'Life is peaceful here': Nigerian refugees in Limassol between colonial afterlives and city-making.

This article examines the experiences of Nigerian refugees in the Republic of Cyprus, challenging the prevailing perception of African migration to the island as "unusual." It situates this migration within Cyprus's specific historical context of colonial-era emigration to Africa, which has contributed to entrenched anti-black racism, further intensified by EU membership and economic crisis. Focusing on the city of Limassol as a multiscalar urban space, the study highlights how Nigerian migrants navigate complex social, economic, and political constraints to establish lives amid restrictive asylum policies and racialized labor exploitation. The article argues that understanding migration through the lens of the city rather than the nation-state reveals the limitations of methodological nationalism and underscores the interconnectedness of colonial legacies, contemporary crises, and migrant emplacement.