Cyprus

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition

1. An island country in the eastern Mediterranean Sea south of Turkey. Site of an ancient Neolithic culture, the island was settled by Phoenicians c. 800 B.C. and thereafter fell successively to the Assyrians, Egyptians, Persians, Macedonian Greeks, Egyptians again, and finally Romans (58 B.C.). The Byzantines controlled it from A.D. 395 until 1191, when it was captured by Richard I of England during the Third Crusade. Venice annexed it in 1489, Turkey conquered it in 1571, and Great Britain proclaimed its sovereignty in 1914. Cyprus became independent in 1960, but large-scale fighting between Greek and Turkish Cypriots led to the installment of a UN peacekeeping force in 1965. In 1974 Turkey invaded Cyprus and established a separate Turkish state in the northern part. Nicosia is the capital and the largest city. Population: 788,000.

Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia

1. n. The Latin name of a tree, Lawsonia alba, the common henna, growing in Cyprus and Egypt, yielding a fragrant oil.
2. n. Same as cypress.

Wiktionary

1. n. Country between Europe and the Middle East, in the Mediterranean Sea. Member state of the European Union since 2004. Official name: Republic of Cyprus.
2. n. Island between Europe and the Middle East, in the Mediterranean Sea.

GNU Webster's 1913

1. n. obsolete A thin, transparent stuff, the same as, or corresponding to, crape. It was either white or black, the latter being most common, and used for mourning.

WordNet 3.0

1. n. a country on the island of Cyprus; 80% of the people are of Greek origin and 20% or Turkish origin
2. n. an island in the eastern Mediterranean