HISTORY

The village of Pano Kivides is located at approximately 25 Km north-west of Lemesos, very close to the road which leads from Lemesos to Krasochoria. Pano Kivides, as Karouzis distinctively mentions, ‘represent the once called Pano and Kato Kivides’.

More specifically, the new village Pano Kivides is located 3 Km east of the old village and only 22 Km north-west of the city of Lemesos. The new village is built on an altitude of 580 metres whereas the old village is built on an altitude of 520 metres.

The village during the medieval years
The settlement of Pano Kivides, according to the Great Cyprus Encyclopaedia, “existed at least from the Frankish period” and is linked to the medieval family de Quevides.

De Mas Latri mentions that during the Frankish period the village belonged to the Counts of Edessa. He also adds that in 1468, Pano Kivides, as well as the villages Lysos, Peristerona and Pelathousa were given as presents from the King of Cyprus James II to his mother Marietta of Patra. Regarding this action by James II, the Great Cyprus Encyclopaedia mentions that “possibly King James had at the time acquired the village by Hector de Quevides (if the village belonged to him). Hector de Quevides, a kingdom official, had been executed by James for being a traitor a few years before (in 1461), because he had taken the side of James’ opponent, queen Charlotte.”

Naming
The following versions exist for the naming of the village:

1. During the Frankish period, as it has already been mentioned, the well-known Cypriot, medieval, noble family of de Quevides lived in Pano Kivides”(de Quevides or, in other sources, de Chivides). Unfortunately, as it is emphasized by the same Encyclopaedia, “we are not in a position to know whether the medieval family de Quevides had been named after the village or whether the reverse had happened, that is if the village had been named after the family”. Whatever the case might be, it is considered most likely that the village had been named after this medieval family.
2. The name Pano Kivides is also mentioned by De Mas Latri who spells the name as “apanoqui Vides instead of apano Quivides”.
3. As far as the Greek spelling of the name of the village is concerned, the first vowel is at times written with a ‘ί’ (the Greek letter ‘yiota’) and at other times with a ‘υ’. (the Greek letter ‘ipsilon’). In official maps, the name is spelled with a ‘υ’ whereas in the official catalogue of the Cypriot toponyms published in 1982, it is spelled with a ‘ι’. This writing is etymologically justified. The Great Cyprus Encyclopaedia remarks that “the etymology of the name derives from the Greek verb ‘kivizw’(giving the shape of a cube to something, making a cube)”.
4. Archimandrite Kyprianos gives a completely different way of spelling the name of the village. In particular, “while referring to a member of the family, Ioannis Quivides, he provides a different spelling and writes the first vowel with the Greek letter ‘υ’ and the second vowel with the Greek letter ‘η’ (Κυβήδες in Greek).”

The old village

The old village

The old settlement of Pano Kivides was spread on a steep, green slope. This slope “was considered dangerous due to landslips”. As a result, in 1970, the residents of the village decided to move on a higher altitude with mild ground features.

This first settlement is split up “by the river network of Krios, a tributary
river of the river Courris”. The landscape is compiled by narrow valleys and steep slopes.

The old supermarket

Although abandoned, the old village of Pano Kivides still maintains, up until today, its picturesque beauty. Roads paved with flagstones and small houses with characteristics of the semi-mountainous popular architecture, built with the local stone, some on the ground level and some underground, bring up pictures from the past. Experts, as the Great Cyprus Encyclopaedia states, had noted that there was a danger that these houses could collapse but they were preserved because their owners either removed the roofs or other materials from the houses.

New settlement  
The new settlement, as mentioned earlier, was created in 1970 after the abandonment of the old settlement. The houses of the new village do not maintain characteristics of popular architecture as they are all “similar ground floor houses built in canonical formation in the almost flat ground surface of the area”.    

Professions
In the past, most of the residents of the village were into the professions of agriculture and live stock breeding. They cultivated “vineyards, carob trees, olive trees, some almond trees and other kinds of plants” and bred goats and pigs. Nowadays, only a few of the residents are occupied in stock breeding and agriculture. Viticulture is the only profession that is still a main profession.    

Nowadays, most of the residents are employed in Lemesos, because, as Dimos Vironos remarks, “they have the ability to come and go on a daily basis without any problems, as transportation is quite regular. After all, almost every family owns a car”.

Quarries operate west of Pano Kivides plucking out paving-stone which is considered to be highly sought after and it is used for the construction of paved areas.

Population
The population of Pano Kivides, as it is shown in the chart below, appears to have fluctuations.

Churches
At Pano Kivides, one can find the church of Agios Georgios, the church of Agios Panteleimonas, the chapel of Agion Akindinon, the chapel of Stavros (Holy Cross) and two old monasteries, the Monastery of Panagia (Virgin Mary) Chriseleousa and the Monastery of Agios Efstathios.
More Churches

Sources:
Giorgos Karouzis, Peridiavazontas tin Kipro, Lemesos , City and District, Lefkosia 2001
Great Cyprus Encyclopaedia, vol. 7
Dimos Vironos, Apo tis Palies stis Nees Kivides (From the Old to the New Kivides), Lemesos 2001.