International Scientific Indexing (ISI)

1 Pro-Islamic Neophytes Regarded as Existential “Failure” of Globalization Processes , Rustem Zhangozha The article observes the modern ethno-political and religious situation formed in today’s world. In the context of globalization and trans-cultural processes, the new unexplored forms of the ideology that influences social policies and procedures in the various regions of the world occurred. Primarily, these are quasi-Islamic marginalized group movements. In a pilot study, the author ponders the theme of the phenomenon of marginal quasi-religious entities.
2 European Charter and the Issue of Regional or Minority Languages in Georgia , Ucha Bluashvili The policy of international relations within the country, conducted by modern Georgian State is based on rich historical traditions of our country and on the fundamental provisions of the two documents approved by the world international organizations – “European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages” and the “Framework Convention on Human Rights for Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities.” Besides, the European documents give the prerogative to the authorities of concrete countries taking into consideration the democratic principles, to determine the criteria basing on which a certain language spoken in the territory of this or that country will be given the status of an independent language.” It was natural that Russian occupation of Georgia had left its trace in every area of the social life in the country. The people of different nationalities living in Georgia always preferred their children to go to Russian schools which were widely spread all over the country and restrained the area of using the Georgian language. Additionally, it conditioned the low level of civil identification. This in its turn caused the situation in which the ethnic groups living in Georgia perceive themselves as the representatives of their historical homeland, and not as the members of the Georgian society. This is such situation which represents the main peculiarity of Georgia in comparison with Western civilized countries. If the mentioned situation is not taken into deliberate consideration, conducting the right policy of international relations within the country will not be successful. After restoring the independence of Georgia , the motivation to learn the Georgian language has increased among the national minorities living in Georgia. The situation is improving slowly but steadily.The State Language regains its due position which means that the linguistic situation in the country is returning to its natural position. One part of population of ethnic Armenians (in Javakheti) and Azerbaijanians (in Kvemo Kartli) on the ground of the wrong interpretation of the Charter and other related European documents have been insisting on announcing their native languages as the regional ones. It would be the great and unforgivable mistake, while, the Georgian State does everything to deepen the integration of non-Georgian population of these regions in linguistic, cultural, political or economical spheres. Moreover, when the local non-Georgian population show great interest and try to replace the Russian language by Georgian, and when such politics has already shown positive results, introducing the status of regional languages in the mentioned territorial entities will decrease the 9 motivation of learning the Georgian language by non-Georgian population and will impede the ongoing process of integration. On the base of analysis of the conflicts having happened recently, it is not difficult to predict the results of such politics: introducing the status of regional languages will encourage the segmentation of Georgia, will support separatastic attitudes and all this will consequently bring new conflicts. The main sufferers from such situation will be the population of the regions themselves. Thus, instead of improving the situation, which by no doubt is the aim of the Charter, we will receive totally opposite results.The policy of international relations within the country, conducted by modern Georgian State is based on rich historical traditions of our country and on the fundamental provisions of the two documents approved by the world international organizations – “European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages” and the “Framework Convention on Human Rights for Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities.” Besides, the European documents give the prerogative to the authorities of concrete countries taking into consideration the democratic principles, to determine the criteria basing on which a certain language spoken in the territory of this or that country will be given the status of an independent language.” It was natural that Russian occupation of Georgia had left its trace in every area of the social life in the country. The people of different nationalities living in Georgia always preferred their children to go to Russian schools which were widely spread all over the country and restrained the area of using the Georgian language. Additionally, it conditioned the low level of civil identification. This in its turn caused the situation in which the ethnic groups living in Georgia perceive themselves as the representatives of their historical homeland, and not as the members of the Georgian society. This is such situation which represents the main peculiarity of Georgia in comparison with Western civilized countries. If the mentioned situation is not taken into deliberate consideration, conducting the right policy of international relations within the country will not be successful. After restoring the independence of Georgia , the motivation to learn the Georgian language has increased among the national minorities living in Georgia. The situation is improving slowly but steadily.The State Language regains its due position which means that the linguistic situation in the country is returning to its natural position. One part of population of ethnic Armenians (in Javakheti) and Azerbaijanians (in Kvemo Kartli) on the ground of the wrong interpretation of the Charter and other related European documents have been insisting on announcing their native languages as the regional ones. It would be the great and unforgivable mistake, while, the Georgian State does everything to deepen the integration of non-Georgian population of these regions in linguistic, cultural, political or economical spheres. Moreover, when the local non-Georgian population show great interest and try to replace the Russian language by Georgian, and when such politics has already shown positive results, introducing the status of regional languages in the mentioned territorial entities will decrease the 9 motivation of learning the Georgian language by non-Georgian population and will impede the ongoing process of integration. On the base of analysis of the conflicts having happened recently, it is not difficult to predict the results of such politics: introducing the status of regional languages will encourage the segmentation of Georgia, will support separatastic attitudes and all this will consequently bring new conflicts. The main sufferers from such situation will be the population of the regions themselves. Thus, instead of improving the situation, which by no doubt is the aim of the Charter, we will receive totally opposite results.
3 Some Iron Age and Medieval Sites in Göle District of Ardahan , Sami Pataci, Özlem Oral Pataci In this paper, an evaluation of some Iron Age and Medieval sites in Göle district of Ardahan is contained. The results of the field surveys conducted by us in Ardahan in 2016 and 2017 are effective in this assessment. The archaeological sites forming the subject of the article are located between the villages of KuzupÄ±narÄ± and Bellitepe in Göle. The archaeological sites in question are an Iron Age fortress and its settlement in KuzupÄ±narÄ±, two Iron Age towers, an ancient pen and a Medieval church in Bellitepe and a Medieval archaeological site in DedeÅŸen.
4 The processes taking place in the USA and Republic of Georgia (October-March, 1990-1991) , Erekle Shvelidze The represented work aims to determine the character of attitude of the USA Government and official circles towards the authorities of newly declared Republic of Georgia. The countries of the Western World which recognized the USSR, avoided settling the relations with newly declared former Soviet Republics and especially Georgia among others. Despite this fact the leader state of the West – the USA tried to show their interest in indirect ways towards the national and democratic processes taking place in Georgia. The USA Government greeted the multi-partial elections which brought the communist era to the end. The so called “parallel tactics” announced by the USA was an important initiative n that period of time. It was an important fact that on the day when Referendum was taking place in Georgia the results of which showed that great majority of the population voted for the Independence, ex-president Richard Nixon visited Tbilisi. In its turn, the new government of Georgia was trying to express their support to the USA and other democratic countries of the world in their actions against Iraq.
5 Foreign policy and orientation of the administration of independent Georgia (April-August 1991) , Erekle Shvelidze This article examines the foreign policy orientation of the Independent Georgian government in April-August 1991. It analyses the relations Georgia had on international arena in that period. Georgia apparently had the most intensive relations with the existing and the former Republics of the USSR. It is worth mentioning that the best and most intensive were the relations with the Baltic Republics. The contacts with neighboring Armenia and Azerbaijan were also comparatively close. Georgia signed some treaties of political and economical character with them. The interrelations mutual solidarity were continued with the East European countries of so called “Socialist countries” which had already become the independent countries (Poland, Hungary, Bulgaria and others). Those countries could not at that time recognize Georgia’s independence but they tried as far as was possible, to express moral support; the economical-cultural relations were accented to develop. The National Government of the independent Georgia aimed to have interrelations with other countries of the world as well, which was difficult to realize because of the serious obstacles. The fact that Georgia’s independence was not recognized at that time represented the main barrier for the relations. The countries of the Western democracies avoided such official ties and the relations were limited to the humanitarian sphere. Despite this fact, the tendency of growing interest towards Georgia was obvious. Till the August 1991, Georgia’s new government also tries also to fix pro-western orientation. But the processes could not develop in positive way. The international political attitude to the former Soviet republic which had announced their independence, unfortunately changed in unfavorable way. Georgia appeared to be in political isolation. That was conditioned by the demands of the so called mainstream policy and global interests of the USA and USSR. The interests of Georgia were temporarily sacrificed to agreement between the Soviet Union and the USA on reduction of the strategic armament. It was also a mistake made by the Georgian Government which took a hard-line postion towards the USA administration thus aiding to the process of international isolation of Georgia.
6 Qaqutsa Cholokashvili’s Ties with the North Caucasus (1923, June-November) , Edisher Narimanidze The represented work refers to the armed resistence which took place in August-September 1922, one year after the occupation of Georgian Democratic Republic by the Soviet Russia (1918-1921). The resistance movement took place in Dusheti administrative region and mountainous region of Pshav-Khevsureti. It was led by Georgian Democratic Republic Army cavalry Division 1st company commander, colonel Qaikhosro (Qaqutsa) Cholokashvili who was brought up in Sighnaghi administrative region (now Akhmeta region) village Matani. Beginning from March 12, 1922, with his fellow warriors and friends, who were known by the name “shefitsulebi” – sworn men, or “those who fought under the oath,” was camped in the forest. Unfortunately, the resistance was defeated. This work deals with the ties between Qaqutsa Cholokashvili and his combatants with the North Caucasus from June 1923 till November 1923, through the comparatively large and full investigation. This issue is thoroughly investigated using the source documents, emigrant literature and new archive documents which were considered from the new viewpoint, critically and objectively. The main result of the investigation is that when studying and analyzing the resistance movement in Georgia in 1921-1923, which was aimed to restore independence of Georgia, besides the early known documents, large number of the archive materials being unknown and unpublished till our days, have been now investigated, studied and used to analyze the mentioned important period of time in the Georgian historiography. Those materials mainly refer to the ties between the Georgian movement leader Qaqutsa Cholokashvili and the North Caucasus leaders. In relation with the situation formed nowadays in the North Caucasus, the scientific work has its practical as well as theoretical importance.
7 Investigate the World because of the Empirical Sensation of Reality in All Its Universal Completeness and Manifestyle , Rustem Zhangozha In this article the overview of turbulent processes, in which complex configurations of different ethnocultural discourses is discussed. Dramatic situation is not in parity and absence of actor's consensus of this process, which summons painful reaction of the participants of these contacts.
8 The Role of Georgian Defense Forces in International Participation through Missions in Foreign Policy , Vladimer Natenadze For Georgia, as for the small country with difficult geopolitics, foreign policy is crucial áƒ˜n terms of security and ensuring sovereignty. The country, as an important contributor to Euro-Atlantic security, contributes to the strengthening of international stability and security, actively participates in the peacekeeping operations under the auspices of NATO. The main priority of the foreign and security policy of Georgia is integration in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). For the Armed Forces, it is very important to be trained in accordance with the modern standards and gaining experience in international missions, which is essential for raising and strengthening the country's defense capabilities. Besides, NATO institutions were established developed energetic and infrastructure projects that serve to strengthen the country, integrate into Euro-Atlantic space, restore territorial integrity and support strengthening of stability. On the other hand, Georgia, as a member of NATO, will be a source of stability on the Caucasus and the Black Sea, which will create security guarantees in the region.
9 Inscription found on Grakliani Hill , Eduard Maisuradze The paper deals with the village Igoeti of Kaspi municipality in Georgia During archaeological excavations at Grakliani hill in Igoeti (2007) This year, the head of TSU Professor Vakhtang Licheli) Key inscription discovered. The work represents the present Based on data (inscription execution form, inscription design, Period of inscription completed (XI BC - X BC) The first attempt at scientific inquiry. Georgian alphabet Based on historical references to the origin of the Gracliani Gori inscription The signs / graphics are compared to ancient pre-Christian inscriptions, particularly, Calligraphy of Georgian alphabet in archaic stage and Sumerian hieroglyphic Signs. The focus is on identifying the semantics of inscription marks in the names of the astral deities in the pagan Georgian and Sumerian Pantheons, Which are inscribed in the inscription and are archaeological relevance With the monument space.
10 Exploratory field research expedition in Aspindza municipality (Tmogvi, Achkhia-Mirashkhani, Saro-khizabavra) , Tamar Matiashvili, Nikoloz Akhalkatsi The work is presented through Samtskhe-Javakheti State University’s science project – Field research expedition in October of 2018. Expedition group consisted of university professors and students of archeology. Archeological field research was done in Aspinda municipality (villages Tmogvi, Achkhia, Mirashkhani, Saro, Khizabavra). The archeological material which was retrieved during the survey of above mentioned locations have been identified: On Ackhia valley, ceramic material retrieved from around Kurgans is identical to the ones discovered by Meskheti-Javakheti expeditions and thus are dated fromthe end of XVI BC to the first half of XV BC. Materials retrieved from Achkhia village remains are dated late middle ages. Stone box slabs found in village Saro, within the territories of UshangiIvanidze are identified as a burial from the Hellenistic age. Burial items given to us by UshangiIvanidze from the village Saro are dated IV-III BC due to the necklace and burial jar. On the norther side of Khizabavra, large Kurgans were identified, as well as, remains of a church. On the eastern side of Khizabavra, close to the remains of a church where arch of a hall church is visible, ceramic material was retrieved and dated late middle ages. Archeological material was retrieved close to Saint Marinachurch of Tmogvi, mostly clay pottery from the late middle ages.
