Settler colonialism or a hybrid case? Dimensions of colonization in Cyprus and Turkish Cypriot–settler antagonism

Abstract

Abstract This article explores the colonization of northern Cyprus by Turkey after the 1974 war through the analytical lens of settler colonialism. Drawing on comparative frameworks, it investigates whether Cyprus represents a classical case of settler colonialism or a hybrid model combining elements of both settler and traditional colonial strategies. The analysis foregrounds Turkey’s systematic policy of population transfer, state-building, and demographic engineering to transform the island’s northern part. The study emphasizes the colonization process’s political, social, and economic dimensions, including the class origins of settlers, the evolving antagonism between Turkish Cypriots and settlers, and the emergence of a contested social and political order. Highlighting the persistence of settler colonial dynamics well into the twenty-first century, the article argues that the Cyprus case illustrates a fluid and ongoing struggle involving the metropolitan centre (Turkey), the local administration, the indigenous Turkish Cypriot population, and the settler community. It concludes that Cyprus embodies a hybrid formation, characterized by persistent tensions over unresolved identity, authority, and self-determination.

Keywords

• Settler colonialism
• Cyprus
• Turkey
• Demographic engineering
• Hybrid colonialism
• Turkish Cypriots