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Glossary -- Cyprus
- Cyprus pound--(C£)
- Republic of Cyprus monetary unit consisting of 100 cents. At
independence C£1 was worth US$2.80. The average annual exchange
rate for C£ in 1979 was US$2.82; in 1982, US$2.11; in 1985,
US$1.64; in 1986, US$1.94; in 1987, US$2.08; in 1988, US$2.14; in
1989, US$2.03; and in 1990, US$2.19.
- European Community (EC--also commonly
called the Community)
- The EC comprises three communities: the European Coal and Steel
Community (ECSC), the European Economic Community (EEC, also known
as the Common Market), and the European Atomic Energy Community
(EURATOM). Each community is a legally distinct body, but since
1967 they have shared common governing institutions. The EC forms
more than a framework for free trade and economic cooperation: the
signatories to the treaties governing the communities have agreed
in principle to integrate their economies and ultimately to form a
political union. Belgium, France, Italy, Luxembourg, the
Netherlands, and the Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany) are
charter members of the EC. Britain, Denmark, and Ireland joined on
January 1, 1973; Greece became a member on January 1, 1981; and
Portugal and Spain entered on January 1, 1986. Cyprus became an
associate member June 1973.
- European Economic Community (EEC)
- See EC.
- gross domestic product (GDP)
- The total value of goods and services produced by the domestic
economy during a given period, usually one year. Obtained by adding
the value contributed by each sector of the economy in the form of
profits, compensation to employees, and depreciation (consumption
of capital). Most GDP usage in this book was based on GDP at factor
cost. Real GDP is the value of GDP when inflation has been taken
into account.
- gross national product (GNP)
- Obtained by adding GDP (q.v.) and the income received
from abroad by residents less payments remitted abroad to
nonresidents. Real GNP is the value of GNP when inflation has been
taken into account.
- International Monetary Fund
(IMF)
- Established along with the World Bank (q.v.) in 1945,
the IMF is a specialized agency affiliated with the United Nations
that takes responsibility for stabilizing international exchange
rates and payments. The main business of the IMF is the provision
of loans to its members when they experience balance of payment
difficulties. These loans often carry conditions that require
substantial internal economic adjustments by the recipients.
- Latin
- See Roman Catholic.
- Roman Catholic
- In historical use, the Latin Church refers to the western wing
of Christianity using Latin as its liturgical language,
jurisdictionally related to the bishop of Rome (the pope) rather
than one of the other patriarchs, and generally corresponding to
the area of the Western Roman Empire rather than the Eastern Roman
or Byzantine section. After the great schism of 1054 those churches
accepting papal authority became known as Catholic in contrast to
the Orthodox; the vast majority of these were Latin rite or Roman
Catholic. Since the religious conflict in Lusignan and Venetian
Cyprus was as much cultural as one of hierarchical structure, Roman
Catholics have continued to be known in Cyprus as Latins; the term
also is used to distinguish the descendants of the former Lusignan
and Venetian elites from Greek Cypriots.
- Turkish lira (TL)
- Monetary unit used in "Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus."
Also known as Turkish pound. Consists of 100 kurus. In terms of the
United States dollar, the annual average exchange rate was TL19.3
in 1977, TL76.0 in 1980, TL522.0 in 1985, TL674.5 in 1986, TL857.2
in 1987, TL1,422.3 in 1988, TL2,121.7 in 1980, and TL2,608.6 in
1990.
- VAT
- Value-added tax. A tax applied to the additional value created
at a given stage of production and calculated as a percentage of
the difference between the product value at that stage and the cost
of all materials and services purchased as inputs. The VAT is the
primary form of indirect taxation applied in the EEC
(q.v.), and it is the basis of each country's contribution
to the community budget.
- World Bank
- Informal name used to designate a group of three affiliated international
institutions: the International Bank of Reconstruction and Development (IBRD),
the International Development Association (IDA), and the International Finance
Corporation (IFC). The IBRD, established in 1945, has the primary purpose
of providing loans to developing countries for productive projects. The IDA,
a legally separate loan fund administered by the staff of the IBRD, was set
up in 1960 to furnish credits to the poorest developing countries on much
easier terms than those of conventional IBRD loans. The IFC, founded in 1956,
supplements the activities of the IBRD through loans and assistance designed
specifically to encourage the growth of productive private enterprises in
less developed countries. The president and certain senior officers of the
IBRD hold the same positions in the IFC. The three institutions are owned
by the governments of the countries that subscribe their capital. To participate
in the World Bank group, member states must first belong to the IMF (q.v.).
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