11 The Political Situation in Georgia at the End of the 50-ies and Beginning of the 60-ies XI Century , Vasil Mosiashvili The represented work refers to the political situation existing in Georgia at the end of the 50-ies and beginning of the 60-ies of the 15th century. The work has been done taking into consideration the approaches given in our historiography, and also, basing on the available historical sources This period is characterized by opposition between the royal power and noble people, the character of the Byzantine-Georgian political relations, the role of Turk-Seljuks in the regulation of the relations between Byzantium and Georgia, the reasons of returning Bagrat IV from Byzantium to Georgia, the role of church in returning Bagrat IV to Georgia, his intensive actions in the domestic and foreign policies of the country, the steps made towards the church reforms such as inviting the religious figure and scholar Giorgi Mtatsmindeli to Georgia, settling the problem of Tbilisi (the capital), strengthening the royal power, unite different politically opposed groups, settling peace throughout the country, solving numerous other problems existing at that time. This work analyzes the following issues: why the Byzantine Empire changed its policy towards the Georgian kingdom? What were the circumstances that contributed to the release of Bagrat IV from “honorable captivity"? How did the king of Georgia overcome the resistance of Abazasdze and Baghvashi families? How did he fight for accession of Tbilisi? The arrival of George of Mtatsminda to Georgia and his Church reform is also referred to in the work. It is shown, how powerful Georgia was politically before Alp Arslan’s invasions. This work argues that the further development of Georgia on her way to political progress had been suspended by Turk Seljuk military campaigns under the command of Alp Arslan.
12 On the issue of Akhaltsikhe pasha and the origin of the Jakheli , Kakhaber Gloveli In 1490 united Georgian feudal government was dissolved and in its place were established kingdoms of Kartli, Imereti and one principality of Samtskhe. This principality which later was called Samtskhe-Saatabago, had quite successful economy and politics and didn’t draw back from the other kingdoms. There was times when its power exceeded those kingdom’s power. Territory of Samtskhe-Saatabago was equal to one third (1/3) of Georgia. Due to its convenient positions it was never forgotten by Georgian kings and foreign invaders. Samtskhe was ruled by famous dynasty of Jakelians. Their Georgian origin was doubtful for Turkish
13 On the issue of Akhaltsikhe pasha and the origin of the Jakheli , Kakhaber Gloveli In 1490 united Georgian feudal government was dissolved and in its place were established kingdoms of Kartli, Imereti and one principality of Samtskhe. This principality which later was called Samtskhe-Saatabago, had quite successful economy and politics and didn’t draw back from the other kingdoms. There was times when its power exceeded those kingdom’s power. Territory of Samtskhe-Saatabago was equal to one third (1/3) of Georgia. Due to its convenient positions it was never forgotten by Georgian kings and foreign invaders. Samtskhe was ruled by famous dynasty of Jakelians. Their Georgian origin was doubtful for Turkish
14 The idea of an Isani Karavi and Georgian Constitutionalism , Amiran Kurtanidze The thesis pertains to the modern consideration of circumstance happened in the beginning of governance of Tamar of Georgia, as well as appearance of Kurtlu-Arslan’s group during 1184-1185 who had introduced the unique requirement for that time and following period – establishment of special governing body “Karavi” adjacent to Kingdom Hall in Isani. This had to be the institution like Parliament without attendance of King and Karavi’s members had to determine legislative, judiciary and personnel matters while Tamar of Georgia had to only execute their decisions. The appearance of Kurtlu-Arslani’s group is the historical event and is three years ahead from calling of Cortes in the Kingdom of Castile, Spain, in 1188 and is 30 years ahead from “the Great Charter of the Liberties" forced to John Lackland by the Barons of England in 1215 on the basis of which in 1265 was established the Parliament in England. This was the Georgian model of political authority demarcation of which foundations were elaborated by Locke and Montesquieu during XVII-XVIII centuries, after the five centuries. This was the “Third Estate” uprising for limitation of king’s governance and demarcation of political authority and it had the world-historical meaning.
15 The Village of Akura - Past and Present (According to ethnographic materials) , Medea Burduli The article describes the dynamics of socio-economic changes in one of the villages in the Kakheti region from the beginning of the 20th century to the present day, which is more or less characteristic of the Georgian village as a whole. In the 20th century, the village of Georgia has twice altered the fundamental of socio-economic development - the form of ownership; This basic changes have led to a kind of deterioration in the labor, social, cultural, economic and psychosocial relations of rural residents. The goal of our work is to show the dynamics of these changes. All major agricultural activities - farming, animal husbandry and viticulture were developed in the village. Many so-called “Ojakhishvili”(good families) i.e. wealthy peasants lived in the village. In the 1930s during the global collectivization they were ascribed to Kulaks and were dekulakized. From today's perspective it appears that these “Ojakhishvili” were ordinary, hard-working peasants who used wage labor to do business. This process severely damaged the Georgian village. According to ethnographic materials, by the 1980s the Akura collective farm was a millionaire, they had all the basic agricultural crops, there were no problems with employment, they worked both on the farm and in the enterprises of the region. Today, due to employment problems, rural migration is growing. After the land reform of the 1990s, because of the high cost of land cultivation and the lack of agricultural machinery, part of the population sold the land they received after the reform and some bought it; hence today the economic level of the villagers is different. Land reform was carried out with deficiencies that have hampered the development of some traditional agricultural sectors. Today in the village, where livestock farming was once the leading field, there are no pastures; because of the fragmentation of the land it is impossible to grow cereals. Currently, the main direction of agriculture in Akura is viticulture and livestock. Rural residents refrain from working together, because of the unstable situation.
16 The Village of Akura - Past and Present (According to ethnographic materials) , Medea Burduli The article describes the dynamics of socio-economic changes in one of the villages in the Kakheti region from the beginning of the 20th century to the present day, which is more or less characteristic of the Georgian village as a whole. In the 20th century, the village of Georgia has twice altered the fundamental of socio-economic development - the form of ownership; This basic changes have led to a kind of deterioration in the labor, social, cultural, economic and psychosocial relations of rural residents. The goal of our work is to show the dynamics of these changes. All major agricultural activities - farming, animal husbandry and viticulture were developed in the village. Many so-called “Ojakhishvili”(good families) i.e. wealthy peasants lived in the village. In the 1930s during the global collectivization they were ascribed to Kulaks and were dekulakized. From today's perspective it appears that these “Ojakhishvili” were ordinary, hard-working peasants who used wage labor to do business. This process severely damaged the Georgian village. According to ethnographic materials, by the 1980s the Akura collective farm was a millionaire, they had all the basic agricultural crops, there were no problems with employment, they worked both on the farm and in the enterprises of the region. Today, due to employment problems, rural migration is growing. After the land reform of the 1990s, because of the high cost of land cultivation and the lack of agricultural machinery, part of the population sold the land they received after the reform and some bought it; hence today the economic level of the villagers is different. Land reform was carried out with deficiencies that have hampered the development of some traditional agricultural sectors. Today in the village, where livestock farming was once the leading field, there are no pastures; because of the fragmentation of the land it is impossible to grow cereals. Currently, the main direction of agriculture in Akura is viticulture and livestock. Rural residents refrain from working together, because of the unstable situation.
17 The Village of Akura - Past and Present (According to ethnographic materials) , Medea Burduli The article describes the dynamics of socio-economic changes in one of the villages in the Kakheti region from the beginning of the 20th century to the present day, which is more or less characteristic of the Georgian village as a whole. In the 20th century, the village of Georgia has twice altered the fundamental of socio-economic development - the form of ownership; This basic changes have led to a kind of deterioration in the labor, social, cultural, economic and psychosocial relations of rural residents. The goal of our work is to show the dynamics of these changes. All major agricultural activities - farming, animal husbandry and viticulture were developed in the village. Many so-called “Ojakhishvili”(good families) i.e. wealthy peasants lived in the village. In the 1930s during the global collectivization they were ascribed to Kulaks and were dekulakized. From today's perspective it appears that these “Ojakhishvili” were ordinary, hard-working peasants who used wage labor to do business. This process severely damaged the Georgian village. According to ethnographic materials, by the 1980s the Akura collective farm was a millionaire, they had all the basic agricultural crops, there were no problems with employment, they worked both on the farm and in the enterprises of the region. Today, due to employment problems, rural migration is growing. After the land reform of the 1990s, because of the high cost of land cultivation and the lack of agricultural machinery, part of the population sold the land they received after the reform and some bought it; hence today the economic level of the villagers is different. Land reform was carried out with deficiencies that have hampered the development of some traditional agricultural sectors. Today in the village, where livestock farming was once the leading field, there are no pastures; because of the fragmentation of the land it is impossible to grow cereals. Currently, the main direction of agriculture in Akura is viticulture and livestock. Rural residents refrain from working together, because of the unstable situation.
18 The Village of Akura - Past and Present (According to ethnographic materials) , Medea Burduli The article describes the dynamics of socio-economic changes in one of the villages in the Kakheti region from the beginning of the 20th century to the present day, which is more or less characteristic of the Georgian village as a whole. In the 20th century, the village of Georgia has twice altered the fundamental of socio-economic development - the form of ownership; This basic changes have led to a kind of deterioration in the labor, social, cultural, economic and psychosocial relations of rural residents. The goal of our work is to show the dynamics of these changes. All major agricultural activities - farming, animal husbandry and viticulture were developed in the village. Many so-called “Ojakhishvili”(good families) i.e. wealthy peasants lived in the village. In the 1930s during the global collectivization they were ascribed to Kulaks and were dekulakized. From today's perspective it appears that these “Ojakhishvili” were ordinary, hard-working peasants who used wage labor to do business. This process severely damaged the Georgian village. According to ethnographic materials, by the 1980s the Akura collective farm was a millionaire, they had all the basic agricultural crops, there were no problems with employment, they worked both on the farm and in the enterprises of the region. Today, due to employment problems, rural migration is growing. After the land reform of the 1990s, because of the high cost of land cultivation and the lack of agricultural machinery, part of the population sold the land they received after the reform and some bought it; hence today the economic level of the villagers is different. Land reform was carried out with deficiencies that have hampered the development of some traditional agricultural sectors. Today in the village, where livestock farming was once the leading field, there are no pastures; because of the fragmentation of the land it is impossible to grow cereals. Currently, the main direction of agriculture in Akura is viticulture and livestock. Rural residents refrain from working together, because of the unstable situation.
19 TRANSFORMATION OF TRADITIONAL VALUES IN THE CONDITIONS OF POST-MODERN AND INITIAL PHASE POST- POSTMODERN IN SOCIAL PRACTICE , RUSTEM ZHANGOZHA Abstract The article is devoted to the relationship of the processes of comparative studies in artistic culture with the processes of social practice in the context of globalization and multiculturalism. The problem of multiculturalism was considered in the context of postmodernism, which went beyond the limits of the artistic method and was extrapolated to social practice. Under the influence of these processes, the value system is radically transformed. Analyzing the problem of multiculturalism from the point of view of comparative studies, the author comes to the preliminary conclusion that the intensification of protest social movements “Islamic State”, “Taliban” and others in the Middle East and “right movements”, nationalism and isolationism in Europe represent a spontaneous response to the process of globalization and an attempt to preserve ethno-cultural identity. These same reasons can explain the decline in the influence and attractiveness of liberal-democratic models of social development. In the medium term, we can expect spontaneous turbulent processes in the social and political life of not only developing countries, but also countries with stable socio-political traditions. Keywords: Globalization, multiculturalism, globalistics informational space, comparativistics, postmodernism, social practice.
