Gönyeli Explained

Gönyeli
Pushpin Map:Cyprus
Pushpin Label Position:bottom
Pushpin Mapsize:300
Pushpin Map Caption:Location in Cyprus
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Name:Cyprus
Subdivision Type1: • District
Subdivision Name1:Nicosia District
Subdivision Type2:Country
Subdivision Name2:Northern Cyprus
Subdivision Type3: • District
Subdivision Name3:Lefkoşa District
Leader Title:Mayor
Leader Name:Ahmet Yalçın Benli
Unit Pref:Imperial
Population As Of:2011
Population Total:11,671
Population Blank1 Title:Municipality
Population Blank1:17,277
Timezone:EET
Utc Offset:+2
Timezone Dst:EEST
Utc Offset Dst:+3
Coordinates:35.2164°N 33.3047°W

Gönyeli (Greek, Modern (1453-);: Κιόνελι|Kioneli; Turkish: Gönyeli) is a town in Cyprus, near the capital city Nicosia. It is de facto under the control of Northern Cyprus. Over the years the town has merged with North Nicosia, making it connurbated with the city.[1] Its population is 11,671.

History

Before the Ottoman conquest of Cyprus in 1571, the area consisted of empty fields. Upon the conquest, two families from Anatolia that of Kurt Ali from Anamur and Mehmet Efendi from Aksaray, settled here and founded Gönyeli.[1] Over time, as the families grew in population, the village grew as a Turkish-speaking farming community. Gönyeli was one of the first towns to be captured following the Turkish invasion of Cyprus in 1974.[2]

Culture

The football club Gönyeli Spor Kulübü is based in Gönyeli. Gönyeli's stadium, Ali Naci Karacan Stadı (named for journalist Ali Naci Karacan), houses football matches as well as concerts and the annual 23 April Children's Day events.

Every July, the Gönyeli International Folk Dance Festival takes place in the town center. The event lasts one week, with groups of dancers from countries such as Bulgaria, Romania and Turkey performing traditional folk dance.

Gönyeli is a popular town for students looking to rent accommodation as it is about 15 minutes driving distance from the Nicosia-based Near East University.

International relations

See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in Northern Cyprus.

Twin towns – sister cities

Gönyeli is twinned with:

Notes and References

  1. Web site: İncirli. Serhat. Gönyeli kentleşti. Kıbrıs. 2 April 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160416015821/http://www.kibrisgazetesi.com/?p=292366. 16 April 2016. tr. 7 June 2010. dead.
  2. Book: I Uluslararası Türk Dili ve Edebiyatı Öğrenci Kongresi, 11-13 Eylül 2006 İstanbul Kültür Üniversitesi: bildiriler. 2008. Istanbul Kültür University. 9789756957783 .
  3. Web site: Kızılcahamam - Twin Towns. ©Kızılcahamam-City.sk. 2013-10-19.
  4. Web site: Sarıyer - Twin Towns. © Sarıyer-City.sk. 2013-10-19. https://web.archive.org/web/20131020094401/http://www.sariyer.bel.tr/Mudurluk/18/s/90/kardes-sehir-iliskileri.aspx. 2013-10-20. dead.