Latsia

Latsia is a suburb in Nicosia and has been an independent municipality since the 23rd of February 1986.

It is located 7 kilometres from Nicosia and is located at an altitude of 190 metres expanding over an area of 16, 28 square kilometres. The population is about 13000 residents. It is divided into three communities: Saint Eleftheriou, Saint George and the refugee community Archangelos Michael.

History
The area was possibly first settled during the Frank Rule by farmers who worked in the feuds of the area. In 1970 the feud owner in the area of Kioroglou decided to sell the land to the farmers who worked there and came from the village Lithrodondas. Latsia were bought by 16 Greek Cypriots and one Turk who shared the land. These were the first residents in the area and who built the first settlement. In 1909 the heirs of the Turk sold the land to Greek Cypriots and later on the first villages began to settle in. After the Turkish invasion in 1974 many refugees settled in Latsia. The refugees came from 120 different villages in Cyprus. In 1973 the village had 1,108 residents and in 2008 it had 22,000 residents.

Name
The name Latsia in the Cypriot dialect means small wells coming from the word Lakkos which means small well.