20 ON THE PROBLEM OF GEORGIAN TERRITORIAL PRETENSIONS REGARDING SOCHI DISTRICT , UCHA BLUASHVILI Abstract The historical sources of the antique epoch (Flavius, Arianne) clearly show that in the 2nd century the Georgian (Kartvelian) population, namely, Laz people, really dwelt in the North-East part of the Black Sea region. Beginning from the 5th century, the territory between the regions of Apkhazeti and Jiqeti was known under the name Nikopsia. During the period of the 8th -11th centuries, Nikopsia was a part of the Georgian principality of Abkhazeti. The following Georgian expressions which refer to the old Georgian territories: “nikopsiidan darubandamde “–– “spread from Nikopsia to Darubandi” and “ovsetidan sperad aragatsamde” – “beginning from Oseti through Speri to Aragats” - are historically confirmed and well known from the times of the Georgian King Davit Aghmashenebeli (David the Builder). Those territories were the important part of the Georgian Kingdom under the rule of David Aghmashenebeli. The intensive process of migration of the Abkhaz –Adygh people from the North Caucasus to the sea-side regions began in the 13th century. In the 14th century Georgia lost a part of its territory, namely, the outmost principality Saeristao, a part of Abkazeti region, the territory between the rivers Nikopsia and Bzipi. This processes caused expulsion of the Georgian population from the region and in parallel, moving and settling of the North Caucasus people to the mentioned region. At the time when the late middle centuries began, the Georgian population had already disappeared from the territory between the rivers Nikopsia and Bzipi. Beginning from the 30-ies of the 19th century, Russia started the process of adoption of the Sochi territory and its surroundings. It seems that at the mentioned time the territories were almost uninhabited. The Tsarist Russia tried to occupy the territory by Russian inhabitants but Russian people were accustomed to living in the prairies, called steps in Russian, so they were not eager to dwell on the sea side territory. Later, Russia inhabited these territories by Ukrainians, Estonians and Moldavians. At the end of the 19th century, the Georgians from different regions of Georgia began to live there too (from Samegrelo, Racha). In March 1918, incited and supported by bolshevik Russia, Abkhaz bolsheviks announced the Soviet power in Sokhumi and addressed Russia for help and support. The council of Abkhaz people in its turn addressed Tbilisi (the Trans-Caucasian Seim) to help and support Abkhazeti against bolsheviks. The Georgian Army under the command of General Giorgi Mazniashvili liberated Abkhazeti and then occupies Sochi and Tuapse. The representatives of the Russian Volunteer Army Generals - Mikhail Alekseev and Anton Denikin, in the form of ultimatum, requested the Georgian Army to retreat. Mazniashvili offered negotiations to the Generals of the Russian Volunteers Army. On the 6th of September, this Army occupied Tuapse. The negotiations between the Government of Georgia and representatives of the Russian Army took place on September 6th but they brought no results. General Denikin united all the anti-Soviet forces in the South of Russia and becan military activities to occupy Sochi. In December, the soldiers of the Denikin Army occupied first Sochi and then Gagra. After the Bolshevik Army destroyed the military forces of General Denikin, the Georgian Army succeeded in deoccupying Gagra though it did not even try to enter Sochi and thus, stopped its actions at the Psou River.. Thus, the territorial pretensions of Georgia towards the Sochi and Nikopsia (Tuapse), from the viewpoint of the first native inhabitants, are reasonable, though it must be said that those territories were not taken off from Georgia by Russia. Long before Russians came to the territory, the Georgians had left it as a result of the expansion of the mountainous people. As for the role of Sergo Ordjonikidze in regard with Sochi problem, he did not have any bearing on it. Key Words: Sochi region, Apkhazeti, Democratic Republic of Georgia.
21 MINISTRY OF INTERNAL AFFAIRS IN THE DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF GEORGIA , OTAR JANELIDZE Abstract The history of activities of the state institutions of the Democratic Republic of Georgia, including the Ministries is not properly studied. The present article aims to make up for some of these shortcomings of historiography and, based on the first sources, covers the work the Ministry of Internal Affairs in 1918-1921. The Ministry of Internal Affairs was established immediately after the restoration of Georgia's state independence and the establishment of a democratic republic. From the very first day, it was headed by the famous Georgian Social Democrat Noe Ramishvili, who was also the chairman of the government from May 26, 1918 to June 24, 1918. The agency had: a central division, charity, healthcare, post and telegraph departments and a special detachment. The Central Division of the Ministry included administrative, general, reporting, local economy, community, veterinary and bordering departments, and the Central Committee for Refugees. The Criminal Investigation Militia was also subject to the Ministry. The agency was responsible for ensuring state order, citizen registration and providing them with ID documents, general control over the formation and operation of local self-government bodies throughout the country, as well as support for the development of the communication systems - post and telegraph etc. The study showed that the Ministry of Internal Affairs was an important guarantor of the stability and security of the state throughout the existence of the Democratic Republic of Georgia. It overcame unrest and anarchy in different parts of the country and provided conditions for more or less calm flow of life of the State. In this regard, a special role was played by a special Detachment of the Ministry led by Mecca Kedia. The Detachment managed to prevent several anti-state uprisings and attempts of an armed revolt; Many agents and means of propaganda of hostile countries towards Georgia were spotted and identified. More than 1,000 Bolsheviks suspected of undermining activities against the country were arrested at different times, a certain part of them was deported from Georgia. The Ministry paid great attention to cultural and educational activities, and Minister Ramishvili often visited different towns and villages for direct contacts with the population. It is the merit of the agency that a telegraph was laid in all parts of Georgia, the postal mail, and telephone service systems were expanded. The Ministry of Internal Affairs submitted about 80 bills to the Constituent Assembly for approval, many of which became laws and it issued tens of legal acts (decrees, resolutions, ordinances). The agency made great efforts to overcome the "Ispanka" epidemic, as well as to solve the problems of refugees from abroad looking for shelter in Georgia. Key words: Democratic Republic of Georgia, Ministry of Internaly Affairs, Special detachment, Cryomogenic situation, Security, Stabilization.
22 THE HISTORICAL REALITY AND THE POEM BY DAVIT GURAMISHVIL “ KARTLIS CH'IRI” (“DISASTERS OF KARTLI”) , KETINO GRDZELISHVILI Abstract The represented work shows the ways and goals of reproducing the historical reality in the poem by Davit Guramishvili . It is noted here that the historical reality given in the poem refers to the issue of the genre’ it is noted that the role and the importance of the subject who conceives the realirty, is different in the different genres; it is noted that in the epic genre of literature, the ideological and artistic position of the main subject, his mood, sympathies and antipathies are comprehended through the comprehension of the object. As for lyrics, the situation is vice versa. The lyric poetry works on subjectivising of the object, giving the picture of the objective reality with all its content and characteristics emotionally, excitingly. The researchers such as K. Kekelidze, G. Qiqodze, relate the epic poem “Kartlis Ch'iri” (transl. - “Disasters of Kartli”) to the genre of the historical epos, though it is noted in the work that this piece of literature do not represent a typical example of historical poem. Besides the historical facts, the mood and thoughts of the author are also described in the lines of the epic poem. Thus the genre to which the poem belongs can be called a lyrical-epic poem. The answer to the question what is historical in the content of the poem, is given in the given paper: first of all, it is clear from the poem when we read about the historical persons: first of all, the history of the King Vakhtang VI, then, there we meet such personages as Konstantine II, Peter I, Shakh Tamaz, Nadir-Shakh, the monk Didoveli, Simon Abramishvili, the poet Javakhishvili, Davit Guramishvili (the author of the given poem). It is also denoted that the historical reality described in the poem serves to the didactic goal of the author to show to the young generation the main reason which had caused the disastrous situation for the country – namely, this reason is negation of God. It also described that the poem “Kartlis Ch’iri” shows us the situation of those times in details. The period described in the poem involves the situation existing in the Georgian provinces Kartl-Kakheti (East Georgia) from the 20-ies of the XVIII century till the departure of the King Vakhtang VI to Russia. The political failure of the king was almost immediately followed by his personal tragedy - he was captured and imprisoned by the Daghestanian people, who are called lekebi – Leks (in Georgian). Then he escaped from prison, was invited at court of the Russian Empire, his Departure towards the Caspian Sea, his death, the hard days of his friends and surrounding people, the period of collapse of their ideology. The author of the poem D. Guramishvili associated the tragedy of the King Vakhtang VI with the Russian politics. Davit Guramishvili describes the historical events with true narrative. The facts he describes in his poem correspond to the historical facts though as for the King of Kakheti, Konstantine II the poet describes him as a reasonable politician which does not coincide with the facts known in Georgian historiography. Through description of the aspiration and striving of the personages of Konstantine II and Vakhtang II, the author of the poem describes the idea of united Georgia. Davit Guramishvili shows the perfidious politics of the king Iesse, his lies and the disastrious situations in the kingdoms of Kartli and Kakheti. It should be also said that D.Guramishvili gives the precise dating of historical facts: the years 1721, 1739, 1742, 1757, 1758, 29 November of 1774 which are exact undoubtedly. It is noted in the poem that Davit Guramishvili did not aim to play the role of a chrongrapher; his aim is to describe the historical events and show the examples to the new generations through discussing those events, describing them poetically. Key words: histotical reality, epic genre,Vakhtang VI , the epic poem Kartlis Ch’iri, Konstantin II, Russian politics.
23 JULIUS von KLAPROTH'S OBSERVATIONS ON TBILISI , ZEYNEP TOPAL Abstract In the early part of nineteenth century Julius Von Klaproth (1783- 1835), who made important contributions to development of orientalism in Europe, published more than 300 works. As a German historian and linguist, Klaproth’s Caucasian studies are on geographical, historical and linguistics. He joined the Saint Petersburg Academy of Sciences in 1805 and continued his studies there. His notes about the trip he organized to Caucasia and Georgia in 1807-1808 were published in Germany in 1814. This travel book is the first work related to the historical geography of the Caucasus. The work, which is mentioned in detail from the language groups and tribes in the Caucasus, allowed Europe and the Russians to know and understand the Caucasus more closely. This work, which includes the first comprehensive observations and evaluations that will help us understand the socio-cultural and economic structure of the Caucasus, is different from other travel books in terms of chronically mentioning Russia's relations with the Caucasus and Georgia. The geographical descriptions of Klaproth about Georgia are very successful. In his travel book, he described Tbilisi with its historical, geographical, socio-cultural and economic structure. The author, who had the opportunity to get to know the Georgians closely during his time in Tbilisi, gives important information about the Georgian culture. In particular, he talked about the general appearance of Tbilisi, and to what extent the wars destroyed the streets and houses. Even today, he talked about the healing waters of Tbilisi, which is famous for its sulfur baths, and described the culture of bath and its understanding of cleanliness. Touching on the trade and religious structure in Tbilisi, he gave information about the socio-cultural structure of Georgia in the example of Tbilisi. Key Words: Julius Von Klaproth, Tbilisi, history, culture, city.
24 LEGAL OPINIONS IN ADJARA DURING THE OTTOMAN RULELEDALL , OTAR GOGOLISHVILI Abstract The article notes that prolonged domination of Ottomans and spreading of Islam in Adjara caused introduction of completely new legal system , which was different from traditional Georgian legal norms. They started introduction of their official legal standards for making Adjara as a part of their empire. An official legal system of the Ottoman Empire was derived from Islam. Gradually, Ottomans introduced Islamic law “Sharia”. During the Ottoman domination in Adjara, “sharia” was considered to be the main legal norm. Naturally, Turkey considered this region as their own territories. So, they carried out the same reforms in this region as in the Ottoman empire. For example, Ottomans carried out Tanzimat in every occupied territories equally, which helped them to strengthen their power on the occupied territories and form Ottoman legislature. For Georgia, the most important decision was legislature about ground, which was activated in 1858. According to “sharia”, every muslims could have a ground for cultivation, however this property was not constant for them, because Allah was considered to be an owner of ground. Key words: Ottoman empire, Adjara, spreading of Islam, Georgian legal norms, Tanzimat, legislature, Sharia, muslim
25 ATTEMPTS TO FORM THE GEORGIAN NATIONAL ARMY IN THE EARLY 1990S , ALEKSANDRE MOSIASHVILI Abstract The present paper presents Georgia In parallel with the processes aimed at restoring independence, Related to the formation of the Georgian National Defense Army A sort of collection of official documents. It discusses with the background of existing historiography in the early 90s of the XX century Internal Troops - Moments of formation and reorganization of the National Guard. In April 1989, tragic events took place in Tbilisi and it is The basis for the consolidation of the Georgian people – Georgia Around the idea of restoring independence. Against the background of the successful steps towards independence, it became necessary not only to maintain the newly formed National Guard, but also his salvation from physical liquidation. In 1991 the danger was avoided by the president of Georgian respublic, that danger was coming from Moscow(Putch) and was used yy certain forces, for destabilization. But the review of the found and presented documentary materials and the final results of the research allowed us to fully clarify the issue and evaluate it objectively. Keywords: President, National Guard, Order, Putch, Internal Troops, Ministry of Defense, Law.
26 ABOUT THE RELIGIOUS IMPORTANCE OF TAO-KLARJETI , ONUR GUVEN Abstract In Georgian historiography the North-East parts of Anatolia, in particular Artvin, Erzurum, Ardahan and Kars are referred as part of Tao-Klarjeti. The mentioned region had gained particular importance during the IX-XII centuries. Here, even back to the era of King Vakhtang Gorgasali had started the building of the monastery, that took intensive form during the later period, when the Tao-Klarjeti kingdom. In the written source of the Xth century, "The life of the Gregory of Khandzta", we encounter the information that a priest from Kartli came to Klarjeti and enhanced the monastery-building and trained students. During the IXth century Ashot I The Great who had been expelled by the Arabs had moved to Klarjeti and established a kingdom there. Ashot I the Great and his descendants had helped Gregory of Kandzta in establishing the monasteries in Klarjeti and therefore assisted the establishment of spiritual culture in the region. During the later period, the Bagration dynasty had been divided into three branches: the main branch-Bagrationi's of Tao, the Kingdom of Georgia and the Bagrationi's of Klarjeti. During the later period the Bagrationi's of Tao had become stronger and they had assisted in buidling the new monasteries during the Xth century. By establishment of the monasteries in Tao-Klarjeti, the establishment of schools and educational institutions had also been present, where the Christian religion, philosophy, foreign languages and arts had been taught. Apart from this, these institutions where the places, where the stories about the saints had been written, where the original religious songs and theological texts had been produced. To sum up, we should say that these territories played significant part in the development of the Georgian culture and therefore, it deservedly had been called as "Georgian Sinai". Keywords: Tao, Klarjeti, Artvin, Erzurum, Church, Monastery.
