Mamonia

Mamonia is a village in the province of Paphos in Cyprus and it is situated 29 kilometers east of the homonymous city, 50 kilometers northwest of Limassol and 119 kilometers southwest of Nicosia.

Located at an altitude of 170 meters in the Diarizos river valley and in the middle of the distance of the Paphos-Troodos route, Mamonia is a small community with about 30 inhabitants near Fassoula, Agios Georgios Paphou, Stavrokonos, Archimandrita and Holetria. A once-glorious place that has been "hurt" by urbanization and the impossibility of residential development due to its location (in the valley), Mamonia is still a destination that offers moments of relaxation, tranquility and enjoyment of the beautiful natural landscape. Mamonia is a fertile land, where thrives the cultivation of citrus fruits, oranges, chrysomila (golden apples) and watermelons.

The village, besides the impressive green surroundings that engulf it on the eastern edge of the province, is situated on a land dominated by the rare rocks of the area that got their name from the settlement. Mamonia, deep sea sediments and volcanic rocks, remnants of a continental and oceanic cortex, are the subject of study by local and foreign geologists who often come to the area. However, they are not the only scientists to come here because, due to the Diarizos valley and the several biotopes with many (endemic and non endemic) protected species, several zoologists and entomologists visit the area for observation and research. The valley is part of Natura 2000 as a protected area and includes areas of outstanding natural beauty with enormous historical and cultural significance. As a matter of fact, there are also many mountaineers who arrive here to climb the huge rocks that moved from Africa 70 million years ago.

The origins of the name of the settlement of Mamonia is based on two versions. The first version refers to the first inhabitants, the Mamonades, who were shepherds and came from the Peloponnese, while the second version refers to the Aramaic or Syriac word “Mamonas” found in the New Testament and which has the meaning of wealth and the acquisition of material goods.

In the village there have been discovered important archaeological finds of the Hellenistic and the First Christian Period in tombs already robbed by smugglers, indicating that the area has been inhabited since 1100 BC.

Mamonia, home of Pope Clement of the 8th (Hippolyte Aldobrandini), have existed since the 12th century and the years of the Frankish rule. It is noteworthy that after the occupation of Cyprus by the Turks in 1571, the Greek inhabitants of the Diarizos valley continued to give ancient Greek names to their children, not Christian, in order to avoid Turkish taxation. The Turkish tax collectors of the time recorded the name day celebrations of those who had Christian names and taxed them accordingly, on the grounds that they were rich in order to celebrate. Until today, many of the names of the locals go back to ancient Greek times.

Mamonia was a mixed village with a Greek majority until 1960, when all the Turkish Cypriot residents left the settlement. With the beginning of the 1963-64 intercommunal riots between Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots, the community experienced a very difficult period as it was surrounded by Turkish villages and there were few incidents of violence in the region between the two groups.

The most important sights within and near the village are the old stone mill, the “madopetra” and the Rocks of Hasambulia.

Madopetra is a great imposing rock that according to tradition, is a woman fortune teller and her baby, whom God has transformed into stone. The visitor, looking at the rock carefully, will distinguish their reliefs at the top of the rock.

The Hasambulia Rocks, or “Kourtelorotsos”, located 7.5 km from the Mamonia community, is an impressive natural landscape with massive stones of recrystallized limestone of coral origins that dominate the middle of the road. A living legend that survives to this day and was a source of fear for the inhabitants and the passers-by during the British occupation, Hasambulia was a family of Turkish Cypriots who came from the Episkopi of Limassol and during the British occupation they moved to Mamonia. There, their criminal activity was wide-spread and caused many problems to the locals, as they committed many thefts, murders, rapes and kidnappings. The three brothers, in the years of their activity, passed from forty villages in the province of Paphos and the province of Limassol, spreading their terror. The Rocks of Hasambulia, a well-known location for climbers, is the point where the 3 brothers hid and attacked passers-by and can be found on the route shortly after Kouklia and the old road that connects Mamonia with Agios Georgios Paphou, Trachypedoula and Kidasi.

The central church of Panagia Chryseleousa is next to the old school, while another religious attraction of the settlement is the chapel of the Panagia (Virgin Mary). In the traditional café restaurant of the community, with its panoramic views of the village and the valley, visitors can enjoy a coffee or eat traditional food, listening to the locals and their impressive stories about the past of the region.