The Abashidze ( ka, აბაშიძე) is a
Georgian
Georgian may refer to:
Common meanings
* Anything related to, or originating from Georgia (country)
** Georgians, an indigenous Caucasian ethnic group
** Georgian language, a Kartvelian language spoken by Georgians
**Georgian scripts, three scrip ...
family and a former princely house. Appearing in the 15th century, they achieved prominence in the
Kingdom of Imereti
The Kingdom of Imereti ( ka, იმერეთის სამეფო, tr) was a Georgian monarchy established in 1455 by a member of the house of Bagrationi when the Kingdom of Georgia was dissolved into rival kingdoms. Before that time, Im ...
in western Georgia in the late 17th century and branched out in the
eastern Georgia
Eastern Georgia ( ka, აღმოსავლეთ საქართველო, ''aghmosavlet' sak'art'velo'') is a geographic area encompassing the territory of the Caucasian nation of Georgia to the east and south of the Likhi and Meskhe ...
n kingdoms of
Kakheti
Kakheti ( ka, კახეთი ''K’akheti''; ) is a region (mkhare) formed in the 1990s in eastern Georgia from the historical province of Kakheti and the small, mountainous province of Tusheti. Telavi is its capital. The region comprises eigh ...
and
Kartli
Kartli ( ka, ქართლი ) is a historical region in central-to-eastern Georgia traversed by the river Mtkvari (Kura), on which Georgia's capital, Tbilisi, is situated. Known to the Classical authors as Iberia, Kartli played a crucial rol ...
as well as the then-
Ottoman-held southwestern region of
Adjara
Adjara ( ka, აჭარა ''Ach’ara'' ) or Achara, officially known as the Autonomous Republic of Adjara ( ka, აჭარის ავტონომიური რესპუბლიკა ''Ach’aris Avt’onomiuri Resp’ublik’a'' ...
. After the
Russian
Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including:
*Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries
*Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...
annexation of Georgian polities, the family was confirmed as
Knyaz Abashidze (russian: Абашидзе) by the
Tsar
Tsar ( or ), also spelled ''czar'', ''tzar'', or ''csar'', is a title used by East Slavs, East and South Slavs, South Slavic monarchs. The term is derived from the Latin word ''Caesar (title), caesar'', which was intended to mean "emperor" i ...
’s decree of 1825.
History
The Abashidze family possibly derived from the medieval Georgian noble house of
Liparitid-Orbeliani, but the family legend holds that it descended from an
Abyssinian[ Bagrationi, Ioane (1768-1830)]
Abashidze
''The Brief Description of the Georgian Noble Houses''. Retrieved on January 16, 2010 officer named Abash who had allegedly accompanied
Marwan ibn Muhammad’s
Arab
The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, ...
army to Georgia in the 8th century; Abash is said to have remained in Georgia and ennobled when he saved the life of a Georgian crown prince from a wolf.
The first recorded account about the Abashidze dates back to the latter part of the 15th century. By the 1540s, they had already been in possession of a sizeable fiefdom within the Kingdom of Imereti located in its eastern part and called Saabashidzeo (სააბაშიძეო; literally, "
he landof Abashidze"). The family reached a climax of its might at the turn of the 18th century, when it possessed 78 villages, several castles, fortresses, churches and monasteries as well as 1,500 serf households. Prince
Giorgi-Malakia Abashidze
Giorgi-Malakia Abashidze ( ka, გიორგი-მალაქია აბაშიძე, died October 15, 1722) was a Georgian nobleman and King of Imereti as George VI (or George V) from 1702 to 1707. He was a member of the prominent Abas ...
was not only the most powerful vassal of the crown of Imereti, but himself acted as a kingmaker and even
de facto
''De facto'' ( ; , "in fact") describes practices that exist in reality, whether or not they are officially recognized by laws or other formal norms. It is commonly used to refer to what happens in practice, in contrast with ''de jure'' ("by la ...
king from 1702 to 1707. The family branched out in eastern Georgia when
Erekle II
Heraclius II ( ka, ერეკლე II), also known as Erekle II and The Little Kakhetian ( ka, პატარა კახი ) (7 November 1720 or 7 October 1721 C. ToumanoffHitchins, KeithHeraclius II. ''Encyclopædia Iranica Online edit ...
,
King of Kartli and Kakheti, granted, in 1774, to his father-in-law Prince Zaal Abashidze and his male descendants estates in Kakheti. A branch had also been established in Kartli in the person of
Vakhushti Abashidze. Earlier in the 18th century, one representative of the Imeretian line went over to the Ottoman government and settled at
Batumi
Batumi (; ka, ბათუმი ) is the second largest city of Georgia and the capital of the Autonomous Republic of Adjara, located on the coast of the Black Sea in Georgia's southwest. It is situated in a subtropical zone at the foot of th ...
where his descendants attained to the office of
sanjak-bey
''Sanjak-bey'', ''sanjaq-bey'' or ''-beg'' ( ota, سنجاق بك) () was the title given in the Ottoman Empire to a bey (a high-ranking officer, but usually not a pasha) appointed to the military and administrative command of a district (''sanjak' ...
.
The Russian annexation of Imereti in 1810 brought the princedom of Saabashidzeo to an end. Henceforth, the family was equated to other noble families of the Russian Empire and confirmed as princes on September 20, 1825. On July 29, 1876, Prince Simon Abashidze (1837–1891) was granted the right to assume the surname and coat of arms of his father-in-law, the late
Ukrainian
Ukrainian may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to Ukraine
* Something relating to Ukrainians, an East Slavic people from Eastern Europe
* Something relating to demographics of Ukraine in terms of demography and population of Ukraine
* So ...
nobleman Semen Davydovych Gorlenko, for himself and his male-line descendants (Abashidze-Gorlenko, Абашидзе-Горленко), but he died without a male heir.
The family has survived into the 21st century and has produced several notable writers, public figures and politicians.
See also
*
Abashidze (surname)
*
List of Georgian princely families
This is the alphabetic list of the upper class noble houses of Georgia. They were entitled as tavadi ( ka, თავადი), roughly translated in English as "prince" and in Russian as "knyaz", a title which was eventually conferred upon most of ...
References
Абашидзе In: Холюшкин Юрий Павлович. Титулованные Роды Российской империи. Accessed on September 3, 2007.
{{efron
Noble families of Georgia (country)
Families of Georgia (country)
Russian noble families
Georgian-language surnames
History of Adjara