27 QUEEN MARY OF BYZANTIUM AND GEORGIA , ALEXSANDRE OTARASHVILI, NUNU MIKELADZE Abstract The paper discusses the life and political activities of Mariam Bagrationi in Byzantium and Georgia through historical sources and literature. His aspirations for supremacy at the Byzantine imperial court were associated with great conflicting struggles. Mariam Bagrationi was a great political figure and experienced many hardships in her life. She actually ruled the Byzantine Empire and became such a successful figure that although the Byzantines did not spare other nations than the Greeks, the Byzantine historians of that time could not hide their admiration for her mind and beauty. The queen, who was the first person in the superpower of the world, did not forget her country and helped to introduce the necessary reforms, build Georgian churches and monasteries and educate Georgian youth. Key words: Georgia, Byzantium, Empire, Queen, Constantinople, Turkish-Seljuks, Reforms
28 MOTHER OF GOD PROTECTOR AND INTERCESSOR OF GEORGIA AND GEORGIANS' MENTALITY , NINO GHAMBASHIDZE, LIANA MELIKISHVILI Abstract Worship of the Virgin Mary holds a special place in Georgian people’s religious beliefs. She is one of the most distinguished, popular and venerated among other saints. Georgian and foreign historical sources, ecclesiastical narratives, ethnographic materials and relevant scholarly literature show how the idea of to be allocated to Virgin Mary was introduced into the national consciousness of Georgian people during centuries and what forms the worship of St. Mary acquired in Georgian people’s faith. Special patronage of the Virgin Mary for the Georgians contributed to St. Mary’s solid and one of the most distinguished places in the Georgian Christian worldview; becoming one of the most important characteristics of their collective consciousness and identity. In today’s Georgia social and political conditions have helped to advance this idea of St. Mary’s patronage. This idea is a part of the Georgians’ ethnicity, which can contribute to the consolidation of the Georgian population regardless of their faith or nationality. Thus, the newly established holiday dedicated to the Virgin Mary’s patronage, introduction of which is conditioned by the country’s socio-political circumstances, is organic for the Georgian nation and can be considered as one of the means for the consolidation of Georgian state. The article is based on Georgian and foreign historical sources, ecclesiastical narratives, Georgian ethnographic materials and relevant scholarly literature. Key words: the Virgin Merry, be allocated, ethnicity, identity.
29 FEMALE NAMES NANA AND NINO AND THEIR CONNECTION WITH THE GEORGIANS’ BELIEFS , NINO GHAMBASHIDZE, NANA BAKHSOLIANI Abstract The popularity of female names Nana and Nino, common among the Georgians, should be closely connected with the Georgians’ religion. Nana, with mythical great mother and Nino, with the real teacher of faith and enlightener of the Georgians, who converted the Kingdom of Kartli. The study of how these names got into Georgian environment led us to some hypothesis. If basing on the existing rich scientific literature we may assume that there existed certain ethnic, linguistic and cultural relations between Sumer and Georgia, which were also reflected in similar beliefs. Thus, the name of the goddess Nana may have been derived from the Sumerian Inanna /Nin-ana and introduced in Georgia. This could particularly be supported by the fact that Inanna was not only the most popular goddess throughout the Sumerian existence in Sumer, but rather, because of its universal popularity, the name was generally used to denote a goddess. If our reasoning is correct, it is not surprising that the greatest pre-Christian Georgian goddess Nana was named after Inanna. However, the great mother Nana and Inanna / Ishtar are somewhat different in nature. Mother Nana is great mother, the goddess of childbearing; connected with universal fertility, earth, paradise, life-and-death, the goddess of astral cults, who originated during the period of high development of solar religious beliefs. Unlike Nana Inanna / Ishtar is the goddess related with carnal love, war, heaven, Venus the star, and in some cases has androgynous nature. She is believed to have nothing to do with childbearing, and is the mate of Dumuzi – mortal and retrievable male deity. Since Inanna / Ishtar is not the "wife of the deity", she does not reveal any connection with childbearing, with one exception, her corresponding deity in Georgian mythical-religious beliefs is Dali. Like Inanna, Dali is the goddess of carnal love, nature, especially hunting in our case and at the same time the patron of hunters. Actually, she also has one son, Amiran. Lastly, Dali, too, is associated with Venus the star and is depicted as ibex (deer), plant and star in early landscape painting. Keywords: History of religion, goddesses, Sumer, Georgia.
30 THE LEXICAL UNITS TELL US (according to ethnographic materials of Mareti Valley) , DAVID SHAVIANIDZE Abstract The best way to study the outcomes of cultural interactions between the Georgian and Turkish states in the Middle Ages is their peaceful, voluntary and equitable cooperation in the present. The folk bases of toponyms and the lexical units reflecting the cultural, social and religious particularities of Georgians living in Mareti Valley reflect the preserved Georgian mentality that the ethnic-cultural identity of Georgians living in the Adjara community has not totally changed, faded or disappeared, despite the influence of the Islamic-religious and then the Russian machines. The proper names tell us about functional traits of Georgians, the traditional developed type of farming, a wide or relatively local geographical area, and their social organization. Of course, the ethnographic group of Adjara’s indigenous population has given these names, but in some cases, due to the influence of religion and political machine, their original meanings are so far in our rearview, the storytellers, when talking about naming, are mostly based on the assumptions. The fact is also that the primary-source action-studying toponyms related to people returned to the Christianity in modern times, reflect the point of view taken on the basis of the Islamic religion. The own names of people living here are of ancient Georgian origin. By toponyms and the various lexical units, in addition to the ethnic-cultural and religious-political influences, it is posible to study the modern linguistic state of contextual importance. Key words: socio-cultural, religious particularities; domestic culture; historica-ethnographic unit; historical problem; spiritual life; religious customs and traditions.
31 POLITICAL UNIFICATION OF THE EAST PERIPHERYES OF HITTITES – FOR SEARCHING OF ISMIRIKA , NINO CHAREKISHVILI Abstract The article discusses one of the important geographical points of the political units on the Eastern Periphery of Hittites, this is Ismirika. Especially it’s important to mention here the Ismirika’s Treaty, which the king of Hittites made with the people of Ismirika. The Treaty is published in the series of KUB and ABot, these texts and fragments are preserved in the BoÄŸazköys archive. The innovation is the fact that Ismirika’s special research was carried out for the first time. History of Hittites is discussed based on the Georgian translation and analyses of Ismirika’s Treaty and presents the controversial issues of this period in a new way. The article analyzes the issue of dating the Treaty, either it is related to the reign of the king - Arnuwanda I or Arnuwanda II. We have tried to bring additional arguments and facts about the possibility that military operations in South-East Anatolia are associated with the name Arnuwanda I and the Treaty with Ismirika is signed by him. In the article we are talking about the approximate location, toponymy, etymology and other important issues of Ismirika, according to which it is stated the opinion regarding its relation with historical Speri. This opinion once again states the idea that Ismirika might be one of the states of Kaskians-Mushki, settled by Kartvelian tribes. Of course, by the geographical area and the political situation, there might be the existence of Hurrian elements in the population. Ismirika had very important strategically meaning for Hettites, what can be confirmed from “Treaty of Ismerika”. So, the east periphery of Hittites is very considerable to research the history of Hittites, also for study of this region and consequently it’s very important for researching of the ancient history of Georgia. Keywords: Assyriology, Ismirika, Hittite, Kaskians, Arnuwanda
32 THE MISSION OF THE BRITISH AND POLES IN THE CAUCASUS (30s-50s OF THE 19th CENTURI) , ANNA MANAGADZE Abstract The Great Caucasian Wars of the Russian Empire of the 19th Century became an object of interest to European politicians and public figures. At that time, not only the interests of Russia and the Caucasus were clashing, but also the interests of England, Turkey and Persia contradicted to each other. International disagreements over Russian-Caucasian relations have become significant and have contributed to the escalation of the conflict. The aim of the study is to determine the influence of foreign states and foreign policy factors on the domestic and foreign policy course of the Caucasus countries in 1830-1850. Up to date, there is a difference of opinion on the essence of the Caucasus policy of Russia and Europe, the chronology of the Caucasian war has not been defined, and the study of a number of issues has been left out of consideration. It was these circumstances that led to starting this study. The paper discusses and introduces the works of authors unknown to Georgian historiography. Keywords: Caucasian Wars, Russian Empire, Europe.
33 POLITICAL ACTIVITIES OF MUSTAFA CHOKAI DURING THE PERIOD OF EMIGRATION TO FRANCE , AIGUL KISTAUBAYEVA Abstract Mustafa Chokai was the leader and creator of the first emigration Turkestan center in Paris. His goal was the creation of independent national statehood in Turkestan. Mustafa Chokai fought for the freedom of the Kazakh, Uzbek and other Turkic peoples, made every effort to reveal to the world public the hidden sides of the policy of the Bolsheviks in Soviet Russia in relation to non-Russian peoples. The creation of the Turkestan Legion from prisoners of war during World War II is associated with the name of Mustafa Chokai. It is the works of Mustafa Chokai that give an objective description of these processes, which have seriously damaged the historical consciousness of the people. For this reason, the need to study the political science heritage of Mustafa Chokai is a need of the time. Of greatest interest to historians is the mushroom of political activity of Mustafa Chokai in the ranks of the anti-Bolshevik movement "Prometheus", uniting in Europe the heads of national autonomies defeated by the Red Army from 1917 to 1921. The ideology of the Promethean movement was directed towards the formation of peoples fighting for national self-determination civic culture. The study revealed archival materials relating to the political activities of Mustafa Chokai in France. Keywords: diaspora, Kazakhs, emigration, Turkestans, Mustafa Chokai, France, Alashordins, Kokand autonomy, intelligentsia.
34 THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE AGRICULTURE AND ECONOMY OF THE PEOPLES OF THE NORTHERN CAUCASUS , AYSHE AYCHICHEK Abstract The Caucasus, from the geopolitical perspective is the linking bridge between Europe and Asia, as a geographical unit, is the witness of many historical events, which had subsequently changed the history. The existence of the trade routes crossing the mountainous landscape and gorges in the Caucasus had become the foundational factor of its economic structure. In this context, the main sources for making livelihood had become agriculture. cattle-breeding and fishing for the peoples of the Northern Caucasus-Adyghe People, Ossetians, Chechen-Ingushs and Nakh(Vainakh) people. This is confirmed with the discovery of the agricultural tools and human skeletons. The study of the discovered artifacts confirms the theory that they had been on a higher level of development in comparison to other peoples residing in the region. Apart from this, the Caucasus, by having the important trade routes had played important role in the development of the international trade in the region. Keywords: Adyghe people, Ossetians, Checheno-Ingushs, Vainakh People, Agriculture, Cattle-breeding.
35 DYNAMICS OF THE POPULATION OF TANA (ATENI) GORGE (DEMOGRAPHIC, ETHNIC AND SOCIAL CHANGES) , IOSEB ALIMBARASHVILI Abstract The history of Ateni Gorge, one of the strategic places of Georgia and ShidaKartli and the dynamics of it’s population over the centuries have been studied in the article according to the archival documents and narrative sources. Tana Basin is located in the central part of the northern slope of the Trialeti Range, between the Trialeti, Satskhenisi and Tsereteli ridges. Tana starts at the east of Jamjama Mountain and joins the Mtkvari from the right at the intersection of Gori and Khidistavi. Traces of the first inhabitants of the Tana Gorge can already be seen from the Middle Bronze-Late Bronze Age. The "Tana Gorge" was already known in the IV-VII centuries and was included in the administration of Spaspeti. In addition to strategic locations, fertile lands, forests and pastures, the road from the ShidaKartli to KvemoKartli, Armenia and Meskhet-Javakheti through the KldekariSaeristavo passed through the Tana Gorge. There were plenty of tax collections coming through Ateni road and this was the reason why the royal court or other feudal lords were interested in its economic benefit. The Tana Gorge has been owned by the Georgian Royal Court and the Church for centuries, but at different times the the Baghvashes, the Tsitsishvils, the Orbelians, the Eristavs and others had large estates here. In the 10th century, the "country of Ateni" was owned by the most powerful feudal house of the Bagvashes but the first king of the united Georgia, Bagrat III, confiscated the fortress of Ateni from the Bagvashes and took possession of it. The Bagvashes did not give up the strategic Gorge without a fight, but were eventually defeated by the Royal Court. A number of inscriptions of the AteniSioni indicate the large-scale construction of the city at the initiative of Bagrat IV in the X-XI centuries in the "country" of Ateni. In these inscriptions"borders," " making riverbed" and other actions are mentioned. Ateni became even more important during the reign of David the Builder. The Royal wealth waskept here. The Ateni and Tana Gorge have since been the subject of constant attention and care from the Bagrations. At the end of the XVIII century, thanks to the constant invasions of the Leks, the population in the AteniGorge was catastrophically reduced and it was repopulated only in the 1920s. Keywords: Tana Gorge, Georgian Royal Court, Church, Baghvashes, the Tsitsishvils, the Orbelians, the Eristavs, The struggle for power, Population dynamics.
