* The 1948 Israel establishment
ran by country-Georgia Jew seems
fitting; given the country Georgia
is influenced by anti-ho mo se xu ality
Orthodox church.
Slow Response by Georgians to Mob Attack on Gay Rally
By ANDREW ROTH and OLESYA VARTANYAN
Published: May 19, 2013
MOSCOW — Georgian television captured clear images as a mob of more than 20,000 attacked a small gay rights march in downtown Tbilisi on Friday, sending at least 14 people to the hospital.
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Some of the priests leading the rock-throwing throngs who stormed past police cordons could be seen participating in the melee; one repeatedly slammed a stool into the windshield of one of several minibuses trying to carry the marchers to safety, while another punched marchers and tried to drag a driver out of a bus. Some gave their names in interviews.
But as of Sunday, the Georgian police have made no arrests, and there are few signs that the investigation is moving forward.
Instead, a bishop who helped to organize the mass turnout — ostensibly a counterprotest — said from the pulpit that while the violence was “regrettable” and those who committed it should be punished, the Georgian Orthodox Church was obligated to protest the gay rights rally and would “not allow anyone to humiliate us.”
“When there are so many people, it is difficult to speak only about Christianity and morals,” said the bishop, Iakob Iakobashvili, in his Sunday sermon in Tbilisi. “Many were not able to overcome their nature and saw enemies in the others, said bad words and punched them. I was told clergymen were among them. I am not able to either condemn or justify them. They are also humans.”
Georgia’s prime minister, Bidzina Ivanishvili, has benefited from the support of the church, which exercises enormous power in the country, though usually behind the scenes. His decision on whether to pursue prosecutions will serve as a test of that relationship.
On Friday evening, with crowds of men still roaming downtown Tbilisi in search of gays, Mr. Ivanishvili promised a quick response to the violence. Yet on Sunday, at a parade for a local police force, he made no mention of either arrests or an investigation. Instead, his comments celebrated the role of the police in preventing worse injuries to the marchers. Several officers were among those hospitalized, including one with a broken leg; and a number of marchers and a journalist suffered head or chest injuries from being hit with rocks, according to Georgian news reports.
“When the question arose about saving the minority,” Mr. Ivanishvili said, “police bravely acted in their defense, and were able to lead them away from the raving masses.”
Zviad Koridze, a veteran local journalist at the Tbilisi-based Council of Ethics for Journalists, called the slow pace a reminder of the church’s influence.
“The government is acting very carefully, one could say ineffectively,” said Mr. Koridze in a telephone interview. “Everyone is simply waiting. Because in three days they should have made arrests and given some sort of answer to the events in Tbilisi.”
While the Georgian Orthodox Church usually wields its power discreetly, it has occasionally, and effectively, taken overt political or social action. In 2010, Orthodox activists began picketing a television station over “Night with Shorena,” a television show run by a former Georgian Playboy cover model who advocated sex before marriage. The show was closed down after several months. In 2011, the church protested a law granting minority religions legal standing. In 2012, the church joined protests over the torture of prison inmates. Ilia II, the Georgian Orthodox patriarch, has warned Georgians that placing their children in foreign schools would harm them morally.
Ilia II is widely acknowledged to be the most popular figure in the country. He offered no sermon on Sunday, but on Friday, after the violence, he urged protesters to leave the streets and for both sides “to pray for one another.”
“We do not accept violence,” he said, according to Interfax. “But it’s also unacceptable to give propaganda” to homosexuality.
A day earlier, he had urged the Georgian government to ban the gay rights march, writing that the majority of Georgians saw gay activism as “an insult.”
Outside of the Tbilisi church where Bishop Iakobashvili spoke Sunday, Elza Kurtanidze, 34, a former schoolteacher, said that she had spent the last days “hotly” debating if those who attacked the marchers should be punished.
“We have already gone too far by having gays and lesbians openly promoting their way of life,” she said. “This is unacceptable! By allowing things like this, we let Georgia turn from the road of its traditional destiny.”
“Arrests will be too much; it will help to further excite the situation in Georgia,” she added.
Also outside the church was Leila Dzneladze, 16, who said that while she opposed the violence, she believed that the “truth was on the side of the church.”
“No one should be punished for this,” she said. “This is for God to judge them, not us.”
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georgian_Jews
Georgia Jew reigned in Israel.
In the beginning of the 19th century, Ashkenazi Russian Jews were forced to move to Georgia by the Russian government. The Ashkenazi Jews and the Georgian Jews began establishing contact with each other, but relations were strained. Georgian Jews viewed the Ashkenazim as godless and secular, while the Ashkenazim looked down on the Georgian Jews.
Zionism was a uniting cause for the two groups. Ashkenazim joined Zionist organizations and began to spread their ideas to the Georgian Jewish communities. In 1897, the first Zionist organization was established in Tbilisi. On August 20, 1901, the First Congress of Caucasus Zionists was held in Tbilisi. Rabbi David Baazov led Georgian Zionism during the late 19th century and early 20th century. In 1903, Baazov attended the Sixth Zionist Congress in Basel, Switzerland. In 1918, the All-Jewish Congress in Tbilisi took place and included representatives from every Georgian and Russian Jewish community in the country.
