NICOSIA (Lefkosa):

The name of the capital city of Northern Cyprus dates back approximately 2,250 years to the original settlement of Ledra, which was later renamed Lefkotheon, but was also sometimes referred to as Ledron. During the Byzantine period the name changed again to Lefkon, meaning poplar grove. There were a great many poplar trees lining the banks of the Pedeios river, so the name was quite apt. Since the seventh century A.D. it has been the capital of Cyprus (except for a brief period during the Venetian period) because the Arab raids made so many coastal settlements unsafe. Nicosia was just far enough inland to escape the worst. The present day capital of the island, it has a population of around 150,000 and it is divided into Turkish and Greek sectors by a boundary known as the `green line' which runs in an east-west direction. Huge, thick ramparts, built by the Venetians in 1570, encircle the city; the walls are three and a half miles long and have eleven towers and three gates. Within these walls are numeruous remains from the middle ages and later periods. Outside, there is no trace of the medieaval settlement that once existed as as materials from those buildings were used at various points in time to restore and maintain the walls. In the old city of Nicosia, beautiful examples of Gothic and Ottoman architecture abound -the Selimiye Mosque, the Bedestan, the Arab Ahmet Mosque, and the Great Han / Inn, to name but a few. 

PLACES TO SEE IN NICOSIA

 Guide to the Antiquities of Turkish Nicosia by W.Dreghorn (link)  The City Walls: The walls that ring the old city of Nicosia with a three and a half mile circuit, and contain eleven bastions and three gates -Kyrenia, Paphos, and Famagusta gates- named after the three great seaports of the island. These walls, great earth ramparts with a stone facing, were entirely rebuilt by the Venetians in 1570 as a defence against cannon fire. Today, the walls remain virtually intact and it is quite possible to walk along part of the perimeter.  Atarurk Square (Sarayonu)  Selimiye Mosque (St. Sophia Cathedral)  Lapidary (Stonework) Museum): About 50 yards east of Selimiye Mosque is to be found the Stonework Museum, displayed in a 15th century house built in the Venetian style. There are many fine examples of different kinds of stonework dating from the Middle Ages. The most remarkable to be seen, in the museum, are the tomb of the Dampierre family, and the 13th century tombstone of Adana from Antioch.  Dervish Pasha Mansion: This two-storeyed Ottoman mansion is situated within the city walls of Nicosia, in the Arabahmet quarter, which is rich in buildings of architectural and historical interest. It was built in the early 19th century by Dervish Pasha, an Ottoman nobleman, and today the building is used as an Ethnograpic Museum.  Arasta Bazaar: For more than four hundred years the Arasta has been popular for its Turkish orientation. There, you can find anything from exquisite carpets and jewellery, to copperware and pottery which are particularly good to buy. A visit to the covered bazzaar at Arasta is also recommended.  Kyrenia Gate  Tekke of Mevlevi (Whirling) Dervishes: This Tekke is situated near Nicosia's Kyrenia Gate. It was built in the 17th century and used by the Turkish Whirling Dervishes. The interior of the bulding also possesses all the atmosphere of reverence that one expects to find in a Muslim house of worship. The building also has a section devoted to historical Turkish-Cypriot arts and crafts.  Great Khan (Inn):> This two-storeyed equivalent of a motel, was built in 1572 by Muzaffer Pasha, the first Ottoman Governor-General of Cyprus. It has 68 rooms in the familiar rectangular form and there is a small mosque in the middle of the central courtyard. This building is a typical example of the intercity commercial inns built by the Ottomans which are also to be found in Anatolia and Balkans.  Arabahmet Mosque  Museum of Barbarism: This is the house of Dr. Nihat Ilhan, a major who was serving in the Cyprus Turkish Contingent in 1963. During the inter-communal troubles of December that year, the house was attacked by the Greek Cypriot terrorists. Dr. Ilhan's wife and three children were ruthlessly murdered in the bathroom where they had tried to hide. The house, in the Kumsal district of Nicosia has beenpreserved as a museum.