36 MUSOPRIANI-GETA GHAMBERED CHURCH , TAMAR MATIASHVILI Abstract Musopriani-Geta chambered church is in KvemoKartli region, Bolnisi municipality. It is located in the commune of Akaurta - middle part of River Mashavera, left bank, 720 meters above sea level, Geta gorge, near the village Geta (formerly Musopriani). The Church was restored in 2017 and the project was headed by Architect Ketevan Chikhadze. Chambered church was constructed using blocks, roughly processed pieces of stone and bricks. The walls are filled with lime. The church was constructed in XV-XVI century. Within the restoration works, the surroundings of the church was cleared from excess ground. Exploratory trenches on the socle level were made within the 4 meter radius. Burial sites were discovered around the church, as well as, inside the church. The burials were not disturbed and were simply cleaned. During the ground works flat and grooved pieces of tile were discovered. During the middle ages this material was used on buildings of high importance. Roofs of these buildings were covered using the same kind of materials. The tiles of the antic period remained through middle ages and only experienced minor changes – they became a little smaller and its wider end got a slight curve to prevent water going through. Tiles of late middle ages is very similar but even smaller and thinner, the production quality is also a little lower. The letter kind of tile is used for the roof of Musopriani-Geta chambered church, which is appropriately dated XV-XVI centuries. During the cleaning procedures of the churches exterior and interior the following materials were discovered: Oval handle of engobaged, reddish kilned jug with attached bulge. Found in the interior. Side piece, herring-bone decoration of an engobaged jug. Found in the interior Bottom of an engobaged jug. Diameter 5cm. Found in the interior. Fragment of the upper bed of reddish kilned Qvevri. Found outside the church, near the northern wall, inside a ditch. Clay pottery materials found by us is consistent with the late middle ages period of XV-XVI, which is the same time period in which the Church was constructed. Keywords: Kvemo Kartli, Musopriani-Geta, One nave church, late middle ages.
37 POSTCOLONIALISM IN CENTRAL ASIA. IDEOLOGICAL MYTH OR REALITY? , RUSTEM ZHANGOZHA The article deals with the conceptual conflicts of socio-political transit - independence of the Central Asian region countries. The reconstruction of the transit typology of the new independent Central Asian states reveals a complex symbiosis of paternalism, quasi-liberalism and populism. This indicates the loss of ethnocultural continuity of the peoples of the region. Keywords: Society, politics, post-colonialism, socio-political transit. Political discourse and political populism, ethno-cultural mentality, historical and cultural continuity. Keywords: Society, politics, post-colonialism, socio-political transit. Political discourse and political populism, ethno-cultural mentality, historical and cultural continuity.
38 ISSUES OF DEMOCRATIZATION AND INTERCULTURAL DIALOGUE IN TURKEY OF XXI CENTURY , EMZAR MAKARADZE There can be no peace without democratization and intercultural dialogue, which due to their importance lead to the ultimate result of what is called the union of civilizations among nations. In this regard, it is interesting to consider the issues of democratization and intercultural dialogue in Turkey in XXI century. In order to reach a high level of democratic development, any state needs a strong society and political will. At the beginning of XX century, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk (1881-1938), the founder of the Turkish Republic, took the course of state development of the country to the west and declared the path of Europeanization as the main principle of unchanging domestic and foreign policy. The current events in Turkey in the first decade of XXI century have shown that the country is developing as a strong state. So, it is interesting to observe how the Republican Turkey will continue to pursue democratic and European values â€‹â€‹and to support the state rule of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk. For Turkey and its leader, Islam is a tool that helps to stabilize the political system and transform Turkey into a traditional, conservative society with fewer opportunities to generate protests related to social, ethnic and other civil rights. The coming decades will show whether the country with a Muslim culture will be able to adapt to a democratic Western civilization and what the consequences will be. Key words: democratization; Intercultural dialogue; New Turkey; Democratic values.
39 ISSUES OF DEMOCRATIZATION AND INTERCULTURAL DIALOGUE IN TURKEY OF XXI CENTURY , EMZAR MAKARADZE There can be no peace without democratization and intercultural dialogue, which due to their importance lead to the ultimate result of what is called the union of civilizations among nations. In this regard, it is interesting to consider the issues of democratization and intercultural dialogue in Turkey in XXI century. In order to reach a high level of democratic development, any state needs a strong society and political will. At the beginning of XX century, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk (1881-1938), the founder of the Turkish Republic, took the course of state development of the country to the west and declared the path of Europeanization as the main principle of unchanging domestic and foreign policy. The current events in Turkey in the first decade of XXI century have shown that the country is developing as a strong state. So, it is interesting to observe how the Republican Turkey will continue to pursue democratic and European values â€‹â€‹and to support the state rule of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk. For Turkey and its leader, Islam is a tool that helps to stabilize the political system and transform Turkey into a traditional, conservative society with fewer opportunities to generate protests related to social, ethnic and other civil rights. The coming decades will show whether the country with a Muslim culture will be able to adapt to a democratic Western civilization and what the consequences will be. Key words: democratization; Intercultural dialogue; New Turkey; Democratic values.
40 ISSUES OF DEMOCRATIZATION AND INTERCULTURAL DIALOGUE IN TURKEY OF XXI CENTURY , EMZAR MAKARADZE There can be no peace without democratization and intercultural dialogue, which due to their importance lead to the ultimate result of what is called the union of civilizations among nations. In this regard, it is interesting to consider the issues of democratization and intercultural dialogue in Turkey in XXI century. In order to reach a high level of democratic development, any state needs a strong society and political will. At the beginning of XX century, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk (1881-1938), the founder of the Turkish Republic, took the course of state development of the country to the west and declared the path of Europeanization as the main principle of unchanging domestic and foreign policy. The current events in Turkey in the first decade of XXI century have shown that the country is developing as a strong state. So, it is interesting to observe how the Republican Turkey will continue to pursue democratic and European values â€‹â€‹and to support the state rule of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk. For Turkey and its leader, Islam is a tool that helps to stabilize the political system and transform Turkey into a traditional, conservative society with fewer opportunities to generate protests related to social, ethnic and other civil rights. The coming decades will show whether the country with a Muslim culture will be able to adapt to a democratic Western civilization and what the consequences will be. Key words: democratization; Intercultural dialogue; New Turkey; Democratic values.
41 THE 100TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE ESTABLISHMENT OF RUSSIA IN GEORGIA AND GEORGIAN SOCIETY , OTAR JANELIDZE In 1901 Georgia completed a century of incorporation in the Russian Empire. The local gentry and the Russian administration celebrated this event with a number of ceremonial activities. There was nothing to celebrate concerning the introduction of colonial yoke in Georgia. The article emphasizes that, Anniversary “served only the purposes of the Empire, which is why progressive Georgian society distanced itself from it and generally, Georgian people did not participate in the celebration. Aristocracy hoped that the imperial government in Georgia would introduce local government and jury trials, as well, also it would authorize the establishment of the University in Tbilisi, but the expectations did not come true. Georgian newspapers and magazines did not show a great interest in this event and confined mostly to official information. Ilya Chavchavadze was critical of the "celebration". Akaki Tsereteli called the, “Anniversary" a farce and expressed his protest against it by a poem and an article. An illegal Social-Democratic newspaper, “Brdzola“ strongly criticized the nobility and condemned it for this shameful “celebration”. A group of National-Liberal publication, “Tsnobis Purtseli”, issued a proclamation and pilloried the imperial power together with the nobility to the shameful stake for ridiculing and oppressing of the Georgian people. Keywords: Georgia, Russian Empire, Jubilee, Nobility, Rescript, Periodical Press.
42 REFLECTION OF POLITICAL REPRESSION IN GEORGIAN HISTORIOGRAPHY , IRINE SHERVASHIDZE The study of political repressions has become one of the main challenges of contemporary historiography. The availability of secret archival material or memoirs in the post-Soviet period has contributed to research in this direction. Recently, the study of Soviet repression in the context of political and cultural memories has acquired particular importance. Despite a certain abundance of research, historiography is full of narratives proposed by the rulers of the Soviet system, the functioning of the party and the "Soviet intellectuals" associated with it. The article aims to demonstrate the trends that still exist both in the scientific literature and in society, based on a study of the scientific literature existing in this area, which, in turn, is due to various factors. This is the relevance of the study. The relevance of the issue is also due to the fact that the post-Soviet countries have not yet overcome the Soviet legacy, which often manifests itself in the actions of both the political elite and the public. Proper knowledge cannot be created due to a number of factors such as a problem with access to archival material, ignoring negative examples, the formality of rehabilitation or less memorization, which are important in the process of overcoming the Soviet past. The fact that a certain part of society today does not perceive the scale and severity of repressions and even justifies crimes by the “request of the time” may be due to low awareness and lack of reliable information about individual stories. Expansion of research oral histories as an alternative memory would contribute to the restoration of the actual image of that period, would reveal the influence of political repression on the entire Georgian society. In addition, the study of scientific literature on political repression, analysis of available works and publications provide an opportunity to discuss political repression in the context of memory. Keywords: History, historiography, political repression, Soviet legacy, Ajara
43 REFLECTION OF POLITICAL REPRESSION IN GEORGIAN HISTORIOGRAPHY , IRINE SHERVASHIDZE The study of political repressions has become one of the main challenges of contemporary historiography. The availability of secret archival material or memoirs in the post-Soviet period has contributed to research in this direction. Recently, the study of Soviet repression in the context of political and cultural memories has acquired particular importance. Despite a certain abundance of research, historiography is full of narratives proposed by the rulers of the Soviet system, the functioning of the party and the "Soviet intellectuals" associated with it. The article aims to demonstrate the trends that still exist both in the scientific literature and in society, based on a study of the scientific literature existing in this area, which, in turn, is due to various factors. This is the relevance of the study. The relevance of the issue is also due to the fact that the post-Soviet countries have not yet overcome the Soviet legacy, which often manifests itself in the actions of both the political elite and the public. Proper knowledge cannot be created due to a number of factors such as a problem with access to archival material, ignoring negative examples, the formality of rehabilitation or less memorization, which are important in the process of overcoming the Soviet past. The fact that a certain part of society today does not perceive the scale and severity of repressions and even justifies crimes by the “request of the time” may be due to low awareness and lack of reliable information about individual stories. Expansion of research oral histories as an alternative memory would contribute to the restoration of the actual image of that period, would reveal the influence of political repression on the entire Georgian society. In addition, the study of scientific literature on political repression, analysis of available works and publications provide an opportunity to discuss political repression in the context of memory. Keywords: History, historiography, political repression, Soviet legacy, Ajara
44 GEORGIAN MUHAJIRS’ DESCENDANTS LIVING IN AMASYA REGION (THEIR LINGUAL AND ETHNIC IDENTITY) , TARIEL PUTKARADZE, MAKA SALIA-BEÅžÄ°ROÄžLU In our article we review a Georgian lingual and ethnic identity of the Georgian Muhajirs’ descendants in Amasya, Turkey. All the research materials are obtained by us during the expedition July 8-19, 2019 in Turkey, Karadeniz (Black Sea Coast) region. In the article, all the Illustrative phrases in Georgian are transcribed with specific Latin based transcription for Ibero-Caucasian Languages. The most part of Muhajir Georgians’ amasya descendants have preserved the Georgian ethnical self-concept. Due to the code switching process going on during 140 years the historical mother tongue is only spoken by the older generation; their knowledge of the Turkish language is mostly poor. The people of middle generation are usually bilingual speaking both Georgian and Turkish. The younger generation speaks only Turkish, which they consider more prestigious than the mother tongue of their ancestors. Based on our data, the identity of ethnic Georgians’ new generation is determined by the Turkish citizenship: one part of Muhajirs consider themselves “Turkish”. Such self-concept is conditioned by their free integration into the Turkish state through the Turkish language. Those who consider themselves Turkish are well aware of their Georgian origin. Keywords: Georgians, Muhajirs, Turkey, Georgia, Amasya;
45 ÂSAFÎ DAL MEHMED ÇELEBÄ°’S ÅžECÂ’ATNÂME ABOUT THE SEIZURE OF TBILISI BY LALA MUSTAFA PASHA , TAMAR PAPUASHVILI Lala Mustafa Pasha’s military campaign in Kartli in 1578 has been depicted by a number of Ottoman historians: Gelibolulu Mustafa Ali, MüneccimbaÅŸÄ± Ahmed B. Lütfullah, Ebubekir Bin Abdullah, Ä°brahim Peçevi, Mustafa Selaniki, etc. The unknown work for Georgian historiography to date - Âsafî Dal Mehmed Çelebi’s Åžecâ’atnâme (a Book of Courage), where the writer details the stories of the conquest of Georgia by the Ottoman Commander-in-chief, occupies its place alongside the formally known Ottoman written sources describing the “Eastern military expedition”. The author is the witness of the historical events of utmost importance for us. He is the direct participant of the “Eastern military expedition” and descriptor of the conquered places, occasionally engaged in the leadership of the army and sometimes appointed as a governor-general. The Åžecâ’atnâme conveys the comprehensively interesting accounts about the conquest of Kartli by the Ottomans which are somewhat different from the other contemporary sources: 1. The decision taken at the meeting held to seize Tbilisi by the Ottoman commander Osman Pasha and bring it to completion 2. The exact date for the entrance into the city. 3. The miniature depicting the seizure of aflame Tbilisi 4. Minting the coin in the name of Sultan Murad III dedicated to the conquest of Tbilisi. The unknown factual material revealed on the basis of conducting the scientific study of Âsafî Dal Mehmed Çelebi’s work enhances our knowledge about the aggressive wars waged on the territory of Georgia in the second half of XVI century. The Åžecâ’atnâme informatively extends and enriches the historical accounts about Lala Mustafa Pasha’s military expedition in Kartli in 1578 preserved in the formally known Ottoman written references and represents relatively complete historical picture of the process of conquering Tbilisi. Keywords: Lala Mustafa Pasha, ÖzdemiroÄŸlu Osman Pasha, Eastern military expedition, Conquest of Tbilisi, Minting of the coin, Miniature.