Beginning in 1863, groups of Jews began making aliyah, mostly for religious reasons. By 1916, 439 Georgian Jews lived inIsrael, mostly in Jerusalem near the Damascus Gate. Most Jews who made aliyah were poor and worked as freight-handlers in Jerusalem. Other more prominent Georgian Jews served as financiers and carpet merchants. Prominent Georgian Jewish families in the holy land before 1948 were the Dabra (Davarashvili) and Kokia (Kakiashvili) families.[citation needed]
Anti-Semitism under the Tsarist Government[edit]
The tradition of the relationship between Jews and other Georgians has no signs of anti-Semitism, excluding the Tsarist Government. In the second half of the 19th century, there were some outbreaks of anti-Semitic acts, perhaps stemming from the influence of the Russian Orthodox Church.[citation needed] Anti-Semitism was supplemented by the end of serfdom and the urbanization of the Jewish population. As Jews became traders instead of field hands, Georgian workers began to see them as competitors and economic threats. Anti-Semitism had been active in Russia for centuries and, under the annexation, began to influence non-Jews in Georgia.
Six blood libels have been recorded as having taken place in Georgia. The first blood libel was in Surami in 1850. A little boy from Gori disappeared while on a visit with his parents. The child was found dead after four days, and the Jews were blamed for his death. The guberniya doctor examined the dead child and concluded that he was drowned. The people blamed the Jews and started riots against the Jews. Only the intervention of the head of the Viceroyalty avoided more problems. This was the first blood libel in the entire Russian Empire.[citation needed]
The worst and most infamous case was in the village of Sachkhere in 1878, when nine Jews were accused of partaking in the ritual killing of a Christian child to use the blood to make matzah for Passover. The highly publicized trial occurred inKutaisi, and was called the Kutaisi Trial. The accused were found not guilty, but the blood libels continued.
Revolution and independence[edit]
After the October 1917 Russian Revolution threw out the Tsar's government and replaced it with the Bolsheviks, Georgians clamored for independence from their occupiers. On May 26, 1918, the Georgian Republic declared its independence. With independence came freedom of speech, press, and organization, which improved the economic situation of the Jews of Georgia. This newfound freedom did not last long. The Red Army invaded Georgia in February 1921, prompting a mass exodus from the region. Approximately 1,500–2,000 Jews left Georgia, 1,000–1,200 of whom settled in Israel. The remainder fled mainly toIstanbul, where a Georgian Jewish community had been in existence since the 1880s.
Initially, the Soviets allowed the Jews to maintain their religious customs, but after a Georgian rebellion in 1924, the Bolshevik government terminated all Zionist activity, imposed economic restrictions, and generally discriminated against the Jewish community. As a result, many Jewish businesses were bankrupted and 200 families applied for exit visas. Only 18 were allowed to emigrate.
In the mid-1920s, the Soviets focused on industrializing and secularizing the Jews of Georgia. Mass numbers of Jews were forced to work in factories or to join craft cooperatives and collective farm projects. In 1927–1928, OZET, the organization for settling Jewish workers on farms, established a number of Jewish collective farms. These small homogeneous communities became isolated Jewish communities where Jewish learning was continued. Recognizing this, the Communists disbanded the communities in the 1930s, scattering the Jews among various farms and destroying Jewish communal life.
Meanwhile, blood libels continued in full force, with occurrences in Sachkhere in 1921, Tbilisi in 1923, and Akhalzikhe in 1926.
Due to Soviet persecution and the declining economic situation, Zionist leaders focused on increasing aliyah efforts. The Soviets firmly opposed Jewish emigration and, during the 1930s, cracked down on Zionist organizations, arresting or murdering many members. In 1937-38, the authorities stifled participation in Jewish religious services or cultural activities. In September 1937, nine hakhams, two of whom were Ashkenazi, were arrested in Tskhinvali (Staliniri at the time), and sent to prison without trial and murdered.
The only surviving Jewish institution was the History and Ethnography Museum, but it too was soon closed down. Its director, Aharon Krikheli was arrested in 1948, and the museum closed in the early 1950s, thus signifying the annihilation of Jewish culture in Georgia, which the Soviets had built up during the prewar years.
Contemporary Georgia[edit]
During World War II, thousands of Georgian Jews served in theSoviet Army. After the war, the authorities arrested Jews and closed or destroyed synagogues, and anti-Semitic acts of violence erupted. But despite their attempts, the Soviets could not completely annihilate the practice of Judaism and, even in the late 1960s and 70s, most Georgian Jews managed to observe their traditions. Throughout Soviet rule, Jews remained society's scapegoat. They made up the majority of Georgians convicted for economic crimes, and were punished more severely than the rest of the population. Blood libels continued with incidents inTskhaltubo in 1963, Zestafoni in 1964, and Kutaisi in 1965.
After the Six Day War, huge numbers of Georgian Jews applied for exit visas to immigrate to Israel. In August 1969, eighteen families wrote to the Human Rights Commission of the United Nations demanding permission to make aliyah. This was the first public insistence by Soviet Jews for immigration to Israel. As a result, the Israeli government and the Jewish world campaigned heavily on behalf of the plight of the Georgian Jews. In July 1971, a group of Georgian Jews went on a hunger strike outside a Moscow post office. The determination of the Jews of Georgia led the Soviets to lessen their harsh anti-Jewish policies. During the 1970s, about 30,000 Georgian Jews made aliyah and thousands of others left for other countries. Approximately 17 percent of the Soviet Jewish population emigrated at this time. In 1979, the Jewish population in Georgia was 28,300 and, by 1989, it had decreased to 24,800.
Independence and Georgia today[edit]
After the fall of the Soviet Union, Georgia declared her independence in 1991. Since independence, the country faced continuous military conflict, leaving the region in political and economic turmoil.
The situation of the Jewish community of Georgia improved dramatically due to the end of the Soviet occupation. In 1994, President Shevardnadzeissued a decree to protect Jewish religious, cultural and historic monuments. In addition, the Jews of Georgia have successfully maintained their Jewish identity and traditions despite the oppression they faced under the Soviets. Intermarriage has always been low and levels of Jewish knowledge are significantly higher than those of other CIS republics.
In 1990, the Rachamim Society was established, which supplies financial and medical support to the Jews of Tbilisi and maintains Jewish cemeteries and synagogues. It functions as an umbrella organization for Ashkenazi Jews. The Association of Georgian Jews (Derekh Yehudi) focuses on regaining Jewish property confiscated during the Soviet era. The Jewish community still faces acts of violence and obstacles in the return of property rights to a 19th-century Ashkenazi synagogue stolen by the Soviets. The Chief Rabbi of Georgia from Chabad Lubavitsch is Rabbi Avraham Michaelshvili, who has been there since the early 1990s hosting the Georgian community and many guests with fervor and devotion. There is a further Chief Rabbi Ariel Levin. There is no umbrella organization for all Jews in Georgia, but more than 30 Jewish institutions are in existence, in addition to one Jewish day school and four supplementary schools. Three Jewish newspapers are published-Menora, Shalom, and 26 century, and there is also a Jewish radio and television station.
The Jewish population of Georgia has steadily decreased over the years due to aliyah in response to the political and economic issues since independence. Overall, since 1989, 21,134 Jews have moved to Israel. Once numbering as many as 100,000, today the Georgian Jewish population is approximately 13,000. Tbilisi has the largest Jewish population at 11,000 out of 1.5 million. Jewish communities are located in Tbilisi, Kutaisi, Batumi, Oni, Akhaltikhe, Akhalkalaki, Surami, Kareli, and Stalin's hometown of Gori, and synagogues are located in most of these cities. The provinces of Abkhazia and South Ossetia are virtually devoid of Jews due to the military conflicts in these areas. Many Abkhazian Jews emigrated to Israel from Abkhazia during the war in the 1990s there, while the few who stayed are mostly elderly. A synagogue is still active in Sukhumi. There is one Jew left in South Ossetia (see articles History of the Jews in Abkhazia and History of the Jews in South Ossetia).
In January 2001, in a first step toward establishing relations, the Georgian Orthodox Church and the Jewish community of Georgia signed a cooperation agreement of mutual respect and support. In 2002, Georgian Orthodox Christianity was established as the state religion, and since then there has been concern for all religious minorities in the country. Relations between Georgia and Israel are warm, however. The Israeli embassy is located in Tbilisi and also serves Armenia; the Georgian embassy is in Tel Aviv. Israel has supplied humanitarian aid to Georgia a number of times, including drought assistance and aid for earthquake victims.
The Jewish Agency for Israel (JAFI) and American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC) both have permanent representatives in Georgia. JDC and Hesed Eliyahu distribute food and medical aid to the Jewish elderly, who make up more than 50% of the Georgian Jewish community.
As a result of the 2008 South Ossetia War, some 200 Georgian Jews immigrated toIsrael with assistance from the Jewish Agency.[5] During that war, the Jewish Quarter of Tskhinvali was destroyed during the Battle of Tskhinvali.[6]
Historical Demographics[edit]
Georgia's population almost doubled between 1926 and 1970, then began declining, with dramatic declines in the 1970s and 1990s, when many Georgian Jews left and moved to other countries, especially to Israel.[7]
| Historical Georgian Jewish population | ||
|---|---|---|
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
| 1926 | 30,534 | — |
| 1939 | 42,300 | +38.5% |
| 1959 | 51,589 | +22.0% |
| 1970 | 55,398 | +7.4% |
| 1979 | 28,315 | −48.9% |
| 1989 | 24,834 | −12.3% |
| 2002 | 5,000 | −79.9% |
| 2010 | 3,200 | −36.0% |
Source:
| ||
Language[edit]
The traditional language of the Georgian Jews is Judæo-Georgian, a variant ofGeorgian, characterized by a large number of Hebrew loanwords, and written using either the Georgian alphabet or Hebrew alphabet. Besides speaking Judæo-Georgian, the Georgian Jews speak the languages of the peoples surrounding them. In Georgia, these include Georgian and Russian; in Belgium, Dutch; in the United States and Canada English; and in Israel, Hebrew.
Diaspora[edit]
Many Georgian Jews now live in Israel. In the United States, the principal Georgian Jewish synagogue is the Congregation of Georgian Jews in the Forest Hills section ofQueens, New York City. In Belgium, most of them live in Antwerp. One notable Georgian Jew is the Tamir Sapir, born Temur Sepiashvili, an immigrant taxi driver turned chemical trader turned real estate investor from New York. Another notable Georgian Jew is Dr. Yuri Busi (born Yuri Busiashvili). Formerly Lucille Ball's physician,[12] Dr. Busi developed a successful career as a Cardiologist serving mostly the emigrant Soviet community in Los Angeles.
In Israel, most Georgian Jews settled near the coast in cities such as Lod, Bat Yam,Ashdod, and Holon. There are also Georgian Jews in Jerusalem, with several prominent synagogues.
Demographics
Main article: Demographics of Georgia (country)
Like most native Caucasian peoples, the Georgians do not fit into any of the main ethnic categories of Europe or Asia. The Georgian language, the most pervasive of the Kartvelian languages, is neither Indo-European, Turkic norSemitic. The present day Georgian or Kartvelian nation is thought to have resulted from the fusion of aboriginal, autochthonous inhabitants with immigrants who infiltrated into South Caucasus from the direction of Anatolia in remote antiquity.[142] The ancient Jewish chronicle by Josephus mentions Georgians as Iberes who were also called Thobel Tubal.[143]
Ethnic Georgians form about 84% of Georgia's current population of 4,661,473 (July 2006 est.).[144] Other ethnic groups include Abkhazians, Armenians,Azerbaijanis, Belorusians, Bulgarians, Estonians, Germans, Greeks, Jews,Moldovans, Ossetians, Poles, Russians, Turks and Ukrainians. Georgia's Jewish community is one of the oldest Jewish communities in the world.[citation needed] There were "more than 6,000" registered Iranian immigrants in Georgia in April 2013.[145]
The most widespread language group is the Kartvelian family, which includes Georgian, Svan, Mingrelian and Laz.[146]The official languages of Georgia are Georgian, with Abkhaz official within the autonomous region of Abkhazia. Georgian is the primary language of approximately 71% of the population, followed by 9% speaking Russian, 7% Armenian, 6%Azerbaijani, and 7% other languages.[121]
In the early 1990s, following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, violentseparatist conflicts broke out in the autonomous regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia. Many Ossetians living in Georgia left the country, mainly to Russia'sNorth Ossetia.[147] On the other hand, more than 150,000 Georgians left Abkhazia after the breakout of hostilities in 1993.[148] Of the Meskhetian Turkswho were forcibly relocated in 1944 only a tiny fraction returned to Georgia as of 2008.[149]
The 1989 census recorded 341,000 ethnic Russians, or 6.3% of the population,[150] 52,000 Ukrainians and 100,000 Greeks in Georgia.[151] Since 1990, 1.5 million Georgian nationals have left.[151] At least one million immigrants from Georgia legally or illegally reside in Russia.[152] Georgia's net migration rate is −4.54, excluding Georgian nationals who live abroad. Georgia has nonetheless been inhabited by immigrants from all over the world throughout its independence. According to 2006 statistics, Georgia gets most of its immigrants from Turkey and China.
Today 83.9% of the population practices Eastern Orthodox Christianity, with majority of these adhering to the national Georgian Orthodox Church. Religious minorities include Muslims (9.9%), Armenian Apostolic (3.9%), and Roman Catholic (0.8%). 0.8% of those recorded in the 2002 census declared themselves to be adherents of other religions and 0.7% declared no religion at all.[121][153]
|
Largest cities or towns of Georgia National Statistics Office of Georgia - Population report (2012) | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | Name | Georgia|Administrative division | Pop. | ||||||
 Tbilisi  Kutaisi | 1 | Tbilisi | Tbilisi | 1,172,700 | .jpg) Batumi  Rustavi | ||||
| 2 | Kutaisi | Imereti | 196,800 | ||||||
| 3 | Batumi | Adjara | 125,800 | ||||||
| 4 | Rustavi | Kvemo Kartli | 122,500 | ||||||
| 5 | Zugdidi | Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti | 75,700 | ||||||
| 6 | Gori | Shida Kartli | 54,900 | ||||||
| 7 | Poti | Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti | 47,900 | ||||||
| 8 | Sukhumi | Abkhazia | 39,100 | ||||||
| 9 | Khashuri | Shida Kartli | 38,700 | ||||||
| 10 | Samtredia | Imereti | 32,200 | ||||||
Religion
Main article: Religion in Georgia (country)
A large majority of Georgia's population (83.9% in 2002)[154] practicesOrthodox Christianity. The Georgian Orthodox Church is one of the world's most ancient Christian Churches, and claims apostolic foundation by Saint Andrew.[155] In the first half of the 4th century, Christianity was adopted as the state religion of Iberia (present-day Kartli, or Eastern Georgia), following the missionary work of Saint Nino of Cappadocia.[156][157] The Church gainedautocephaly during the early Middle Ages; it was abolished during the Russian domination of the country, restored in 1917 and fully recognised by theEcumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople in 1990.
The special status of the Georgian Orthodox Church is officially recognised in the Constitution of Georgia and the Concordat of 2002, although religious institutions are separate from the state, and every citizen has the right of religion.
Religious minorities of Georgia include Armenian Christians (3.9%), Muslims (9.9%), and Roman Catholics (0.8%).[121] Islam is represented by both Azerbaijani Shia Muslims (in the South-East) and ethnic GeorgianSunni Muslims in Adjara. Georgian Jews trace the history of their community to the 6th century BC; their numbers have dwindled in the last decades due to strong emigration towards Israel.
Despite the long history of religious harmony in Georgia,[158] there have been several instances of religious discrimination and violence against "nontraditional faiths", such as Jehovah's Witnesses, by the followers of the defrocked Orthodox priest Vasil Mkalavishvili.[159]
Education
The education system of Georgia has undergone sweeping modernizing, although controversial, reforms since 2004.[160][161] Education in Georgia is mandatory for all children aged 6–14.[162] The school system is divided into elementary (6 years; age level 6–12), basic (3 years; age level 12–15), and secondary (3 years; age level 15–18), or alternatively vocational studies (2 years). Students with a secondary school certificate have access to higher education. Only the students who have passed the Unified National Examinations may enroll in a state-accredited higher education institution, based on ranking of scores he/she received at the exams.
Most of these institutions offer three levels of study: a Bachelor's Program (3–4 years); a Master's Program (2 years), and a Doctoral Program (3 years). There is also a Certified Specialist's Program that represents a single-level higher education program lasting for 3–6 years.[162][163] As of 2008, 20 higher education institutions are accredited by the Ministry of Education and Science of Georgia.[164] Gross primary enrollment ratio was 94% for the period of 2001–2006.[165]
Culture
Main article: Culture of Georgia (country)
Georgian culture evolved over thousands of years with its foundations in Iberian andColchian civilizations,[166] continuing into the rise of the unified Georgian Kingdom under the single monarchy of the Bagrationi. Georgian culture enjoyed a golden age and renaissance of classical literature, arts, philosophy, architecture and science in the 11th century.[167]
The Georgian language, and the Classical Georgian literature of the poet Shota Rustaveli, were revived in the 19th century after a long period of turmoil, laying the foundations of the romantics and novelists of the modern era such as Grigol Orbeliani,Nikoloz Baratashvili, Ilia Chavchavadze, Akaki Tsereteli, Vazha Pshavela, and many others.[168] Georgian culture was influenced by Classical Greece, the Roman Empire, the Byzantine Empire, and later by the Russian Empire.
Georgians have their own unique 3 alphabets which according to traditional accounts was invented by King Pharnavaz I of Iberia in 3rd century BC.[169][170]
Georgia is well known for its rich folklore, unique traditional music, theatre, cinema, and art. Georgians are renowned for their love of music, dance, theatre and cinema. In the 20th century there have been notable Georgian painters such as Niko Pirosmani, Lado Gudiashvili, Elene Akhvlediani; ballet choreographers such as George Balanchine, Vakhtang Chabukiani, and Nino Ananiashvili; poets such as Galaktion Tabidze, Lado Asatiani, and Mukhran Machavariani; and theatre and film directors such as Robert Sturua, Tengiz Abuladze, Giorgi Danelia and Otar Ioseliani.[168]
Architecture and arts
Georgian architecture has been influenced by many civilizations. There are several different architectural styles for castles, towers, fortifications and churches. The Upper Svaneti fortifications, and the castle town of Shatili inKhevsureti, are some of the finest examples of medieval Georgian castle architecture. Other architectural aspects of Georgia include Rustaveli avenue in Tbilisi in the Hausmann style, and the Old Town District.
Georgian ecclesiastic art is one of the most fascinating aspects of Georgian Christian architecture, which combines classical dome style with original basilicastyle forming what is known as the Georgian cross-dome style. Cross-dome architecture developed in Georgia during the 9th century; before that, most Georgian churches were basilicas. Other examples of Georgian ecclesiastic architecture can be found outside Georgia: Bachkovo Monastery in Bulgaria (built in 1083 by the Georgian military commander Grigorii Bakuriani), Iviron monastery in Greece (built by Georgians in the 10th century), and theMonastery of the Cross in Jerusalem (built by Georgians in the 9th century).
The art of Georgia spans the prehistoric, the ancient Greek, Roman, medieval, ecclesiastic, iconic and modern visual arts. One of the most famous late 19th/early 20th century Georgian artists is a primitivist painter Niko Pirosmani.
Music
Main article: Music of Georgia (country)
Georgia has a rich and vibrant musical tradition, primarily known for its early development of polyphony. Georgian polyphony is based on three vocal parts, a unique tuning system based on perfect fifths, and a harmonic structure rich in parallel fifths and dissonances. Each region in Georgia has its own traditional music with Persian influenced drones and ostinato-like soloists in the East, complex improvised harmonies in the west, and solid moving chords in Svanetie.
Cuisine
Main article: Georgian cuisine
Georgian cuisine and wine have evolved through the centuries, adapting traditions in each era. One of the most unusual traditions of dining is Supra, or Georgian table, which is also a way of socialising with friends and family. The head of Supra is known as Tamada. He also conducts the highly philosophical toasts, and makes sure that everyone is enjoying themselves. Various historical regions of Georgia are known for their particular dishes: for example, Khinkali (meat dumplings), from eastern mountainous Georgia, and Khachapuri, mainly from Imereti, Samegrelo and Adjara. In addition to traditional Georgian dishes, the foods of other countries have been brought to Georgia by immigrants from Russia, Greece, and recently China.
Sports
Main article: Sport in Georgia
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The most popular sports in Georgia arefootball, basketball, rugby union, wrestling,judo, and weightlifting. Historically, Georgia has been famous for its physical education; it is known that the Romanswere fascinated with Georgians' physical qualities after seeing the training techniques of ancient Iberia.[171] Wrestling remains a historically important sport of Georgia, and some historians think that the Greco-Roman style of wrestling incorporates many Georgian elements.[172]
Within Georgia, one of the most popularized styles of wrestling is the Kakhetian style. There were a number of other styles in the past that are not as widely used today. For example, the Khevsureti region of Georgia has three different styles of wrestling. Other popular sports in 19th century Georgia were polo, and Lelo, a traditional Georgian game later replaced by rugby union.
The first and only race circuit in the Caucasian region is located in Georgia. Rustavi International Motorpark originally built in 1978 was re-opened in 2012 after total reconstruction[173] costing $20 million. The track satisfies the FIA Grade 2 requirements and currently hosts the Legends car racing series and Formula Alfa competitions.[174]
See also
Demographics of Georgia (country)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia(Redirected from People of Georgia)The demographic features of the population ofGeorgia include population growth, population density, ethnicity, education level, health, economic status, religious affiliations, and other aspects of the population.Contents
[hide]Demographic trends[edit]
The demographic situation in Georgia, like that of some other former Soviet republics (especially Estonia and Latvia), has been characterized by two prominent features since independence: decline in total population and significant "Georgianization" of the ethnic composition. The proportion of ethnic Georgians increased by full 10 percentage points between 1989 and 2002, rising from 73.7% to 83.7% of the population.[1]The population grew steadily while Georgia was part of the Soviet Union and during the first years of independence, rising from less than 4 million in the 1950s to a peak of 5.5 million in 1992.[2] Then the trend changed and the population began to decline, dropping to 4.5 million in 2005 according to the estimates by the Georgian Department of Statistics.[3] This figure represents the total population, including the separatist regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, whose population in 2005 was estimated at 178,000 and 49,200, respectively. Without Abkhazia and South Osetia, the population in the regions controlled by the central government of Georgia was 4,321,500 in 2005 and 4,382,100 in 2008[4] (compare the 2008 figure with the CIA estimate of 4,630,841 for all of Georgia, including Abkhazia and South Osetia[5]).As a portion of the population, Georgia was named as largest emigration countries in the world in the 2007 World Bankreport. The 2002 population census in Georgia revealed a net migration loss of 1.1 million persons, or 20% of the population, since the early 90s.[6] The decline in Georgia's population is caused by the emigration in search of employment, and a sharp fall of birth rates.[7] Over 300,000 Russians, 200,000 Georgians, 200,000 Armenians, 85,000Greeks, 50,000 Azerbaijanis, 50,000 Ukrainians and 20,000 Jews have migrated from Georgia since independence.[citation needed]Vital statistics[8][9][edit]
Births and deaths[edit]
Total area[edit]
Average population (x 1000) Live births1 Deaths1 Natural change1 Crude birth rate (per 1000) Crude death rate (per 1000) Natural change (per 1000) Fertility rates 1950 3 527 82 900 27 000 55 900 23.5 7.7 15.9 1951 3 585 86 800 26 900 59 900 24.2 7.5 16.7 1952 3 646 85 700 26 600 59 100 23.5 7.3 16.2 1953 3 710 87 200 26 300 60 900 23.5 7.1 16.4 1954 3 775 91 400 26 000 65 400 24.2 6.9 17.3 1955 3 840 92 500 25 700 66 800 24.1 6.7 17.4 1956 3 904 89 800 26 500 63 300 23.0 6.8 16.2 1957 3 967 89 700 27 000 62 700 22.6 6.8 15.8 1958 4 031 93 100 27 400 65 700 23.1 6.8 16.3 1959 4 095 98 300 27 400 70 900 24.0 6.7 17.3 1960 4 160 102 866 27 015 51 866 24.7 6.5 18.2 2.65 1961 4 224 104 429 27 621 53 429 24.7 6.5 18.2 2.65 1962 4 291 101 717 30 394 51 717 23.7 7.1 16.6 2.63 1963 4 357 100 326 29 620 51 326 23.0 6.8 16.2 2.62 1964 4 420 97 433 29 708 48 433 22.0 6.7 15.3 2.62 1965 4 478 94 987 31 291 46 987 21.2 7.0 14.2 2.60 1966 4 531 92 026 30 389 44 026 20.3 6.7 13.6 2.57 1967 4 577 89 302 32 904 42 302 19.5 7.2 12.3 2.53 1968 4 619 89 660 32 416 43 660 19.4 7.0 12.4 2.52 1969 4 662 87 069 35 169 41 069 18.7 7.5 11.2 2.45 1970 4 706 90 207 34 283 45 207 19.2 7.3 11.9 2.62 1971 4 753 90 396 35 325 45 396 19.0 7.4 11.6 2.61 1972 4 798 86 402 36 409 41 402 18.0 7.6 10.4 2.53 1973 4 837 88 577 35 911 44 577 18.3 7.4 10.9 2.58 1974 4 876 89 761 37 145 45 761 18.4 7.6 10.8 2.59 1975 4 908 89 712 39 292 45 712 18.3 8.0 10.3 2.52 1976 4 940 90 605 38 875 46 605 18.3 7.9 10.4 2.52 1977 4 972 89 028 40 139 45 028 17.9 8.1 9.8 2.33 1978 4 990 88 766 40 239 45 766 17.8 8.1 9.8 2.31 1979 5 017 89 803 41 907 47 896 17.8 8.4 9.5 2.34 1980 5 056 89 458 43 346 46 112 17.6 8.6 9.1 2.26 1981 5 086 92 501 43 961 48 540 18.1 8.6 9.5 2.29 1982 5 117 91 784 42 734 49 050 17.9 8.4 9.6 2.25 1983 5 151 92 660 43 301 49 359 18.0 8.4 9.6 2.20 1984 5 184 95 841 45 787 50 054 18.5 8.8 9.7 2.24 1985 5 218 97 739 46 153 51 586 18.7 8.8 9.9 2.27 1986 5 250 98 155 46 354 51 801 18.7 8.8 9.9 2.26 1987 5 300 94 595 46 332 48 263 17.8 8.7 9.1 2.19 1988 5 367 91 905 47 544 44 361 17.1 8.9 8.3 2.13 1989 5 413 91 138 47 077 44 061 16.8 8.7 8.1 2.15 1990 5 439 92 815 50 721 43 895 17.1 9.3 8.1 2.29 1991 5 460 89 091 52 416 36 675 16.3 9.6 6.7 2.07 1992 5 408 72 631 55 076 17 555 13.4 10.2 3.2 1.72 1Births and deaths until 1959 are estimates.Excluding Abkhazia and South Ossetia[edit]
Average population (x 1000) Live births Deaths Natural change Crude birth rate (per 1000) Crude death rate (per 1000) Natural change (per 1000) Fertility rates 1993 4 854 55 594 56 270 −676 11.5 11.6 −0.1 1.48 1994 4 862 57 311 50 516 6 795 11.8 10.4 1.4 1.52 1995 4 734 56 341 47 609 8 732 11.9 10.1 1.8 1.54 1996 4 616 55 000 47 136 7 864 11.9 10.2 1.7 1.55 1997 4 532 54 000 47 575 6 425 11.9 10.5 1.4 1.60 1998 4 487 51 526 47 321 4 205 11.5 10.5 0.9 1.41 1999 4 453 48 695 47 184 1 511 10.9 10.6 0.3 1.44 2000 4 418 48 800 47 410 1 390 11.0 10.7 0.3 1.51 2001 4 386 47 589 46 218 1 371 10.8 10.5 0.3 1.44 2002 4 357 46 605 46 446 159 10.7 10.7 0.0 1.42 2003 4 329 46 194 46 055 139 10.7 10.6 0.0 1.41 2004 4 318 49 572 48 793 779 11.5 11.3 0.2 1.55 2005 4 321 46 512 40 721 5 791 10.7 9.3 1.3 1.38 2006 4 401 47 795 42 255 5 540 10.8 9.6 1.2 1.44 2007 4 394 49 287 41 178 8 109 11.2 9.4 1.8 1.47 2008 4 382 56 565 43 011 13 554 12.9 9.8 3.1 1.66 2009 4 385 63 377 46 625 16 752 14.4 10.6 3.8 1.86 2010 4 436 62 585 47 864 14 721 14.1 10.8 3.3 1.83 2011 4 469 58 014 49 818 8 196 12.9 11.1 1.8 1.70 2012 4 497 57 031 49 348 7 683 12.7 11.0 1.7 1.68 Ethnic groups[edit]
Georgians are the predominant ethnic group in Georgia, according to the 2002 census 84% of the population. The proportion in 2002 was much higher than in preceding censuses as in 2002 (most parts of) Abkhazia and (about a half)South Ossetia were not under government control and therefore not included. As a result of this the proportion ofOssetians and Abkhazians was very low (0.9% and 0.1%, respectively).Population of Georgia according to ethnic group 1926–2002 Ethnic
groupcensus 19261 census 19392 census 19593 census 19704 census 19795 census 19896 census 2002 Number % Number % Number % Number % Number % Number % Number % Georgians 1,788,186 66.8 2,173,922 61.4 2,600,588 64.3 3,130,741 66.8 3,433,011 68.8 3,787,393 70.7 3,661,173 83.8 Azerbaijanis 137,921 5.2 188,058 5.3 153,600 3.8 217,758 4.6 255,678 5.1 307,556 5.7 284,761 6.5 Armenians 307,018 11.5 415,013 11.7 442,916 11.0 452,309 9.7 448,000 9.0 437,211 8.1 248,929 5.7 Russians 96,085 3.6 308,684 8.7 407,886 10.1 396,694 8.5 371,608 7.4 341,172 6.3 67,671 1.5 Ossetians 113,298 4.2 147,677 4.2 141,178 3.5 150,185 3.2 160,497 3.2 164,055 3.0 38,028 0.9 Yazidis 2,262 0.1 12,915 0.4 16,212 0.4 20,690 0.4 25,688 0.5 33,331 0.6 18,329 0.4 Kurds 7,955 0.3 2,514 0.1 Greeks 54,051 2.0 84,636 2.4 72,938 1.8 89,246 1.9 95,105 1.9 100,324 1.9 15,166 0.3 Ukrainians 14,356 0.5 45,595 1.3 52,236 1.3 49,622 1.1 45,036 0.9 52,443 1.0 7,039 0.2 Abkhazians 56,847 2.1 57,805 1.6 62,878 1.6 79,449 1.7 85,285 1.7 95,853 1.8 3,527 0.1 Assyrians 2,904 0.1 4,707 0.1 5,005 0.1 5,617 0.1 5,286 0.1 6,206 0.1 3,299 0.1 Jews 30,389 1.1 42,300 1.2 51,582 1.3 55,382 1.2 28,298 0.6 24,795 0.5 2,333 0.1 Others 65,961 2.5 58,711 1.7 37,015 0.9 38,665 0.8 39,690 0.8 50,502 0.9 18,766 0.5 Total 2,677,233 3,540,023 4,044,045 4,686,358 4,993,182 5,400,841 4,371,535 1 Source: [1]. 2 Source: [2]. 3 Source: [3]. 4 Source: [4]. 5 Source: [5]. 6 Source: [6]. Languages[edit]
Georgian 71% (official), Azerbaijani 6.5%, Armenian 5.7%, other 4.0% (including Russian, Abkhazian and Ossetian),Religion[edit]
Orthodox Christian 82.1%, Muslim 9.9%, Armenian Apostolic (Christian) 5.7%, Roman Catholics 0.8%, Jews 0.1%, other 1.4% (2002 census)[10]CIA World Factbook 2012 demographic statistics[edit]
The following demographic statistics are from the CIA World Factbook[5]Age structure: :- 0–14 years: 16.9%
(male 401,3/female 359,8)
- 15–64 years: 69.4%
(male 1,509,8/female 1,610,8)
- 65 years and over: 13.7%
Median age:- total: 39.1 years
- male: 36.6 years
- female: 41.6 years (2011 est.)
Population growth rate:- -0.327% (2012 est.)
Sex ratio:- at birth: 1.11 male(s)/female
- under 15 years: 1.15 male(s)/female
- 15–64 years: 0.94 male(s)/female
- 65 years and over: 0.66 male(s)/female
- total population: 0.91 male(s)/female (2012 est.)
Infant mortality rate:- total: 14.68 deaths/1,000 live births
- male: 16.58 deaths/1,000 live births
- female: 12.59 deaths/1,000 live births (2012 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:- total population: 74,5 years
- male: 70,2 years
- female: 78,6 years (2012 est.)
Total fertility rate: 1.71 children born/woman (2012 est.)HIV/AIDS- adult prevalence rate: less than 0.1% (2007 est.)
- people living with HIV/AIDS: 2,700 (2007 est.)
- deaths: less than 200 (2003 est.)
Nationality:- noun: Georgian(s)
- adjective: Georgian
Literacy:, age 15 and over can read and write- total population: 100%
- male: 100%
- female: 100% (2004 est.)
Population growth rate by province[edit]
Year 2003 2004 2005 2006 Change in Births 2003 2004 2005 2006 2003 2004 2005 2006 2003 2004 2005 2006 2003 2004 2005 2006 Region Births Births Births Births Births BR 03 BR 04 BR 05 BR 06 Deaths Deaths Deaths Deaths DR 03 DR 04 DR 05 DR 06 PGR 03 PGR 04 PGR 05 PGR 06 Tbilisi 16,808 12,317 12,794 13,773 (-18.06%) 15.58 11.42 11.85 12.48 12,597 12,424 11,164 12,454 11.67 11.52 10.34 11.29 0.39% (-0.01%) 0.15% 0.12% Autonomous Republic Abkhazia NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA Autonomous Republic Adjara 4,092 5,716 4,711 4,637 13.32% 10.96 15.44 12.63 12.29 2,405 3,017 3,020 2,609 6.44 8.15 8.1 6.92 0.45% 0.73% 0.45% 0.54% Guria 1,165 1,431 1,432 1,343 15.28% 8.2 10.28 10.32 9.64 1,923 1,963 1,746 1,479 13.53 14.1 12.59 10.62 (-0.53%) (-0.38%) (-0.23%) (-0.10%) Imereti 6,348 7,717 6,717 7,131 12.33% 9.14 11.18 9.75 10.19 8,143 9,756 6,490 7,797 11.72 14.14 9.42 11.14 (-0.26%) (-0.30%) (0.03%) (-0.10%) Kakheti 2,787 3,655 3,366 3,840 37.78% 6.9 9.11 8.42 9.49 4,652 5,527 4,005 4,189 11.52 13.77 10.02 10.35 (-0.46%) (-0.47%) (-0.16%) (-0.09%) Mtskheta-Mtianeti 903 1,514 1,298 1,165 29.01% 7.25 12.36 10.6 9.36 1,480 1,701 1,332 1,237 11.88 13.89 10.87 9.94 (-0.46%) (-0.15%) (-0.03%) (-0.06%) Racha-Lechkumi and Kvemo Svaneti 202 327 376 235 16.34% 4.02 6.58 7.66 4.79 798 991 700 632 15.9 19.94 14.26 12.87 (-1.19%) (-1.34%) (-0.66%) (-0.81%) Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti 3,652 3,817 4,408 4,421 21.06% 7.86 8.27 9.53 9.35 4,803 3,682 4,193 3,892 10.34 7.98 9.07 8.23 (-0.25%) 0.03% 0.05% 0.11% Samtskhe-Javakheti 2,142 2,836 2,303 2,113 (-1.35%) 10.39 14 11.32 10.13 2,143 2,208 1,706 1,604 10.39 10.9 8.38 7.69 0.00% 0.31% 0.29% 0.24% Kvemo Kartli 3,568 6,407 5,148 5,856 64.13% 7.23 13.05 10.41 11.54 3,424 3,561 3,086 3,354 6.94 7.25 6.24 6.61 0.03% 0.58% 0.42% 0.49% Shida Kartli 4,527 3,835 3,959 3,281 (-27.52%) 14.58 12.42 12.81 10.45 3,687 3,963 3,279 3,008 11.87 12.83 10.61 9.58 0.27% (-0.04%) 0.22% 0.09% Total 46,194 49,572 46,512 47,795 3.47% 10.64 11.49 10.76 10.86 46,055 48,793 40,721 42,255 10.61 11.31 9.42 9.6 0.00% 0.02% 0.13% 0.13% See also
- 0–14 years: 16.9%
