Nitsa Benkovic (née Pingos)
Interviewer(s):
Theo Xenophontos
Project:
Film as Mediator: Cultivating a Cypriot Canadian Community Audiovisual Media Archive
INTERVIEW LOCATION:
Kitchener, ON
LANGUAGE:
English
DATE:
July 9, 2023

Interview Summary:

Nitsa Benkovic was born in Limassol, Cyprus in 1960. In 1974, she migrated to Canada with her family following the Turkish invasion. The hotel her family owned in the Troodos Mountains was expropriated by the Cypriot government following the invasion and was turned into a military base due to the loss of bases in the north.

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Interview Details
Categories and Themes
Content
Media
Date and Location
July 9, 2023
Kitchener, ON
Interviewee(s)
Nitsa Benkovic (née Pingos)
Interviewer(s)
Theo Xenophontos
Languages
English
Reference ID
FAMREF011
Project
Film as Mediator: Cultivating a Cypriot Canadian Community Audiovisual Media Archive
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Categories
Associational Life
Canadian Society
Culture and Tradition
Education
Historical Events
Migration
Rites
Working Life
Tags
Australia
Cypriot Canadian Identity
Cyprus 1974
Cyprus Coup
Dance
English Learning
Entrepreneurship
Greek Community
Greek School
Junta
Language
Marriage
Military Service
Music
Post-1974 Migration
Pre-1974 Migration
Religion
Restaurant Work
Sponsorship
Decades Referenced
1960s
1970s
1980s
2000s
Locations Referenced
Cyprus; Troodos Mountains; Limassol; Kambos (Nicosia District); Makarios Avenue (Nicosia); Apostolos Andreas Monastery (Famgusta District); Kyrenia; Australia; Melbourne; Canada; Kitchener; University of Waterloo; Toronto
Occupation(s)
As a teenager, she worked in the cafeteria at the University of Waterloo with her mother.
Parents Occupation(s)
Her mother worked in the cafeteria at the University of Waterloo. Before their migration to Canada, her parents ran a hotel in the Troodos Mountains.
Names Referenced
Georgios Grivas; Helen Power (née Xenophontos); Makarios III; Nikos Sampson; Themis Drakos; Theodoros Xenophontos

[00:00:17] Growing up in Troodos and school years in Limassol

[00:03:40] Family history and memories

[00:08:51] Migrating to Canada after the 1974 invasion

[00:11:24] The political situation and the invasion

[00:18:03] Her family's religious practices

[00:20:07] Her cousin's disappearance in 1974

[00:22:21] Her father’s sponsored migration to Canada

[00:23:36] Family split between Cyprus, Canada, & Australia

[00:28:24] Coexistence of Greek and Turkish Cypriots

[00:30:12] Settling in Kitchener among other Greek Cypriots

[00:33:24] Early struggles learning English

[00:36:40] Easing into Canadian society, but staying Cypriot

[00:39:00] Identifying as Cypriot not Greek

[00:41:33] Differences between Cypriot and Greek language

[00:42:52] Discrimination around her name from Canadians

[00:45:24] Interactions with Greeks and Cypriots

[00:47:30] Communication with friends back in Cyprus

[00:50:18] Her children's resistance to learning Greek

[00:55:25] Differences between village and city dialect

[00:58:13] Lack of interest in audiovisual preservation

[01:00:48] Photographs aiding the remembering of the past

[01:03:36] Feeling more Canadian than Cypriot

[01:08:30] Her trip to Cyprus in 2005 and her aspirations

This is some text inside of a div block.
The Pingos family outside of their hotel in the Troodos Mountains, 1960s
Nitsa's aunt and her son, January 1967
Nitsa with her mother and brother, late 1960s or early 1970s
Nitsa's cousin, Themis Drakos, who went missing during the Turkish invasion. He was only nineteen years old
This image of Themis, frozen in time like all the victims of the Turkish invasion, remained in his mother's home until her death in 2025
Another photo of Themis in the home of Nitsa's aunt
A commemoration to Themis after his remains were found over 40 years following the Turkish invasion
Nitsa's sister and brother (beside their aunt in the red dress) and extended family at a wedding, late 1970s
Nitsa's extended family in their ancestral village of Kambos, 1978
Nitsa's extended family in Kambos, 1978
Nitsa's extended family in Kambos, early 1980s
Nitsa's extended family in Kambos, early 1980s
Nitsa's yiayia putting money on the bed at a wedding in Kambos, early 1980s
Nitsa's brother (in the red shirt) with cousins in Cyprus, early 1980s
Nitsa's uncle and cousin in Australia, early 1980s
Nitsa's extended family in Australia, early 1980s
Nitsa's extended family in Australia, early 1980s
Nitsa's aunts and uncles dancing at a wedding in Australia, early 1980s
Nitsa's aunts and cousin dancing at a wedding in Australia, early 1980s
Nitsa's aunts and cousins dancing at a wedding in Australia, early 1980s
A photo cover for a Greek Australian video recording company, early 1980s
Nitsa's aunts, uncles, and cousins at a wedding in Australia, early 1980s
Nitsa with one of her sons and her cousin, December 16, 1995
No items found.
The Pingos family outside of their hotel in the Troodos Mountains, 1960s
Nitsa's aunt and her son, January 1967
Nitsa with her mother and brother, late 1960s or early 1970s
Nitsa's cousin, Themis Drakos, who went missing during the Turkish invasion. He was only nineteen years old
This image of Themis, frozen in time like all the victims of the Turkish invasion, remained in his mother's home until her death in 2025
Another photo of Themis in the home of Nitsa's aunt
A commemoration to Themis after his remains were found over 40 years following the Turkish invasion
Nitsa's sister and brother (beside their aunt in the red dress) and extended family at a wedding, late 1970s
Nitsa's extended family in their ancestral village of Kambos, 1978
Nitsa's extended family in Kambos, 1978
Nitsa's extended family in Kambos, early 1980s
Nitsa's extended family in Kambos, early 1980s
Nitsa's yiayia putting money on the bed at a wedding in Kambos, early 1980s
Nitsa's brother (in the red shirt) with cousins in Cyprus, early 1980s
Nitsa's uncle and cousin in Australia, early 1980s
Nitsa's extended family in Australia, early 1980s
Nitsa's extended family in Australia, early 1980s
Nitsa's aunts and uncles dancing at a wedding in Australia, early 1980s
Nitsa's aunts and cousin dancing at a wedding in Australia, early 1980s
Nitsa's aunts and cousins dancing at a wedding in Australia, early 1980s
A photo cover for a Greek Australian video recording company, early 1980s
Nitsa's aunts, uncles, and cousins at a wedding in Australia, early 1980s
Nitsa with one of her sons and her cousin, December 16, 1995
No items found.
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