46 SOCIETY FOR THE RESTORATION OF THE CHRISTIANITY IN BATUMI IN 80-90S OF XIX , OTAR GOGOLISHVILI The Russian Empire conquered the entire Caucasus in the 1860s. Began to pursue Russian colonial policy. This mainly meant the assimilation of the conquered peoples. In the Muslim regions conquered by the empire, they began to pursue a Russian Orthodox missionary policy. As a result of the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-1878, the United Russian-Georgian Army with the great support of the local population was able to liberate Adjara from the long domination of Turkey and return it to its homeland. The newly annexed corner and its population immediately came to the attention of the Russian Church, particularly in the attention of "Society for the Restoration of the Christianity in the Caucasus." One fact is noteworthy, particularly, when the united army of Russian-Georgians entered in Batumi, it was accompanied by ecclesiastical figures of both Russian and Georgian nationalities. One of them was the Georgian ecclesiastical figure Davit Dumbadze. The Greek Orthodox Church of St. Nicholas and the parishioners of St. Nicholas greeted the army in Batumi with the ringing of church bells. This was the first time the bells had rung, because the Turks had not allowed churches to ring the bells. To celebrate this event, a solemn banquet was held in Batumi, which was attended by representatives of both secular and ecclesiastical authorities. At this banquet, the head of the Greek church Alex delivered a speech and praised this historic event. Moreover, he mentioned Davit Dumbadze with a great love, who had visited Batumi at the several times as a civilian. He had been meeting representatives of Greek and other churches in Batumi and was informed about the situation in Batumi. He was also interested in the state of the Christian faith, he was meeting the Christians of Batumi and consoling them, telling them that this region would soon be liberated from Turkish domination. We knew that - continues Alex - David Dumbadze was a member of the Christian missionary community and we provided him with information about the situation of Christians. Alexi said that he would be very grateful if the priest Davit Dumbadze together with others would be awarded a medal for the dedication he showed in carrying out this great historical event. Keywords: Society for the Restoration of Christianity in the Caucasus, Russo-Turkish War.
47 THE “PILGRIMAGE “ OF THE DECEASED SOULS TO THE WORLD OF HUMANS – AN EXAMPLE OF DEALING WITH TRAUMA OF DEATH IN GEORGIAN TRADITION , NINO GHAMBASHIDZE The purpose of my article is to show, on the one hand, what kind of festivals Lipanaali and Jerusalemtoba-Sultakrepa are, and on the other hand, what were the traditional ways of dealing with the trauma of death. Study showed that both holidays are syncretic in nature. By their Christian stratum, they are associated with Easter and its theological meaning. As you know, one of the main human feelings is the fear of death. Being in touch with departed souls, having a connection with them and feeling their presence has a deep psychological beckground. Traditions and religious structures in society enable individual control and manage anxiety through well-established mechanisms. When significant changes take place in society, these mechanisms begin to diminish and collapse. In my opinion, these changes often severely affect structures formed over the centuries, or severely damage them, so that they cannot positively affect the collective psychological balance. Therefore, the tradition should not be destroyed, but developed, adapted to the new requirements of society and transformed into something new that society needs. The strong instinct of birth-death-rebirth desperately pushes a person to reunite death with life and find life in death, conditioned by love. With the help of the holidays of "pilgrimage", the call of God and transcendental forces, with the help of mythical images, man tried to open the doors and destroy insurmountable, "delimited" threshold for creating a single entire space of eternal life. In my opinion, to create the third, as according to Jung, is a result of union of opposites. The study was conducted on the basis of ethnographic materials, ethnological and psychological scientific literature and is an interdisciplinary study. Keywords: Trauma of death, tradition, religion, ethnology, psychology
48 ONE PRE – CHRISTIAN MYTH – RELIGIOUS ASPECT OF ST. NINO'S LIFE (FOR PARADIGMATIC FACIAL RECONSTRUCTION OF THE ROYAL MAID WOMAN SHROSHANA) , GELA KISTAURI The present study examines one passage containing the pre – Christian myth of the medieval Georgian hagiographic works – "The Convent of Kartli" – namely the place where the female person is referred to by the word "woman." In Georgian hagiographic works of the early Middle Ages (V-X century), female people are referred to as "mother," "queen." The word denoting the female person in Georgia today is "woman," as well as "lady." In the article presented, a detailed analysis of the sources of various classifications and scholarly works examines the ethno – mythical and Christian etymology of the term 'woman'. The study suggests that, according to pre – Christian Georgian religious consciousness, the term "woman" meant only the female representative who headed the pagan temple (in our opinion the Lunar Temple). In pre – Christian Georgia, the worship of the moon (represented by a white goddess) was widespread, which, in the earlier Georgian hagiographic writings, except for the passages we have identified and studied, do not refer to this term as female. Keywords: History, Ethnology, Archeology, Cultural Heritage.
49 MIGRATION PROCESS INFLUENCE ON THE CONSTRUING OF SACRAL SPACE , TEONA KVANTCHÄ°ANÄ° Processes of migration and the transformations resulted after them represent the most topical issue for modern Georgia and the world. How do migration and new housing environment impact on the construing of sacral space among migrants? This article focuses on eco-migrants that migrated from highland zone of Georgia, Svaneti to the lowlands in last quarter of 20th century. We will represent different examples of construing sacral spaces among eco-migrants depending on the type of settlement in new areas. Purpose of the research is, on the basis of study of migration process ongoing in Svaneti, to reveal and study the psychological-mental relation, which connects the personality with origin place. This relation, besides material culture, especially clearly is shown in spiritual culture of the population. Migrated population continues to live in the multiethnic society of the lowland in terms sharply different from the highland conditions. It becomes a member of this society and establishes some relations with it. The migrants coming to the lowlands bring about those psychological-mental sentiments, which connect them with their origin place. These sentiments were reflected in urban planning of the new environment, in distribution of housing and sacral space. Events appear quite unusual for Svaneti traditional life. It is known that the Svan towers had a defensive significance in origin place but in some places migrants started to build miniature tower-like constructions on the graves to identify their origin. Migrants try to observe the principle of settlement, which existed in Svaneti traditional life. Housing and sacral spaces in places of their new settlements is organized by taking into consideration the environment terms and psychological-mental thinking of the migrants. This process outlines many interesting and yet-unstudied nuances. Some scholars consider that shrines and ritual practice of Svaneti life originates from the Christian traditions. In new settlement places the migrants met old, abandoned Christian churches or ruins of shrines. They consider it their obligation to restore the shrines, to take care of them with reverence, though it is interesting that in most cases the migrants do not continue to hold folk holidays and rituals around these shrines. Unfortunately, in some cases of arbitrary restoration of these shrines, resulted in loss or distortion of cultural heritage. Next to the old shrines they start to build new ones. At the same time, the migrants try to build separately those shrines of their villages or their families, which were considered to be the strongest sacral centers in the places of their old settlement. The person, knowing traditional construction technologies, usually builds these shrines exactly by the architectural nuances preserved in the first dwelling. Despite this, these new shrines still fail to replace old ones being in mentality of the migrants, which is clearly reflected in their emotional sentiments. On the other hand, this is not true for all eco- migrants living in Kvemo Kartli. In Tsalka district of Kvemo Kartli eco-migrants tend to continue their folk holidays around old churches or restored small shrines. Why do we have two main different ways of construing sacral spaces and performing religious rituals around them? Keywords: Migration, Transformation, Identity, Culture, Sacral spaces.
50 INTERNAL MIGRATION AND ADAPTATION ISSUES IN POST-SOVIET ADJARA , TAMILA LOMTATIDZE, MANUCHAR LORIA Difficulties of the interim post-Soviet period, rapidly changing social-economic and political processes, which followed the Soviet Union collapse, defined increase of migration processes in Georgia. Thus, the paper deals with the mental changes of society in Ajara, caused by internal regional migration (village-town). Due to historical processes, village of Mountainous Ajara was ethnocentric and homogeneous confessional space, thus population, migrated from the villages to towns, ought to adapt in polyethnic and polyconfessional conditions, causing appropriate mental changes. The paper studies such changes, their causing reasons and results as well as the strategies of adaption in new social-cultural conditions of migrated population. Mentality of village and town is arranged from different principles. Mountainous village of Ajara presented closed, less changeable, homogeneously oriented (ethnically and confessionally) space. Social-political changes of post-Soviet period could not decrease the role of traditional village institutes. People, migrated from such conditions, falled in polyconfessional and polyethnic conditions, where people of different mentality lived, causing adaptation in different directions. The norms of traditional behavior, etiquette and cultural values also changed. They became influenced and modernized in town and integrated the current innovative processes of new social-cultural conditions. Batumi, in the aspect of the internal migration processes is the place of meeting and cohabitation of different religious confessions. One of the aspects of our research is to study religious interinfluence within the frames of cohabitation of confessions. In this sense, painless mental changes are mainly provided by mixed marriages, families, common civil holidays, united participation in resolving of social problems. Integration process arranges the consensus between the interests of the confessions, peacefull cohabitation, middle course policy and tolerance taking into account that ethnical identity (and not religion) is the uniting factor for population of Batumi. Gradually, village population, migrated to the town, develops social strategies, necessary for adaptation in diversified society, which is one of the conditions of creation and development of multicultural society of Batumi. Keywords: migration, ethnocentral, polyethnic and polyconfessional, adaptation, mentality
51 THE MOTHER OF GOD AS THE PROTECTOR OF MOTHERHOOD (ACCORDING TO ETHNOGRAPHIC MATERIALS) , MEDEA BURDULI, LALI MGHEBRISHVILI According to ancient Georgian written sources and church traditions, Georgia is a country allotted to the Virgin Mary and is under her patronage. Based on Georgian ethnographic material and special scientific literature, the article discusses the beliefs of the Georgian people about the Mother of God (Ghvtismshobeli) as a symbol of fertility and reproduction and the protector of motherhood. In parallel with the Mother of God, in almost all parts of Georgia there is a pre-Christian female deity, the Mother of a Place (Adgilis Deda) and its various variants. The paper presents the views of Georgian ethnographers on the syncretization of the cults of the Christian saint - the Mother of God /Ghvtismshobeli and the pre-Christian fertility goddess - the Mother of a Place (Adgilis Deda). The article discusses the relevant religious rituals performed during family or village holidays. The Mother of a Place(Adgilis Deda) and the Mother of God (Ghvtismshobeli) are considered the patrons of the hearth and family throughout Georgia. Every village in the mountains of Eastern Georgia had its own Adgilis Deda. At the same time, there was Ghvtismshobeli , which was sometimes presented as a separate cult having a separate shrine, and sometimes as a combined one - Adilis Deda Ghvtismshobeli According to our ethnographic field materials collected in different parts of Georgia in the recent past, the rituals for granting fertility as well as healing a sick child were performed in the name of the Mother of God and are still performed today. The Mother of God is of great importance in the religious life of the Georgian people. Keywords: The Mother of God, Georgia, protector of motherhood, tradition, fertility.
52 RELIGIOUS SITUATION IN MULTIETHNIC ENIRONMENT (CASE OF SAMTSKHE-JAVAKHETI) , TEA TATENASHVILI The study describes the religious situation in Samtskhe-Javakheti. It specifies the challenges, problems and the relationship between the multi-ethnic groups and religious confessions in the region and tells the history of the region ethnic and religious situation, the causes and results of the existing perception of the religions in the region. Nowadays the Orthodox Church, synagogue, mosque, Catholic Church, Armenian Apostolic Church coexist peacefully in Samtskhe-Javakheti. However, there was a time (2013-2019) when certain forces tried to provoke religious confrontations. Study of the problem has a strategic importance for the country, as the study of co-existence experience of different ethnic and religious people for many centuries will support to adoption of human values and civic integration in the country considering the generally recognized right of religious freedom which helps to stability and development of state-oriented thinking. It should be noted that the country faces the issue of religious tolerance, which occasionally appears. These problems are associated with a diverse environment. The Samtskhe-Javakheti region is one of the examples of such diversity. The innovation is to provide information to the society that the trials of provoking religious confrontation fortunately was not turned into conflict, and it could be due to the historical and tolerance experience which is forgotten now and is considered as a stereotype. Though the opposition did not turn into conflict with support of the state, Georgian Orthodox Church, as a dominant religious organization and the both parties of the confrontation, but it is not a final and long-term solution. It is necessary to evaluate all the recommendations and consideration the consequences of the mentioned developments. For achievement the goals of the study, it was necessary to process available printed and electronic materials, study literature. Due to novelty and lack of literature, the information is available only in the newspaper articles, in the reports of public defender and the religious agency, or other non-governmental organizations. Keywords: Samtskhe-Javakheti, religious situation, multiethnic environment, Orthodoxy, circumstance.
