Klirou abstains 26 kilometres of southly-western Nicosia. The big number of ancient burials and the residues from "Arxaiki", the "Clasic" and "Roman" period where they were found in the space tour from the village, testify that the region was lived from ancientest years.
According to one version the village owes his name from the first settler or even householder of the region with the name "kliros". From the phrase "the region or the property of Kliros ", emanated the name of village.At another version the name emanated from the bird "klorkos" or Kliros because his voice appears as if it repeats the word "kliro, kliro". The local delivery reports another version, that the village owes his name of the fact that all the men residents of the village became clergymen, in some time, to fight as they believed a leathal epidemic. Variant of this version reports that a lot of residents of village became priests and monks which they generally named "Klirikoi" from where also the name of village.
Klirou as village it appears that it existed from the Byzantine period as this is testified from the many of monasteries of the region. Certain known monasteries are the "Virgin Mary of Lagni", "Saint Mamas" in the region "Kouloupades" and "Saint Marina" in the region Petaloudin. It is not excluded that there existed more monasteries as the English architect George Jeffery reports that lived for a lot of years in Cyprus and visited Klirou at the beginning of 20th century.
At the period of Maiseonas, the period fragkokratias, Leontios Mahairas reports that Klirou was fief of Thomas Ntre Montolif of Klirou that was controller at the service of king Petros of 'A (1359-1369). According to the locals at the region of Virgin Mary of Lagnis (monastery of Klirou) existed enough small villages with certain families population each one. Crysostomos Leventis (1919-2001) states that the number of villages is 14. In some of them lived also Muslim. Some village are Apliki, Lagnis, Saint Marina, Kouloupades,Sirfoukos, e.t.c. When illness came in the village, the villages they depopulated and those who rescued came to klirou, other in the Malounta and other in the Arediou.
Klirou is found in a place where in the old days it was been as a centre and a going through station for those who were traveling from Pitsilia with destination Nicosia, at a time where travels became with horses. This make contributed decisively in the swift increase of population of village. Check population here
The education at the period of Ottomans domination were limited. In Klirou the priests were those who offered education to the children. Students from Klirou traveled at the Faculty of "Chatzitheodoulio", at the village of Pera that was founded in 1863. The first municipal school at Klirou was founded at 1884.
Year | Population |
1881 | 362 |
1891 | 437 |
1901 | 472 |
1911 | 517 |
1921 | 634 |
1931 | 671 |
1946 | 879 |
1960 | 1008 |
1973 | 1134 |
1976 | 1426 |
1982 | 1306 |
1992 | 1455 |
2001 | 1551 |