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Arsos Lemesou, Photo : Augusta Stylianou Artist

Arsos Lemesou (Greek: Άρσος Λεμεσού ) is a community of the District of Limassol

Arsos is located on the border of the provinces of Limassol and Paphos. The distance of the village from Limassol is 40 kilometers and its distance from Paphos is 45 kilometers. It is built at an altitude of 790 meters above sea level, on the slope of Mount Laona. To the south it borders with Malia, to the southwest with Gerovasa-Trozena, to the west with Pretori, to the north with Agios Nikolaos Paphos, to the northeast with Omodos and to the east with Vasa Koilaniou.

Name

There are three versions for the origin of the name of the village:

the name of the village came from the ancient Greek word alsos, which means small forest

the name came from the Sacred Grove of the goddess Aphrodite which was built in the village
Arsos is one of the 4 cities built by Ptolemy Philadelphus in honor of Arsinoe.

Vineyards

The village is one of the wine villages of the Limassol district and has been known for its viticulture since ancient times.

Holy temples

The village church is dedicated to Philip the Apostle, who is the patron Saint of the community. It was built in the 13th century and rebuilt in the 19th century. Next to the church there is a small church of Agia Mariamni. Outside the village there is a chapel of Panagia tis Katholiki.

Population
According to the population censuses carried out in Cyprus, the village experienced a large population growth from the 1910s to the 1960s. Then the population began to decline due to urbanization and the difficulties of living in a village far from the cities. ] The following table presents the population of Arsos as recorded in the population censuses carried out in Cyprus.

The village has a folklore Museum.