Lefka (; ) is a town in Cyprus, overlooking Morphou Bay. It is under the de facto control of Northern Cyprus. In 2011, the town proper had 3,009 inhabitants. It is the capital of the Lefke District of Northern Cyprus, having been a sub-district centre in the Güzelyurt District until the establishment of the district in 2016. Lefka is known for its citrus fruits and mines. It is the site of the European University of Lefke. During the Venetian period in Cyprus, Lefka was dominated by Catholics of Italian descent. Turks migrated to Lefka during Ottoman rule. Asil Nadir and Nil Burak were born in Lefka. The city houses the tomb of Nazim al-Haqqani, spiritual head of the Haqqani branch of the Naqshbandi Sufi order, died on 7 May 2014. History The first settlement in the Lefka area dates from the Neolithic period. According to one hypothesis, the town was founded in the 3rd century BC by Lefkos, the son of the Ptolemy king of Egypt, who is also said to have founded Nicosia (known as Lefkosia), and named after him. Another hypothesis states that a sick Christian girl named "Lefka", meaning poplar in Greek, came to the town to be healed by the clean air from the mountains. According to the legend, she lived in Lefka for a long time and died in the town, and the town was named after her to honor her memory. Lefka has historically been a copper mining town. The copper reserves around the town were first mined in the middle bronze age. Their operation continued into the Phoenician and Roman rules. They were closed by the end of the Roman period, in around 150. Ancient tombs dating to Hellenistic and Roman eras (between 310 BC and 150 AD) have been found around the town. In the Roman period, the nearby Karavostasi served as a port town for trade with and transport to Egypt. A church dedicated to Saint George is known to have existed in the town during the Byzantine rule. Under the Lusignans and Venetians, Lefka served as a district capital, home to Frankish and Latin captains, barons and officers. The Lusignan royal family sought refuge in the town when Cyprus was attacked by the Mamluks in 1425. The town was home to a clean and simple inn in the Middle Ages, serving as a lodging place for those who visited the