53 A WOMAN’S RIGHT AND PROPERTY CONDITION AND THE IISUUE OF “PURCHASE MARRIAGE” IN THE POPULATION OF SOUTH GEORGIA (ANALYSIS USING MATHEMATICAL METHOD) , TINA IVELASHVILI The article discusses the issue of whether there was a purchase marriage in Georgia. The analysis of the materials showed that we are not dealing with a marriage of convenience, but a woman with an expression of property status. The woman was part of her husband's family with her own property, which was an indicator of her independence Purchasing marriage may have been a custom among certain peoples, but it is not obligatory to spread it to all peoples in search of paparazzi. The use of mathematical methods and analogues in the study of a separate issue of the humanities and social sciences allows us draw very interesting conclusions. There is still a difference of opinion among researchers about the use of mathematical methods in the study of a particular issue of marriage. One part considers research with this method not desirable but necessary, while the other part considers it completely unacceptable. We even think that mathematical calculations allow us to disprove the frequency of separate randomness within a particular ethnos and the regularity of the reasons for its occurrence. Using mathematical models, the article discusses and analyzes the issue of whether there was a purchasing marriage in Georgia. Research has shown that a woman entered her husband's family with her own independent property. This fact is an indicator of the rather high status of property and property of women in Georgia. The emergence of the purchasing element in individual people may indeed have taken place, but in the search for parallels it is not necessary to extend it to all people. Keywords: A woman’s Right, Property, Marriage
54 THE UNIVERSE AND THE UNDERWORLD OF THE HITTITES AND PARALLELS WITH THE ANCIENT GEORGIAN BELIEF-CONCEPTIONS , NINO CHAREKISHVILI Hittites belief-conception, religion, mythology, rituals were affected by opinions of various folks (Hattian, Hurrian, Mesopotamian) and it's natural that we can find a lot of common between them. We can find parallels with Hittites belief-conceptions in ancient Georgian belief and conception too, which will be presented in the article. In the articles there are examined conceptions of Hittites on the World, Underworld, there are also examined functions of underworld gods. Attention is focused on symbolism of numbers and colors and on many other aspects, parallels of which, similar with Hittites, which can be also found in Mesopotamian and previous Georgian culture. According to the conception of Hittites, one time universe was forming integrity of sky and earth which was divided afterwards. As it seems from texts, after division sky and earth there were formed as separate universes, sometimes earth was used as meaning of underworld. In general Hattian used to divide the universe in three vertical parts: sky, underworld and space between them. Universe was imagined horizontally in form of disc, upper half was occupied by the sky, and lower half was occupied by the earth, and in between of them was the atmosphere. In horizontal space there existed “four angles of universe” (four sides of the universe). According to Mesopotamia conception there existed seven layers of sky, seven sky. In Georgian folklore we meet expression “ninth sky”, “he is on the ninth sky” what can indicate to nine layers of sky. By Hittites the sky does not seem so layered, it was single and solid, supposedly iron material. And the earth was divided into three layers: upper part of the earth “upper earth” which is home for plants, humans and animals; then “middle earth” for underground waters and deeper was “lower earth”, i.e. the underworld. In Georgian reality, by pre-Christian cosmogonic conceptions the universe was imagined geometrically in the form of sphere which was surrounded by sea or mountains, in the end of the world tree of life (pole, castle, horns, chain from the sky etc.) was standing which connected vertical and horizontal universes. Sphere consisted of three horizontal and two vertical layers, which were located in following way: center of universe was middle world (earth surface, the world of humans, animals, plants, associated with red color), above it was the upper earth (sky, world of gods and „children of gods“, expressed by white color) and below was a underworld (underneath, world of dead, chtonian world, of black color), in front was the front world (clear, wealthy world expressed by “here”) and behind was the last world (world of the past, dark, secret, full of unexpected things and dangers, expressed by “there” (from this standpoint there are interesting the ends of Georgian fairy teals: “Let’s the Plague was there, Fun be here, Bran there, Flour here”). That's why it is forbidden to look behind during realization of many rules and customs). Vertical worlds are separated from each other by air and earth and horizontally by seven (nine) mountains or sea. This system was surrounded by outer world. On the basis of Georgian ethnographic and folkloric materials, as we have already noted, worlds were expressed by symbolic of concrete colors: white, black and red. Right with symbolic of analogous colors (black, red, white) all three worlds are also expressed in Mesopotamia. We don’t see by Hittites such symbolic expression of worlds colors, although we can say that they also expressed the lower world by black color (black/dark earth = underworld). Symbolic expression of unification of sky and earth were stairs, tree, pols and similar. By Hittites cosmic connector of earth and sky should have been stairs. In Mesopotamian mythology we meet the term “Durank”- cosmic center where “big axis” (world axis) of universe is passing through. In Akkadian we can see the plant connecting earth and sky. And in Georgian mythology we meet “Shibi”, this is golden chain connecting the sky and earth (sky and world). It is also interesting that like with Babylon mythology, in Hatti we also meet with the tree of life in roots of which is imitation of underworld, and leaves are imitation of sky. Analogous is also in Georgian conceptions, there existed saint trew, life tree (for example an oak) roots of which expressed the underworld, stem -the middle world and the top meant upper world together with their habitants. In Georgian conception imitation of “saint tree”, “life tree” is “Middle column” (mother column) of Georgian hall which was placed in the center of houses and expressed cosmic connection. In the ancient East we often meet symbolic of numbers, of course Hittites world is not also exclusion and from this point of view Georgian belief-conceptions are also interesting. From the ancient times in belief-conception of various people numbers had magical meaning, and some numbers were especially important and powered, for example, in numbers: 3, 4, 7, 9, 12, first of all, was put a code necessary for understanding and description of the universe and therefore they had sacral meaning. For example, by ancient Georgian conception, the sun was supreme god and nine is symbolic number of sun, as of constant circle, innovation, constanta, and symbol is an eye (all-seeing), hense is expression “nine-eyed sun”, i.e. all-seeing. Also, by conception of Hittites, unity of the world was expressed by sun, which reflects connection between sky and underworld, i.e. it is supreme ruler of all gods in the sky and in underworld. Georgian belief-conceptions were also like Hittites ones, movement between worlds was not a problem. Unlike Mesopotamian conceptions where underworld was strictly separated from the upper world of the earth. Each world presented by Hittites had its own gods who are in Hittite texts as “sky”, “earth” and “lower/ old” gods. As by Hittites, so by ancient Georgian belief-conceptions diseases were caused by evil spirits connected to underworld/earth, that’s why evil could penetrate the human, basically from the earth and sometimes from the water. Therefore, Hittites had cleaning rituals, and also according to the ancient Georgian conceptions, there were special prays and rituals against evil spirits. It is also notable that by Hittites, as well as in Mesopotamian conceptions we often meet in rituals of underground waters, underworld waters. There existed as nine seas, so nine rivers. Nine is difficultly overcoming barrier. Those who wish perfectness, shall overcome this barrier. As it seems, nine had certain magical meaning, in some cases even function of cleaner. It is interesting, that in Hittites mythology, as well as in Georgian, we see nine skies, nine mountains, nine seas. In general, water had cleaning function, according to the both, Hittites and ancient Georgian conceptions. Keywords: Assyriology, Ancient East, Asia Minor, Hittites, cosmology, mythology, underworld, universe, sky, earth.
55 FOR THE LOCATION OF PITTEYARIGA , NINO CHAREKISHVILI Pitteyariga should have been also an important geographic point for Hittites. Unfortunately there are so few materials about Pitteyariga. It is mentioned in contracts and religious texts. Pitteyariga appears in Treaty „Mida of Paá¸«á¸«uwa“ (Arnuwanda I) and „Treaty of Šuppiluliuma I with Šattiwaza of Mitanni“, „Treaty of Šattiwaza of Mitanni with Šuppiluliuma I (Šuppiluliuma I); It is mentioned in religious texts connected to the names of Šuppiluliuma I, Muršili II, á¸ªattušili III, Šuppiluliuma II. And also in the text „Prayer of Arnuwanda I and Ašmunikkal to the Sun-goddess of Arinna“; in ritual text of „Fragments of the AN.DAá¸ª.ŠUMSAR festival“; in ritual text „Festival for Ištar of Šamuá¸«a“. In these texts Pitteyariga is mentioned only as ordinary geographic point. Pitteyariga should have been navy city while texts indicate on its port function. From the pray text of Hittite king Arnuwanda and queen Ašmunikkal we learn, that Kaškians conquered some settled points in the east and among them was Pitteyariga. Because of constant military actions between Hittites and Kaškians Hittites could have at least a little influence over Pitteyariga. Although written sources say nothing from this point of view. Unfortunately there are only few materials about Pitteyariga, but on the basis of existed sources we can approximately define location of Pitteyariga, from this standpoint attention shall be paid to Halys river, the Hittite Marasantia (today Kizilirmak) which flows above Sivas on open lowland, despite of the fact that it is not a wide river, those times it could be used by small boats. I think that Pitteyariga, and Arziya and Šamuá¸«a were supposedly located right on Halys river (in the north-east of Sivas lowland. More exactly, we shall place Pitteyariga in the upper point of Halisi river, then comparatively below we shall place Šamuá¸«a, and Arziya supposedly shall be placed between Šamuá¸«a and Pitteyariga, this is nowadays part of Kizilirmak river which is located between Sivas and Zara. So Pitteyariga, as well as Šamuá¸«a, should have been port city of „upper Land“ and it would be important for Hittites to obtain control over it. Keywords: Assyriology, Hittite, Pitteyariga (Pittiyarik), Šamuá¸«a, Upper Land, Mittani, Arnuwanda, Šuppiluliuma, Muršilli, á¸ªattušili.
56 STALIN’S POLICY BEFORE THE 1940 PACT OF THREE , VAZHA CHOCHIA The article shows the foreign policy of the Soviet Union during this period, given its characteristic nature, which was often a source of diplomatic mistakes. Stalin hated the West, which made it difficult for him to assess events objectively and to identify the strategic and tactical intentions of the adversary. Such an approach led to the fact that Stalin refused to ally with the Western powers and signed a non-aggression pact with Germany on August 24, 1939, signed by Foreign Ministers Molotov and Ribbentrop. It would have been natural for Stalin to have chosen England and France as partners, thus weakening Germany's aggressive actions, but the Munich Agreement of 1938 left Stalin with doubts about London and Paris. Stalin was well aware that concluding a friendly treaty with an obvious enemy was not subject to any logic, but in the current situation, Stalin considered it more favorable to conclude a short-term treaty with Hitler to avoid an impending war. At the same time, unlike the West, Berlin offered the Soviet Union the prospect of additional material and territorial benefits. Hitler welcomed the signing of the Non-Aggression Pact because it meant that Germany would not have to fight on two fronts. At the time of the pact, Stalin's relationship with Hitler was based on the assumption that any German attempt to invade France would be delayed and that Hitler would not be able to shift his attention to the Soviet Union. This assumption of Stalin turned out to be wrong. He was surprised when news was received in Moscow on August 17 that the Germans had entered Paris. Hitler was just waiting for the right time to start a large-scale war with the Soviet Union. This became clear when on December 16, 1940, Hitler approved a plan to attack the Soviet Union under the name "Barbarossa". Under the agreement with Stalin, the German leadership maintained friendly neutrality towards the aggressive action of the Soviet Union in the Baltics. The result was that by the end of July 1940, three Baltic states had disappeared from the political map of Europe. World public opinion strongly condemned the actions of the Soviet Union, assessed it as aggressive and did not recognize the annexation of the Baltic states. Moscow was also active in Romania and demanded the extradition of Bessarabia and northern Bukovin, otherwise threatening to use force. They feared the possibility of Soviet troops entering Berlin, cutting off Germany from Romania's rich oil and food resources. Under pressure from Berlin, Romania surrendered, although only the northern part of Bukovin was ceded to the Soviet Union through the city of Chernovets. Moscow's attitude towards Romania has worsened relations between Moscow and Berlin because Romanian oil resources were essential to the German military economy. The situation was also complicated by the claims of Bulgaria and Hungary on the territory of Romania, because in case of war, Soviet troops would enter Romania. A new threat to international relations came at the end of September 1940, when on September 27 a pact of three states (Germany, Italy, Japan) was signed for 10 years. It was the consolidation of the forces of the aggressor countries that posed an obvious threat to peace. Instead of objectively assessing this event, the Moscow-influenced media stirred up anti-British and anti-American hysteria and regarded Western states as the main enemies of the Soviet Union. Stalin will soon see the consequences of this blunder when the country is in great trouble as a result of the German artillery attack on June 22, 1941. Hitler was preparing to attack Stalin by misleading Stalin by offering him a joint policy aimed at dividing the British Empire on the condition that the Soviet Union join a pact of three states, but without it, the imperial ambitions of the two dictators would only be thwarted. Keywords: Stalin, Molotov, Hitler, Ribentrop, Moscow, Berlin.
57 ACTIVITIES OF AKAKI KHOSHTARIA IN PERSIA , MAMUKA JOLBORDI, NINO LIPARTELIANI The XIX-XX centuries Georgia remembers many rich and influential merchants. They were not only good businessmen but also philanthropists and patrons. The name of Akaki Khoshtaria is associated with the production and transportation of petroleum products in the South Caucasus, the production of mechanical and agricultural machinery, the production of soap and oil. Akaki Khoshtaria's main industrial-commercial arena was Persia. The Persian government authorized A. Khoshtaria to drill oilfields by bore-holes in five northern provinces of Iran, West and East Azerbaijan, Gilan, Mazandaran and Khorasan on the basis of a concession. Here Akaki Khoshtaria built an electron-operated factory, had many workshops, owned a monopoly on soap production, fish farms, traded by wool, here he built a special railway (the first railway in Iran), founded a transport company and was the first to import automobiles to Iran. The name of Akaki Khoshtaria is less known to modern society. The twentieth century erased everything about him, only information, told by other people are remained, which determined the purpose of our research. The theoretical and practical significance of the article is determined by the relevance of the issues under study, it is the theoretical significance that determined the main direction of the study - the identification of Akaki Khoshtaria as separate aspects of entrepreneurial activity. As for practical significance, it is obvious that the life and work of this entrepreneur is valuable even at the present stage. Keywords: Entrepreneur, trade-industry, concession, monopoly, oil products, charity.
58 GEORGIAN-OSSETIAN RELATIONS AND SAMACHABLO , GIORGI SOSIASHVILI During the XVII century resettlement of the ethnic Ossetian population from the Northern Caucasus had begun in the upper side of Didi Liakhvi Gorge. The Ossetian settlements had first appeared in the mountainous villages. During the Soviet era we had witnessed an artificial burial in oblivion of the Ossetian migration to Georgia and the research of the issue had been conducted in distorted manner. Unfortunately, many Georgian scholars had their input in this case. With the laboring from the ideologists of the Communist party to create a long history for ethnic Ossetians residing in Georgia, had encouraged the Ossetian pseudo-scientists to make the myth of ethnic Ossetian long-term residence in Georgia a subject of scholarly research. It is known that after the Mongol invasions, the Ossetians residing on the Southern part of Russia had been in difficult situation, and the survivors of the invasions had decided to resettle in the mountainous areas of the Northern Caucasus. As according to the historical sources, the resettlement of the ethnic Ossetians from the southern valleys of Russia to Georgia had begun in the II part of the XVII century. The process of the assimilation had occurred of the Scythian-Sarmatian and Alans after their resettlement with the peoples who had created the (Kolch-Koban culture (In Georgian sources a term “Ovsi, Ovsebi” is preserved as the ethnonym of the Ossetian people). The Alans had oppressed the local population and consequently had taken over their territories. In order to better illustrate this, we can mention the “Dvali’s”. Part of the member of Dvali’s had to resettle to the Georgian lowlands and the rests had mixed with the Alans. On the territories resided by the “Davli’s the Ossetian language had been put in practice. Vakhushti Batonishvili abruptly distinguishes the Dval language from the Ossetian language: “They have an ancient language, Dval language, however they speak Ossetian.” The process of Dvali’s becoming Ossetians is described by R. Topchishvili, as non single act, as the assimilation process had been going on for a long time and it had mainly occurred during the XVI-XVII centuries. During the I part of the XVII century ethnic Georgians (with Georgian surnames) had resided in Dvaleti, however in XVIII century the population there had consisted of ethnic Ossetians. After their adjustment in Dvaleti, during the I part of the XVII century part of the ethnic Ossetian population had resettled to the upper part of the river Terek (Truso Gorge) and the other part had resettled to the Didi Liakhvi Gorge- Magran-Dvaleti. The resettlements of the Ossetians had been followed by relapses. The newly settled population had often attacked the local population, which had resulted in fatal occurrences, as this is attested in the Java Deed, which is dated back to the 30s of the XVII century. In the Deed, we encounter the facts of the Ossetian population attacking the local population. Special administrative units (Samouravo) had been specifically been created for Ossetian population, and the heads of the administrative units had been tasked with gathering taxes. It should be noted that the confrontation of the resettled Ossertian and local Georgian population did not have the ethnic disposition, as the then relapses had bared social character. The Ossetian from the Northern Caucasus had attacked the local population with the sole purpose of possessing the horticultural products and the cattle. Unlike the local population, they had not been accustomed to paying taxes or live with the state regulations, lodging, or lodger’s life was new to the ethnic Ossetians and their recalcitrance towards the government had been conditioned by the reason. Keywords: Resettlement of Ossetians, Migration of Ossetians to Georgia, Assimilation of Dvals with the Ossetians, Georgian-Ossetian relations.
59 THE NARRATIVE COMPOSITIONS OF AKHALTSIKHE FILIGREE , NIA LOMOURI It has not been long since Georgia was freed from the colonial shackles, but the process is not over yet. Unfortunately, due to the difficult historical-political or socio-economic past, some of the unique collections in the museums of our country have not been thoroughly studied, therefore the pages of many centuries of history are still to be filled. This opinion is supported by the collection of folk and applied art filigree of the Art Palace of Georgia- Museum of Cultural History, providing a diverse research material. A fundamental study of this collection has not yet been published, which adds even more importance to the paper. Two exhibits from the collection attract special attention: a decorative plate with the image of a deer and a jewelry box with motifs of Abkhazian fairy tales. In the article we will try to highlight the ethnographic significance of these works, the artistic-technical characteristics and the historical background in which these artistic masterpieces were created. Both exhibits are a reflection of an era that was quite loaded with important historical events, so a study of the works will allow us to see what traces the state of the country leaves on its cultural heritage. Not surprisingly, in addition to local traditions, the works reflect the influences of Eastern and Western cultures. In art, especially in metal work, the main figure is the customer, whose taste, material condition and requirements often determine the level of the work. The customer’s taste, in its part, is depended on the historical situation of the country, its relations with neighboring countries. Georgia has always been open to other cultures, for example in the researched period Tbilisi was often compared to Janus, looking one way to the East and the other way to the West. Chokha and frock, chikhtikopi and hat, piano and duduk coexisted here. Keywords: filigree, Imaginary compositions, Metalwork, Akhaltsikhe, 19th-20th centuries.
60 FOR THE ISSUE OF THE RELIGIOUS FACTOR IN PROCESS OF PREPARATION FOR THE ANTI-PERSIAN REBELLION OF MIR WEISS , KAKHA KVASHILAVA In presented article, based on a study of historical sources and modern scientific advances, we shall try to examine the concept of the war foreseen in the theological studies of Islam, considering the process of the preparing uprising against George XI by Mir Weiss, and how accurately the studies of Islam were used to achieve this goal. Jihad, despite the different understandings of this concept, had a great influence on the attitude of the Muslim community towards neighboring peoples and countries, as well as religiously similar or different societies. All issues are considered in this context, whether it is the spread of Islam, proselytism or the subjugation of a non-Muslim country or the imposition of tribute or its conversion to Islam. Therefore, from the point of view of Islam, jihad, in itself, is just. The anti-Persian uprising in Afghanistan in 1709, in particular in Kandahar, is thought by us to be the first of its kind to involve theologians and jurists working in the major centers of Islam in Mecca and Medina, and thus obtained, which, naturally, along with other objective reasons, increased the possibility of successful completion of this intention. Keywords: Mir Weiss, Persia, Giorgi XI, Islam, Jihad, Afghanistan
61 POLITICAL, SOCIAL AND RELIGIOUS FEATURES OF GEORGIAN-PERSIAN DOCUMENTS , KHATUNA BAINDURASHVILI For thorough study of Iran-Georgian relationships in 16th – 17th centuries research of Georgian-Persian historical documents is of particular interest. These historical documents provide valuable data about social, administrative and state institutes in Georgia. Georgian-Persian historical documents describe dynamically the political, social and religious processes that have taken place in Eastern Georgia due to intervention of Safavid Iran in 16th-17th centuries. Studying of the separate segments of diplomatic monuments – interrelations between Georgian and Persian texts provide precise illustration of Georgian reality and specific nature of political, social and religious relations between Iran and Georgia. Research of Georgian-Persian bilingual deeds clearly shows attempts of Iran to intervene into Georgian landholding system and its substitution with Iranian-Moslem one; invocatios of Georgian kings and the legends on their Persian seals clearly demonstrate the political and religious influence to which they were subjected as a result of Safavid censorship. Based on all these, we can imagine specific nature of operation of Georgian samdivan-mtsignobro (secretariat-chancellery), see the movement of the documents from their composition to their entry into legal force and the term of their effectiveness. Studying of the seals on Persian and Georgian texts of diplomatic monuments allowed identification of important chancellery officials participating in issuance of Georgian-Persian documents, as well as in their consideration and approval. Georgian texts of bilingual documents, with their contents and structure, were entirely based on Georgian traditions of paperwork while the Persian texts complied with Iranian requirements. Iranian diplomatic formulas were adapted to Georgian reality. Georgian-Persian historical deeds provide unbiased description of severe reality resulting from religious and political power of Iran in Eastern Georgia; and Georgians had to fight for maintaining their state, national and religious identity. Keywords: Georgia, Iran, Diplomacy, Islam
62 1189-1207 CONSTRUCTION INSCRIPTION OF LIPARITISUBANI WITH MENTIONING GEORGIAN KINGS, QUEEN TAMAR AND HER HUSBAND DAVID , TAMAZ GOGOLADZE The paper deals with a new reading of a lapidary inscription attributed to the Theodore, concerning construction of the Liparitisubani church. Significant correction has been introduced into the text. Until this day, Georgian historiography (A. Bakradze, E. Kochlamazashvili, Z. Skhirtladze, G. Otkhmezuri) considered the reading of the above text introduced by Ekvtime Takaishvili acceptable. According to this reading, the church of Liparitisubani was built in the XIIth century by Theodore, the “Iodosisdze” of the Qeen Tamar (1184-1210) and, her husband David. According to one part of Scientists (G. Otkhmezuri) founder of church was Theodore Iodomisdze. Our study has shown that the inscription must be read in a different way: The church of Liparitisubani was built in 1189-1207 by Theodore Ghodomisdze. Keywords: Epigraphy, Inscription, Trialeti
63 GEOPOLITICAL KNOT OF THE BLACK SEA SECURITY , KAKHA PUTKARADZE, IOSEB JAFARIDZE The given work represents the geopolitical significance of the Black Sea region. It refers to the overview of main actors of the region, their motives, and ongoing challenges influencing the Euro-Atlantic and regional security. The research focuses on the role of the Black Sea region regarding the energy security issue. The actions determined by the control of Energy Corridor and natural resources of the region and military-political threats related to the guaranteeing of mentioned issues. The work is also relevant as it refers to the current conflicts in the world (the Middle East, the Caucasus, Ukraine), as they impose the role of a significant logistical hub to the region. Taking into consideration the current situation, research focuses not only on the goals and roles of geostrategic actors but also on the importance of the small states in the region in terms of forming the common Euro-Atlantic security architecture. Accordingly, the aim of the given research is to answer such questions as What factors define the geopolitical significance of the Black Sea region? Which are the key actors in the research region? What are the possible threats coming out from the different military-political goals of the actors in the region and the actions implemented and planned by them? The given research emphasizes the existence of different military-political views between the leading actors in the Black Sea Basin as they face the region before new challenges. Attention is also paid to the necessity of carrying out a cautious and moderate policy from small states. By implementing timely and effective actions, it would be possible to ensure the prevention of ongoing threats and create favorable conditions to establish a common security space. Keywords: geopolitics, security, black sea, transit, Energy-resources
64 THE THEME OF PACIFISM AND FOREIGN-GEORGIAN INTELLECTUALS , TAMAR GOGOLADZE The nineteenth century is more or less related to both militaristic and pacifist tendencies, caused by real-world events, wars, local struggles, especially in the 50-s and 70-s, which are somehow reflected mainly in journalism, scientific-sociological works, and literary texts. From this point of view, our attention is focused on the retrospective analysis of the thoughts of Berta von Suttner (1843-1914) and Niko Nikoladze (1842-1928), representatives of two (foreign and Georgian) intellectuals, which found a peculiar reflection even among researchers (Irina Bagration-Mukhraneli) though somehow vaguely and schematically. The aim of the research is to evaluate the anti-militarist letters published by Niko Nikoladze in the newspaper " Obzor" and evaluating the merit of Berta von Suttner, the Nobel Laureate in the field of peace, in the preparation of the World Congress in The Hague, especially with the feature text " Die Waffen Nieder!" The above-mentioned material by N. Nikoladze and Berta Suttner is related to the period, namely the 1870s, though the research process does not focus on their acquaintance. It is clear what significance their thinking had for the development of the pacifist tendency of political thought. Keywords: Down with the war, honor, militarism, Georgia.

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