Pafos or Paphos?
Pafos or Paphos?
We have received many emails asking which is the correct spelling of the name of our town; Pafos or Paphos.
The correct answer is Pafos. You will see it spelled like this on street signs, maps, government and municipal letter heads even though Paphos is also accepted widely.
I believe that Paphos is the British spelling of the Greek name ΠΑΦΟΣ. You will still find many people spelling it Paphos but whichever way you spell it, it is acceptable. If you are sending a letter it will be delivered whether you spell it Pafos or Paphos
I have heard people pronouncing it Pathos and sometimes even spell it Pathos. I think this is as a result of some people not being able to pronounce the letter F and instead pronounce it as TH, thus the Pathos. I would refrain from using that word locally as it means Passion in Greek. So imagine asking a local “Where can I find Pathos?” That might get you into some trouble.
So to sum up: It is acceptable to use both Pafos and Paphos but the correct spelling is Pafos. You might hear some locals pronouncing it BAFOS but that is just the way things are pronounced locally.
Also note that accepted names when spoken are also Pafo or Papho.
I hope this has cleared up the question.
