Katina Nicolaou, was born in 1904 in Limassol. Her education extended until the third grade of elementary school. Subsequently, her family settled in Varosi, as her father worked as a lighthouse keeper in Agia Napa. In 1924, she completed the Pancyprian Teachers' School in Nicosia and became a teacher in villages near Famagusta. She worked until 1939 when she was forced to resign by the colonial government due to her ideological activities.
Katina grew up in a working-class family, experiencing poverty and deprivation from an early age. These experiences fueled a systematic desire for change to end injustice and exploitation. Despite the family's financial struggles, Katina managed to study and become a teacher. At the age of 19, she joined the first communist nuclei in Varosi, actively participating in discussions about issues such as inequality, women's oppression, and human exploitation.
In 1924, she joined the Communist Club of Famagusta along with her brother Platon Tomazos. In 1926, she participated in the founding congress of the Communist Party of Cyprus. During this illegal congress, attended by only 21 people, Katina played a significant role in the first strikes of women workers in the Famagusta spinning mill.
After the establishment of AKEL (Progressive Party of Working People), Katina and her husband Jacob dedicated themselves to the party through the provincial committee in Famagusta. She became the secretary of the Organization of Democratic Women and, in 1950, was elected Secretary of the Pancyprian Organization of Democratic Women during its founding assembly. This effort aimed to unify and coordinate the actions of scattered women's organizations. In 1955, when the British outlawed AKEL and all popular organizations, PODW entered the illegal sphere until 1959 when it passed the baton to the Women's Organization of Cyprus (POGO). Katina played a leading role in POGO.
During the period of illegality for AKEL and the organizations of the Popular Movement (1955-1958), Katina, leading the women of Famagusta, took part in mobilizations for the release of political prisoners and fundraising to support their families.
She continued her active presence in the new conditions created by Independence until the tragic events of July 1974 forced her, along with her husband Jacob and daughter Themida, to become a refugee in Limassol.
Katina Nicolaou, widely known as "The Communist Woman," passed away as a refugee in Limassol in 1984. In her honor, POGO established the "Klio Christodoulidou and Katina Nicolaou Women's Contribution Award," first presented on November 10, 2017.
Sources:
Great Cypriot Encyclopedia
Speech by Kristian Christou at the 1st award ceremony of the "Klio Christodoulidou and Katina Nicolaou Women's Contribution Award" at Rialto, Friday, 10/11/17.
Special thanks to journalist/researcher Chrysanthos Chrysanthou for providing the photos and his valuable assistance
