BFaithPartially recognized
Islam among the Turkish Cypriots
The religion of the Turkish Cypriots, a secular society whose faith rests mainly on Sunni Islam and Sufi tradition.
Islam is the second-largest religion in Cyprus after Christianity and the main faith of the Turkish Cypriot community, mostly Sunni with an Alevi minority.
Turkish Cypriot society is formally rather secular, and Sufism has strongly shaped its spiritual heritage: Sheikh Nazim al-Qubrusi, leader of the Naqshbandi-Haqqani order, came from Cyprus and lived in Lefka.
The island's Ottoman mosques — the Selimiye in Nicosia and the Lala Mustafa Pasha in Famagusta — are unique monuments converted from Gothic churches.
Sources
Updated: October 3, 2026