Introduction

Cyprus has been an Armenian home since the sixth century, the history of Armenians and Cyprus intertwining on many occasions, including marriages between the ruling families in the Lusignan period. In 1375, Leo VI, last de facto king of Armenia died and the crown was passed to his cousin, James I de Lusignan, who ruled Cyprus, and henceforth became the king of Jerusalem, Cyprus and Armenia. Today, the Armenians are one of the three recognised national minorities of Cyprus, along with the Maronites and the Latins (Roman Catholics), identified in the 1960 constitution and considered part of the state fabric. Unlike the two official communities in Cyprus (Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot), the Armenians do not claim ‘ownership’ of the land and thus are in the unique position of being both Insiders (officially recognised and supported by the state) and Outsiders (originating elsewhere, possessing their own language, culture and particular brand of Christianity, and possibly oriented elsewhere). This position can act as a challenge to dominant discourses of nationalism and test the nuances and limits of citizenship and belonging. In the context of the deadlock of mutually constituted Greek and Turkish nationalisms, the Armenians theoretically represent an ‘other’ way of being Cypriot. For the Armenian diaspora, the Cypriot community is regarded as a kind of bridge between east and west, as well as being within easy reach of Armenia. Cyprus has been the home of a core community, where there has been a steady Armenian presence for centuries, as well as much movement from east to west, with the island serving as a stopover of varying durations. Being part of an established and active diaspora also lends the Cypriot Armenian community another (wider) dimension of identity and consciousness, and provides a source of strength and validation.

As a contribution to Diaspora Studies, the Cypriot Armenian case illustrates the evolution of a refugee community to a diasporic one. In the former case the main characteristic is displacement; in the latter it is sedentariness. In a seminal article, Simon Payaslian, writing before the Arab Uprisings, analyses the evolution of the Syrian Armenian community from an exilic community of refugees to diasporisation and subalternisation, and finally its decline and potential dissolution (a tragic but inevitable outcome of the current war in Syria).