Delikipos Village
Delikipos is a beautiful small village in the Larnaca district. While visiting Delikipos , one will admire the green pine tree colour as well as the wheat crops , olive trees , carob trees and prickly pear trees within the settlement.
The imposing century old olives trees stand as watchful guards in Delikipos protecting the few residents of the village. According to the inventory in 2001, Delikipos only had 8 residents, which is one third of the number of residents during the 80’s. During the inventory of 2011, the village was left with 15 residents only.
Historical Facts
According to Florio Voustronio, during the middle of the 15th century, and in particular in 1461, Delikipos was a feud. Delikipos also appears on Venetian maps as well as Leimonida’s manual. According to the Great Cyprus Encyclopaedia, the village is marked on medieval maps as “Dilichiper”.
Name
There are various versions as to the name of the village, which are the following:
According to the Great Cyprus Encyclopaedia, the name of the village is linked with the name of the first owner of the area, who was called Delis. Therefore, the village name is derived from the phrase, Deli’s garden.
Another version mentions that the name of the village comes from the Italian word bella, which means beautiful, concluding that the name of the village means beautiful garden. According to the Great Cyprus Encyclopaedia, this version is more correct as the village existed before the Turkish occupation (1570-71).
Agriculture / Livestock
Delikipos has always been a community of agriculture and livestock, and the few residents have occupied themselves with both. According to the elders in the village, nearly all the residents were shepherds but at the same time, they also cultivated their small privately owned properties.
All day long they opened up in the rich pastures of the wider area and grazed their goats, which in turn supplied the nutritious and delicious milk, with which they prepared the traditional halloumi, anari, cheese and other milk derivatives. Many would come from various cities to buy the famous halloumi and trachanas of Delikipos.
At the same time, with effort and toil, they watered the sacred soils of their forefathers, cultivating them with reverence and great care, in all seasons of the year, the rich harvest of all the goods offered by the Creator: wheat, barley, vetch, olives, potatoes, vegetables (tomatoes, cucumbers, cabbages, rapeseed), fruits (figs, grapes, pomegranates, prickly pears, etc.).
