The Adjarians ( ka, აჭარლები, Ačarlebi) are an

ethnographic group An ethnographic group is a group that has cultural traits that make it stand out from the larger ethnic group it is a part of. In other words, members of an ethnographic group will also consider themselves to be members of a larger ethnic group, bo ...

Georgians The Georgians, or Kartvelians (; ka, ქართველები, tr, ), are a nation and indigenous Caucasian ethnic group native to Georgia and the South Caucasus. Georgian diaspora communities are also present throughout Russia, Turkey, G ...

living mainly in

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'' ...

in south-western

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

and speaking the

Adjarian dialect The Adjaran dialect (also called Ach'aruli, Acharuli, Adjaruli, Ajaruli, Adzharuli, Acharian, Adjarian, Ajarian, Adzharian, Acharan, Adjaran, Ajaran, Adzharan, Achar, Adjar, Ajar, and Adzhar / აჭარული) is one of the Georgian dialects. ...

of the

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 ...

language. The Adjarians had their own territorial entity, the

Autonomous Republic An autonomous republic is a type of administrative division similar to a province or state. A significant number of autonomous republics can be found within the successor states of the Soviet Union, but the majority are located within Russia. Man ...

, founded on 16 July 1921 as the

Adjara ASSR The Adjarian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic (Adjarian ASSR or Adzhar ASSR; ka, აჭარის ავტონომიური საბჭოთა სოციალისტური რესპუბლიკა; russian: Адж� ...

. After years of

post-Soviet The post-Soviet states, also known as the former Soviet Union (FSU), the former Soviet Republics and in Russia as the near abroad (russian: links=no, ближнее зарубежье, blizhneye zarubezhye), are the 15 sovereign states that wer ...

stalemate Stalemate is a situation in the game of chess where the player whose turn it is to move is not in check and has no legal move. Stalemate results in a draw. During the endgame, stalemate is a resource that can enable the player with the inferior ...

, the region was brought closer within the framework of the Georgian state in 2004, retaining its autonomous status. Adjarian settlements are also found in the Georgian provinces of

Guria Guria ( ka, გურია) is a region (''mkhare'') in Georgia, in the western part of the country, bordered by the eastern end of the Black Sea. The region has a population of 113,000 (2016), with Ozurgeti as the regional capital. Geography ...

Kvemo Kartli Kvemo Kartli ( ka, ქვემო ქართლი, az, Aşağı Kartli) or "Lower Kartli", is a historic province and current administrative region (mkhare) in southeastern Georgia. The city of Rustavi is the regional capital. Location Kvem ...

, and

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 ...

, as well as in several areas of neighbouring

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

History and Religion

Many Adjarians converted to

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...

in the 16th and 17th centuries when the Ottomans ruled over southwestern Georgian lands. The Georgian population of Adjara had been generally known as

Muslim Georgians Islam in Georgia () was introduced in 654 when an army sent by the Third Caliph of Islam, Uthman, conquered Eastern Georgia and established Muslim rule in Tbilisi. Currently, Muslims constitute approximately 9.9%Religion and education in Europ ...

until the 1926 Soviet

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses incl ...

listed them as ''Adjarians'', separate from the rest of Georgians, counting 71,426 of them. In subsequent censuses (1939–1989), they were listed with other Georgians, as no official Soviet census asked about religion. In the 1920s, the suppression of religion and compulsory collectivization led to armed resistance against Communist authorities by Adjarians. The collapse of the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

and the re-establishment of Georgian independence accelerated the Christianization of Adjarians, especially among the young.George Sanikidze and Edward W. Walker (2004), ''Islam and Islamic Practices in Georgia.'' Berkeley Program in Soviet and Post-Soviet Studies.

University of California The University of California (UC) is a public land-grant research university system in the U.S. state of California. The system is composed of the campuses at Berkeley, Davis, Irvine, Los Angeles, Merced, Riverside, San Diego, San Francisco, ...

, Berkeley Institute of Slavic, East European, and Eurasian Studies. However, a number of Adjarians, particularly in and around

Khulo Khulo ( ka, ხულო ) is a townlet ('' daba'') in Adjara, an autonomous republic in southwest Georgia, 88 km east of the regional capital Batumi, in the upper valley of the Adjaristsqali River. The town and adjoining 78 villages form the ...

