Cyprus, the third largest island in the Mediterranean, a crossroads between the Eastern and Western world, has always captured the interests and attentions of more powerful external forces. Over the centuries, the island has been ruled by Assyrians, Phoenicians, Persians, Greeks, Egyptians, Romans and Byzantines from the ancient world. The Middle Ages saw in office the Crusaders, the Lusignano, the Genoese and the Venetians, while in more recent times it was the turn of the Ottomans and the British. Even today, although theoretically independent, the Greeks, the Turks, Europe and the United States try to extend their influence on the island.

Over the centuries, Cyprus has had many names, but it is thought that the origin of the name is from the ancient word for copper (Cuprum - Kypros) which was abundant on the island.

Nobody knows for sure when the first inhabitants arrived on the island, but the traces of settlement, found in Vrysi, East of Kyrenia, date back to over 8000 BC.

During the early Bronze Age, the first cities and economic centres developed in Cyprus, where copper was processed and exported. An influx of immigrants from Anatolia, who were displaced from their settlements in Asia Minor by invading the tribes, led the island to develop commercial and cultural relations with Asia Minor, Egypt and the Syrian / Palestinian region.

Most of our knowledge of this period comes from the finds in the cemeteries, although the island appears to have been densely populated at this time, no settlements have yet been identified. Judging by the multitude of items placed with the dead - bowls, jugs, food, combs, knives, necklaces, etc. - the afterlife was evidently an important cultural characteristic of these people of the Bronze Age.

The average bronze age (1900-1600 BC) is marked by a wave of cultural and commercial contacts with neighbouring countries. Copper was now an important export product, supporting the development of large cities such as Enkomi, near today's Famagusta. In fact, some scholars believe that Enkomi is the rich copper Alasia mentioned in the Assyrian and Babylonian texts.

Parallel to this growing prosperity there was growing insecurity on the island perhaps caused by internal conflicts, or influenced by events on the mainland where the Hyksos had invaded Egypt, Palestine and Syria. Fortresses such as Krini and in the Karpaz Peninsula began to appear.

The destruction of the Kingdom of Hyksos and the rebirth of Egypt as the dominant power in the Eastern Mediterranean, at the beginning of the late Bronze Age (1650-1050 BC), led to favourable circumstances for Cyprus for its development in a thriving commercial centre. The island also became a launching pad for Eastern and Western cultural exchange.

The advent of the Mycenaean traders introduced a Greek element that left a permanent mark on the cultural development of the island, which entered into a fruitful dialogue with the nearby oriental cultures.

The transition to the Iron Age was for Cyprus, as for Greece, a dark era. Natural disasters have destroyed almost all the settlements of the late Bronze Age and have led to cultural decline, poverty and population decline.

It was only with the arrival of the Phoenicians that the island received a cultural impulse, with the result of strengthened ties with the Orient. The colonists arrived in Cyprus from Tire in the 9th century BC and came to dominate the states of the city of Idalion, Amathus, Kition and Laphitos.

In the 8th century BC, Cyprus was again attracted to the power of the Near East. Cypriot cities paid tribute to the Assyrian kingdom and, after an Egyptian parenthesis (560 - 525 BC), were incorporated into the Persian empire. Their Persian masters allowed the Cypriot cities considerable freedom and this created favourable conditions for an economic and cultural recovery. Thanks to its geographical position and its natural wealth in copper and wood, the island prospered.

The insurrection of the coastal cities of Asia Minor against the Persians in 499 BC led to a polarization in Cyprus of the pro-Greek and pro-Persian cities. Things took another turn when the Persian king of Salamis was deposed by his younger brother Onesilos, who collected the island's broad support to get rid of the Persian yoke. The revolt was crushed and Onesilos died.

The League of Delos, an association of Greek city states set up by Athens to regain lost territory to the Persians, saw Cyprus as important both strategically and as a source of materials, especially timber. In 478 BC, Pausanias the Spartan managed to temporarily liberate large areas of the island, but this and other attempts failed.

At the end of the fifth century BC, Evagora conquered the throne of Salamis by the Persian puppet Abdemon. While maintaining good relations with the Persians, Evagora promoted Greek culture and made Salamis a prosperous and powerful city. However, when he tried to extend his authority over all of Cyprus, the Persians intervened and, after the assistance of Athens and Egypt had ceased, at the end it capitulated, however maintaining the possession of Salamis and paying homage to the king of Persia.