ANGELIKI ANDREOU, ANNA MICHAIL, ELENI LANITI MINORITY GROUPS AND THEIR LANGUAGE RIGHTS IN THE REPUBLIC OF CYPRUS

THE ARMENIAN MINORITY IN THE REPUBLIC OF CYPRUS

 Armenians existed in Cyprus since 6 th Century.  Main migration happened in , after the Armenian Genocide in Turkey.  Nowadays, there are around 2600 Armenians in the Republic of Cyprus.  Inhabitants of South Cyprus and Famagusta (those left after the Turkish invasion, 1974).

 They are considered to be a ‘religious group’.  They have the right to elect a representative to represent themselves to the Cypriot Parliament.  Most of them are bilinguals in Greek and Armenian.  They have the right to use their language publicly and privately and receive instructions to it, as well.

 There are three public schools that offer Armenians education in Greek, English and Armenian.  These schools are funded by the Cypriot government and are supervised by the Ministry of Education and Culture of the Republic of Cyprus.  These schools follow the official school curriculum, just like other schools, but they organize activities that are related to the Armenian language and culture. (classes in Armenian history, geography and traditional Armenian dance).

THE MARONITES MINORITY IN THE REPUBLIC OF CYPRUS

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND  They migrated in the 8 th century  Maronites are a religious group  They chose to follow the Greek-Cypriot community  They are now the third largest religious group in Cyprus

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND  Before Turkish invasion in 1974 they were located in Keryneia  Now they are located in Nicosia  In politics they have the right to elect a representative in the Cypriot Parliament but he/she has not the right to vote

MARONITES IN NOWADAYS  Educated in Greek schools  They have their own culture  They are trying to preserve their cultural identity with various ways  Their language has been recognised as a minority language in 2008

THE LATIN AND ROMANI MINORITIES IN THE REBUBLIC OF CYPRUS

LATINS  Latins arrived in Cyprus in the 16 th century  Migrants from Italy, Malta and France  Nowadays there are approximately 900 Latins on the island.

 They are mentioned as a religious group in the Constitution.  They do not have their own language.  Mostly they are enrolled in Greek-Cypriot schools. however they have separate Roman Catholic Schools.

ROMANI  No official records for their arrival in Cyprus.  There are around 500 and 1000 of Roma living on the island.  They are not considered as a religious group.  Most of them live in the occupied part of the island.  There are no data available as it comes to their language status.  They could receive educational support due to their socio- economic status.

REFERENCES  Spinthourakis, J. A., Karatzia-Stavlioti, E., Lempesi, G. E., Papadimitriou, I., Giannaka, C. (2008). Educational Policies that Address Social Inequality. Department of Elementary Education University of Patras, Greece. Retrieved from: