According to testimonies, the "Kalyfes of Lambris" are the oldest custom of Deryneia that is preserved to this day.
According to information gathered, they began to be organized approximately 130 years ago, perhaps even before 1900, and the program included running races, foot races, competitions and of course entertainment with music, tsiattistas, dances, etc.
Initially, the events were held at the chapel of Saint Constantine on May 21, the day when the memory of Saints Constantine and Helen is honored.
The organizers set up a makeshift "cover" covered with straw, from which the custom took its name, in the courtyard of the chapel, under which the instrumentalists sat.
Gradually the events were moved to the center of Deryneia, first to the Violaris cafe located on Panagiotis Paschalis Street and then to Agios Modestos Square. Initially the “kalyfes” were set up on the north side of the church of Agios Modestos and then they were moved in front of the shop (tsangaradiko) of Mastre Giorkis where they were established and the name of Mastre Giorkis, who was a typical folk figure and took part in the organization and maintenance of the custom, became directly associated with the custom. The events were held on the Sunday and Monday of Lambri and the Sunday of Thomas.
According to the information that was possible to gather, since unfortunately there are no written texts, the organizers were always people with a love for tradition and entertainment. In the 1930s, the organizers were Kyriakos Ttampas, Panagiotis Kourtas, Zakos, Tsimpouris, Giannis Siapanis, Nikolas Kouzas, Christodoulos Karonias, etc. Later, the organization was attended by Giannis Anamisi (Araouzos), Andreas Hatzikoumis, Nikolis and Loukas Kolokoudias, Giannis Giannitsaros, Mastre Giorkis, Georgios Pantelis Virtis, Andreas Katastrofas, etc.
A basic requirement for organizing the events was the setting up of the "cover" with psatharkes and the organizers were responsible for finding the instrumentalists (violin and lute).
Instrumentalists taking part were Georgios Violaris, Giannis Rousos (violin), Lefteris Telis (lute), Petros Assias (lute), Prokopis Laoutaris from Frenaros, Giannis Laoutaris from Avgorou, Kiles (lute) from Frenaros, Mimis (lute) from Avgorou, Pieris Pierettis (violin) from Frenaros, Kyriakos Kayias (lute) and others.
Tsiattistaes who took part in the events were Antonis Adamou Katsantonis, Hadjistylis, Hambis Kolokasis (Straohambis), who was blind and played the violin, Minas Sieftalis and Prikopoulos from Avgorou, Kouvaros from Liopetri, Petros Kantziaras and Pieris Pierettis from Frenaros, Tsiessos, Pittatziis, Xenis Patsalos and Loizos Tsiolakkis from Paralimni and of course the Deryneia Folk Poets and Tsiattistaes Christodoulos Karonias, Elias Hadjieliasis, Anastasis Giorkallos, Lefteris Telis, Giannis Giannitsaros, Dimitris Hadjigeorgiou, Mastre Giorkis, Georgios and Kostas Katsantonis, Georgios Karagiorkis, Markos Giasoumis, Kyriakos Pavlaras and Antonis Katsantonis.
Over time, the events took on a community-wide character and were also visited by groups from Famagusta and the surrounding villages.
At first, the men had fun alone, taking their own drinks and snacks with them, while the women gathered in another area and watched.
Afterwards, the organizers would cook the meze and sell drinks and cover the costs of the event. Drinks of the time were cask wine, cognac, lemonades, sodas, rose water, etc. Later, people would also get drinks from the cafes of Petris Skirtos, Georgios Siogas and Paschalis Pantelis that operated near Agios Modestos Square.
An integral part of the event was the treat of loukoumia. The young men called the kerastes who were trusted and with complete confidentiality and sent them to treat the girls who liked loukoumia. If the girl accepted the treat, it was a sign that there was mutual sympathy and it could develop into a courtship. If not, it meant that there was no room for a "relationship". Of course, the girls were always accompanied by their mothers or relatives and accepted the treat with great caution. Treating loukoumia also took place between friendly and related families. Famous kerastes were Giannis Anamisi, Nikolis and Loukas Kolokoudias, Katastrofas and Andreas Sotiriou Dionysis (Pelecanos).
The competitive part of the event initially included running races and horse races. The horse races took place on the Deryneia-Paralimni road and covered the distance from the location “Lanta” to the location “Haouza” and back. The riders climbed onto the back of the horse without a saddle and the winner received the “tzoya” as a prize. The “tzoya” was a scarf attached to a reed at the height of the rider near the finish line. A coin was tied in a knot inside the scarf and the first to finish grabbed the “tzoya”.
Another competition that was abolished, like the running races, was the lifting of the “Ditziimi”. The Ditziimi was a round polished stone weighing 80 okadas and the young men and lads of the village tested their strength. Whoever lifted it the highest was the winner. In the “Ditziimi” competition, Nikolas Aspris (Neolos), Nikolis Kouzas and Andreas Psaltis distinguished themselves, who not only lifted the “Ditziimi” but also gave it a tour of the church of Agios Modestos.
As mentioned above in the text at the beginning, women gathered separately from men and the girls hung their "souses" on the arches of the sunrooms and entertained themselves with songs. A typical song of the era: "My God, may the Bright Ones hang their souses, may my lips show many black-faced women."
Around the mid-1960s, the organization of the "Calyphs" was taken over by the "Renaissance" Association of Deryneia, which it organizes every year with a short break after the tragic events of 1974. There was also a break in the organization of the "Calyphs" during World War II and the EOKA Liberation Struggle of 1955-1959.
With the taking over of the organization of the custom by "Anagennisi", the events now took on a pan-community and regional character and the program was enriched with a folk orchestra and another rich program and other activities.
Research: Tasos Hatzilefteris
