The majority of the houses of Polemi stand on a plateau overlooking its associated farmland in the valleys on each side, where its boundaries meet those of neighbouring villages in the lower lying land.

The village stands at the point between several watersheds with valleys falling southwest towards Mavrokolympos, north towards Chrysochou Bay and also south east.

Some locals believe the name of the village is rooted in the settlement of a division of former soldiers from the Byzantine army in the Middle Ages or previously.

This large stone building and enclosed courtyard was built as an outpost of the Kykkos Monastery, the pre-eminent monastic institution of Cyprus.

This historic ownership may have dated back to the rule of the Frankokratia, the Crusaders or Venetians when a feudal system was introduced on the island; or from the time of the Ottoman Empire in Cyprus when families were subject to onerous taxes and private property was sometimes transferred to recognised religious institutions.

Today Polemi retains its predominantly Greek character but is home to a mix of nationalities with a number of British people living there as in other villages in the Paphos district.