Cyprus (Greek: Κύπρος, Kýpros; Turkish: Kıbrıs), officially the Republic of Cyprus (Greek: Κυπριακή Δημοκρατία, Kypriakí Dimokratía) is a Eurasian island country in the eastern part of the Mediterranean Sea, south of Turkey (Anatolia).
Cyprus is the third-largest island in the Mediterranean and one of the most popular tourist destinations in the Mediterranean, attracting over 2.4 million tourists per year A former British colony, it gained independence from the United Kingdom in 1960 and became a Commonwealth republic in 1961. The Republic of Cyprus is a developed country and has been a member of the European Union since 1 May 2004.
In 1974, following a period of violence between Greek and Turkish Cypriots and an attempted Greek Cypriot coup sponsored by the Greek military junta of that period, Turkey invaded and occupied one-third of the island. This led to the displacement of thousands of Cypriots and the establishment of a separate Turkish Cypriot political entity in the north. This event and its resulting political situation is a matter of ongoing dispute.
The Republic of Cyprus, the internationally recognized state, has de jure sovereignty over the island of Cyprus and surrounding waters. However, the island is de facto partitioned into four main parts
* the area under the effective control of the Republic of Cyprus in the south of the island;
* the area in the north, styling itself the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus;
* the United Nations-controlled Green Line, separating the two; and
* two Sovereign Base Areas (Akrotiri and Dhekelia), over which the United Kingdom retained jurisdiction after Cypriot independence
The major cities in the Republic of Cyprus are the capital Nicosia (Lefkosia in Greek), Limassol (Lemesos in Greek), Larnaca and Pafos.