, remain

Sunni Muslim Sunni Islam () is the largest branch of Islam, followed by 85–90% of the world's Muslims. Its name comes from the word ''Sunnah'', referring to the tradition of Muhammad. The differences between Sunni and Shia Muslims arose from a disagree ...

. According to census data recently published by the Department of Statistics of Adjara, 54% are Christians, and 39%

Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

.Autonomous Republic of Adjara, Department of Statistics.
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Language

The Adjarians speak Adjarian, a

Georgian dialect Georgian (ქართული ''kartuli'') is a Kartvelian language spoken by about 4 million people, primarily in Georgia but also by indigenous communities in northern Turkey and Azerbaijan, and the diaspora, such as in Russia, Turkey, Iran, Eur ...

related to the one spoken in the neighbouring northern province of

, but with a number of

Turkish Turkish may refer to: *a Turkic language spoken by the Turks * of or about Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities and mi ...

loanword A loanword (also loan word or loan-word) is a word at least partly assimilated from one language (the donor language) into another language. This is in contrast to cognates, which are words in two or more languages that are similar because th ...

s. Adjarian also possesses many features in common with the

Zan languages The Zan languages, or Zanuri ( ka, ზანური ენები) or Colchidian, are a branch of the Kartvelian languages constituted by the Mingrelian and Laz languages. The grouping is disputed as some Georgian linguists consider the two ...

(

Mingrelian Mingrelian may refer to: *the Mingrelians *the Mingrelian language Mingrelian or Megrelian (, ) is a Kartvelian language spoken in Western Georgia (regions of Mingrelia and Abkhazia), primarily by the Mingrelians. The language was also called ...

and Laz), which are

sisters A sister is a woman or a girl who shares one or more parents with another individual; a female sibling. The male counterpart is a brother. Although the term typically refers to a familial relationship, it is sometimes used endearingly to refer to ...

to Georgian and are included in the

Kartvelian language The Kartvelian languages (; ka, ქართველური ენები, tr; also known as South Caucasian, Kartvelic, and Iberian languagesBoeder (2002), p. 3) are a language family indigenous to the South Caucasus and spoken primari ...

group.

Famous Adjarians

* Emzar Paksadze (b. 1972), famous lawyer from adjara *

Aslan Abashidze Aslan Abashidze ( ka, ასლან აბაშიძე; born July 20, 1938) is the former leader of the Ajarian Autonomous Republic in western Georgia. He served in this capacity from 18 August 1991 to May 5, 2004. He resigned under the pres ...

(b. 1938), former leader of the Adjarian Autonomous Republic *

Memed Abashidze Memed Abashidze ( ka, მემედ აბაშიძე; January 18, 1873 – 1937) was a Georgian politician, writer and public benefactor. An eminent leader of Muslim Georgian community of Adjarians, he was a major proponent of pro-Georgian ...

(1873–1941), Muslim Georgian politician * Rostom Abashidze (b. 1935), Greco-Roman wrestler *

Tbeli Abuserisdze Tbeli Abuserisdze ( ka, ტბელი აბუსერისძე) (c. 1190 – 1240) was a medieval Georgian scholar and religious writer. His merits A son of Ivane Abuserisdze, '' eristavt-eristavi'' ("archduke") of Khikhata ( Upper ...

(1190–1240), Georgian writer and scientist *

Niaz Diasamidze Niaz Diasamidze ( ka, ნიაზ დიასამიძე; born 13 June 1973) is a Georgian musician, singer, songwriter, calligrapher and actor, best known as the lead vocalist and a founder member of 33a. Niaz was born in Tbilisi, the cap ...

(b. 1974), singer and composer *

Nino Katamadze Nino Katamadze ( ka, ნინო ქათამაძე; born 21 August 1972) is a Georgian jazz singer and artist. Biography Nino Katamadze was born in Kobuleti, Adjara, Soviet Georgia in 1972. In 1990, she entered the vocal department of t ...

(b. 1972), jazz singer *

Sopho Khalvashi Sopho Khalvashi ( ka, სოფო ხალვაში ; born 31 May 1986 in Batumi, Adjara, Georgia), also sometimes known as simply Sopho, is a Georgian musician of Laz heritage. Biography She claimed third prize at the commercial song co ...

, Georgian singer *

Ahmed-Pasha Khimshiashvili Ahmed Bey, subsequently Ahmed Paşa (1781 – October 1836) was a Islam in Georgia (country), Muslim Georgians, Georgian nobleman of the Khimshiashvili clan from Adjara, which he ruled as an autonomous ruler (''bey'') under the Ottoman Empire afte ...

