Social Life in Cyprus
Behavior
The people of Cyprus tend to be friendly and outgoing, as little seems to bother or offend them. However, due to the division of the island there are political issues that remain sensitive and the Turks have a culture rooted in Islam so there are some religious rules that must be observed when in the northern half of the island.
As a visitor to Cyprus just try to follow the lead of the locals by dressing in alike manner (see below for details), dining in the local etiquette (see our Cyprus Dining & Food Page), and avoid sensitive conversation topics, such as politics, finances, and business unless initiated by your local counterpart. Also try to avoid being loud, rude, showing off wealth, and getting noticeably drunk in public, well at least in northern Cyprus for this last one.
Dress
When people think of the traditional dress of Cyprus today they generally think of the clothing that was popular in the 1800s and early 1900s. Although all the people live on a relatively small island, the mountains had given rise to various differentiations on the dress from place to place on the island. During this time though there were many similarities; for women the traditional dress was called a sayia, which was a long-sleeved tunic with a blouse, loose-fitting pants, and boots. Despite the similarities, many women personalized their sayia with embroidery and other details, making each rather unique. Women also tended to wear something in their hair, generally a scarf of green for young girls and brown for older women. For men the dress was rather simple as loose-fitting pants, a shirt, and a jacket were commonly worn with a hat.