by area. It is located south of the Anatolian Peninsula, yet it belongs to the Cyprus Arc.[1] Geographically, Cyprus is located in West Asia,[2] but the country is considered a European country in political geography.[3] Cyprus also had lengthy periods of mainly Greek and intermittent Anatolian, Levantine, Byzantine, Turkish, and Western European influence.
9,251 km2 (3,572 sq mi)
648 km (402.6 mi)
1,952 m (6404 ft)
5,896 km2 (2,276 sq mi; 63.7%)
3,355 km2 (1,295 sq mi; 36.3%)
254 km2 (98 sq mi; 2.7%)
1,278,686 (2021)
138/km2 (357/sq mi)
The island is dominated by two mountain ranges, the Troodos Mountains and the Kyrenia Mountains or Pentadaktylos, and the central plain, the Mesaoria, between them.[4] The Troodos Mountains cover most of the southern and western portions of the island and account for roughly half its area.[4] The narrow Kyrenia Range extends along the northern coastline.[4] It is not as high as the Troodos Mountains, and it occupies substantially less area.[4] The two mountain ranges run generally parallel to the Taurus Mountains on the Turkish mainland, the outlines of which are visible from northern Cyprus.[4] Coastal lowlands, varying in width, surround the island.[4]
Geopolitically, the island is divided into four segments. The Republic of Cyprus, the only internationally recognized government, occupies the southern 60% of the island, and has been a member state of the European Union since 1 May 2004. The Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, is diplomatically recognized only by Turkey; it governs the northern one-third of the island, around 36% of the territory. The United Nations-controlled Green Line is a buffer zone that separates the two and it is about 4%. Lastly, two areas—Akrotiri and Dhekelia—remain under British sovereignty for military purposes, collectively forming the Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia (SBA). The SBAs are located on the southern coast of the island and together encompass 254 km2, or 2.8% of the island.[5]
Drainage[edit]
In much of the island, access to a year-round supply of water is difficult.[4] This is traditionally attributed to deforestation which damaged the island's drainage system through erosion,[4] but Grove and Rackham question this view.[8] A network of winter rivers rises in the Troodos Mountains and flows out from them in all directions.[4] The Yialias River and the Pedhieos River flow eastward across the Mesaoria into Famagusta Bay; the Serraghis River flows northwest through the Morphou plain.[4] All of the island's rivers, however, are dry in the summer.[4] An extensive system of dams and waterways has been constructed to bring water to farming areas.[4]
The Mesaoria is the agricultural heartland of the island, but its productiveness for wheat and barley depends very much on winter rainfall; other crops are grown under irrigation.[4] Little evidence remains that this broad, central plain, open to the sea at either end, was once covered with rich forests whose timber was coveted by ancient conquerors for their sailing vessels.[4] The now-divided capital of the island, Nicosia, lies in the middle of this central plain.[4]
Area and boundaries[edit]
Area:
Total:
9,251 km2 (of which 5,896 km2 (2,276 sq mi) are under the control of the Republic of Cyprus and of which 3,355 km2 (1,295 sq mi) are under military occupation by Turkey)
Land:
9,241 km2
Water:
10 km2
Land boundaries:
0 km
Coastline:
648 km
Maritime claims:
Territorial sea:
12 nmi (22.2 km; 13.8 mi)
Continental shelf:
200 m depth or to the depth of exploitation
Exclusive Economic Zone:
98,707 km2 (38,111 sq mi)
Elevation extremes:
Lowest point:
Mediterranean Sea 0 m
Highest point:
Olympus 1,952 m[6]
Administrative map of Cyprus
Population map of the Republic of Cyprus
Population density map of the Republic of Cyprus
Municipalities and communities map of Cyprus
District map of Cyprus
Population distribution of Cyprus in 1960
Natural resources:
copper, pyrite, asbestos, gypsum, timber, salt, marble, clay earth pigment
Land use:
arable land:
9.90%
permanent crops:
3.24%
other:
86.86% (2012)
Irrigated land:
457.9 km2 (2007)
Total renewable water resources:
0.78 km3 (2011)
Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):
total:
0.18 km3/yr (10%/3%/86%)
per capital:
164.7 m3/yr (2009)
Environmental concerns[edit]
Natural hazards:
moderate earthquake activity; droughts
Environment – current issues:
water resource problems (no natural reservoir catchments, seasonal disparity in rainfall, sea water intrusion to island's largest aquifer, increased salination in the north); water pollution from sewage and industrial wastes; coastal degradation; loss of wildlife habitats from urbanization.
Environment – international agreements:
party to:
Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none
Attribution: