საქართველო
Sakartvelo
Georgia


Flag			Coat of arms

Motto: "Strength is in Unity"

Anthem: "Freedom"

Capital

Tbilisi ; 41°43′N 44°47′E/ 41.717°N 44.783°E

Official language

Georgian

Demonym

Georgian

Government

Unitary semi-presidential republic

Area

69,700 km ;26,911 sq mi

Geographical outline

Mountain
The climate
The rivers
The lakes
The flora
The animal kingdom

History

Population

2010 estimate

4,636,400

Density

68.1/km² ;164.2/sq mi

Georgian regions:

Currency

Lari (ლ) (GEL)

Time zone

UTC (UTC+4)

Drives on the

right

Internet TLD

.ge

Calling code

995

HISTORY
Georgia as old as the world, here most of the history is created as legends and myths.
The Georgians belong to the southern branch of the Europeoid great race and take their origin from the Hetto-Iberians who inhabited vast territory in the Caucasus and Anterior Asia in the third and second millennia B.C.
The Georgian nation formed of several related tribes. The main of them were the Karts, the Megrels-Chans (Lazes) and the Svans. The Karts, the largest Georgian tribe, gave their name to the Georgians, that is Kartveli, as well as Sakartvelo, which means the land inhabited by Georgians. In ancient Roman sources it is called Iberia (the Iberians).
If your mind is open to the world of myths, imagine the great Titan chained to one of these mountain faces, punished for bringing fire to humanity. Others may recall the Golden Fleece stolen from the kingdom of Colchis by Jason with the aid of the king's daughter Medea, who was then taken to Greece together with Jason's Argonauts.
In 337 Georgia officially adopted Christianity.
By the 6th century it had become a feudal state and was seized by Arabs in the 7th century. Georgia was united under the Royal House of Bagrationi.(10th-11th cc.) Before the first half of 13th century Georgia was in the golden age in economical and cultural state. It is the period when Shota Rustaveli creates his masterpiece ,, Knight in the Panter's skin".
Georgian golden age was finished by the Mongols, who seized and disintegrated Georgia into numerous kingdoms and countries. After Mongol period (15th c.) Georgia fell under Turkish and Persian domination.
In 1783, Georgian King established the protectorate of Russia over the Georgian Kingdom, but in 1801 Russia violated the Treaty, included Georgia in its empire and abolished the Georgian Kingdom.
Georgia was declared an independent Democratic Republic (26 May,1918). In 1921it was annexed by the Red Army and became a part of the Soviet Union.
In 1991 Georgia declared its independence and seceded from the USSR.
The Georgian Language, is the state language of Georgia.
The Georgian language belongs to the Kartvelian group of the Iberian-Caucasian language and is one of the oldest living languages of the world.
Georgian written language dates from the 4th-3th centuries B.C. The Assyrian manuscript "The Book of Peoples and Countries" (5th centure) reports that of the 75 peoples known at that time only 15, including the Georgian people, has an alphabet of their own. The Georgian alphabet contains as many letters (33)as there are sounds in Georgian language, and that' s way writing is not discrepant with pronunciation: one writes exactly as one speaks. Handwritten letters are almost identical with printed ones. The makes Georgian orthography simple and perfect at the same time.
The feudal fragmentation of Georgia in the 14th-18th centuries, the long continued geographical separation of different historic-ethnical regions (particularly mountain areas) were responsible for the survival of various dialects: Kartalinean, Kakhetian, Imeretian, Gurian, Khevsurian. In addition to the modern literary language common to the whole of Georgia the inhabitants of Megrelia and Svanetia have their oral dialects.
Some historical Georgian toponyms: Colchis (XIII BC), Tabals and Mushkis (X BC), Suspers (VII BC), Diaoch (VIII BC), Iberia (IV BC), Kartlin (IV AD), Abkhazia (VII AD), Tao-Klarjeti (IX AD), Sakartvelo (XII AD).
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MOUNTAIN ridges and hills occupy 80 percent of Georgia's area. On the northern border of Georgia rises the Main Caucasian Range on the southern border are the Minor Caucasus. Many peaks in the Georgian part of the Main Caucasian Range are higher than the loftiest peak of the Alps, Mt. Mont Blanc. Among them are Mt. Shkhara (5201 m.), Mt. Kazbegi (5047 m.) , the Rustaveli Peak (4960 m.), Mt. Tetnuldi (4852 m.), Mt.Ushba (4695) etc. In the central part of the Greater Caucasus, lies the main mass of the glaciers. This natural refrigerator not only moderates Georgia's climate but also provides stable water supply to Caucasian rivers.
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THE CLIMATE of Georgia has markedly expressed belts with a vertical pattern. Divided by a mountain barrier, Western and Eastern Georgia substantially differ from one another climatically. Western Georgia is a humid region with a subtropical seaside climate. Winter is mild and warm , summer is relatively hot, the mean annual air temperature is 15 C. above zero. In Eastern Georgia the climate is drier and continental, with a warm summer and moderately cold winter. The maximum rainfall is in late spring and early summer. Autumn in Georgia is fair and warm everywhere. The coldest month is January. Spring is short, with abrupt changes in the weather.
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THE RIVERS are rapid and full. The rivers of Western Georgia belong to the basin of the Black Sea and these of Eastern-to the Caspian basin.
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THE LAKES are not large but vary in origin (volcanic, karst, relict, glacier ) and are picturesque, most of them lying high up in the mountains. In addition to natural lakes manmade lakes serving as water reservoirs - Khrami,Djandari and others.
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THE FLORA comprises 4000 species of wild-growing plants of the northern countries and the subtropics, the steppes and highlands, plains and seaside areas. About one-third of total area is covered by forests, some of which are preserves. The main forest species are oak, beech, hornbeam, pine, fir and chestnut. Among the valuable species are box-tree and dzelkva. Above the timber line is the zone of sub-Alpine and Alpine meadows, rich in medicinal herbs. The Alpine meadows extend to an altitude of 3 500 m.
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THE ANIMAL KINGDOM is also rich and varied. The aurochs, Bezoar goat,chamois, roe deer, gazelle, wild boar, and large and small predators occur in Georgia. Widely common species of the feathered family are pheasants, mountain turkeys, black grouse, partridges, and bustards. Staying here in winter are wild geese, ducks and swans, and in spring come flying, great snipes, cranes, snipes, and woodcocks. The common bird predators are mountain and steppe eagles, black griffons, and hawks. The rivers and lakes abound in trout, salmon, sheat fish, sazan, carp and pike, as well as local species, such as khramuli, Colchis podust, murtsa, and Colchis barbel.
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Lari (ლ) (GEL)

Wine Tour in Diocese of Alaverdi