(1781–1836), ruler and military leader under the Ottoman Empire *

Selim Khimshiashvili Selim Paşa (1755 – 3 June 1815) was a Georgian nobleman of the Khimshiashvili princedom and dukedom and a Beylerbey of Upper Adjara under the Ottoman suzerainty, but with considerable autonomy. His seizure of power in the Pashalik of Akhaltsi ...

(1755–1815), ruler under the Ottoman Empire *

Konstantin Meladze Konstantin Shotayevich Meladze (russian: Константин Шотаевич Меладзе, ka, კონსტანტინე მელაძე) (born 11 May 1963 in Batumi) is a Ukrainian-Russian composer and producer. He is the older b ...

(b. 1963), Russian composer *

Valery Meladze Valerian Shotayevich Meladze, ka, ვალერიან შოთას ძე მელაძე (born 23 June 1965), known professionally as Valery Meladze , is a Georgian singer and a Meritorious Artist of Russia. He is the brother of c ...

(b. 1965), Russian singer *

Zurab Noghaideli Zurab Nogaideli ( ka, ზურაბ ნოღაიდელი) (born 22 October 1964) is a Georgian businessman and a politician who served as the Prime Minister of Georgia from February 2005 until he resigned, citing health problems, on 16 N ...

(b. 1964), former

Prime Minister of Georgia The prime minister of Georgia ( ka, საქართველოს პრემიერ-მინისტრი, tr) is the head of government and chief executive of Georgia. In Georgia, the president is a ceremonial head of state and mai ...

, (2005–2007) * Ulvi Rajab (1903–1938), Azerbaijani actor * Levan Varshalomidze (b. 1973), former leader of the Adjarian Autonomous Republic *

Recep Tayyip Erdoğan Recep Tayyip Erdoğan (born 26 February 1954) is a Turkish politician serving as the List of presidents of Turkey, 12th and current president of Turkey since 2014. He previously served as prime minister of Turkey from 2003 to 2014 and as Lis ...

(b. 1954) President of Turkey * Lasha Gobadze (b. 1994) Georgian sport wrestler * Shmagi Bolkvadze (b. 1994) Greco-Roman wrestler from Georgia. * Amiran Shavadze (b. 1993) Georgian Greco-Roman wrestler *

Nebahat Çehre Hilal Nebahat Çehre (; born 15 March 1945), is a Turkish actress, model, and singer who was crowned Miss Turkey 1960. She is best known for her protagonist roles as Firdevs Yöreoğlu on the Kanal D drama series '' Aşk-ı Memnu'' (2008–10) ...

(b. 1944) Turkish-Georgian actress, model, and singer *

Murat Cemcir Murat Cemcir (born November 30, 1976) is a Turkish actor of Georgian descent who appears regularly in Turkish films and on television, primarily in comedies. Career Cemcir appeared in the film '' Çalgı Çengi'' with Ahmet Kural in 2011. He ...

(b. 1976) Turkish actor * Haidar Abashidze (b. 1966) Georgian politician, journalist, and educator *

Gürkan Uygun Gürkan Uygun (born 27 May 1974) is a Turkish actor of Georgian descent. He joined theater in his high school years. He started his career as an amateur actor in 1990. Then he received training at the Dormen Theater. In 1996, he made his debut o ...

(b. 1974) Turkish actor of Georgian descent *

Beyazıt Öztürk Beyazıt Öztürk (born 12 March 1969), also known as Beyaz, is a Turkish television personality, standup comedian and actor. He is the host of ''Beyaz Show'', a popular Turkish talk show. In 2018, he became one of the judges on ''O Ses Türkiye'' ...

(b. 1969) also known as Beyaz, Turkish television personality, standup comedian and actor * Sherip Khimshiashvili (b. January 1833) was a Muslim Georgian nobleman (bey) of the Khimshiashvili from Adjara in the Ottoman service.

Notes

References

*Nugzar Mgeladze (Translated by

Kevin Tuite Kevin Tuite ( Irish: ''Caoimhín de Tiúit''; born April 3, 1954) is a full Professor of Anthropology at the Université de Montréal. He is a citizen of both Canada and Ireland.

)
Ajarians
''World Culture Encyclopedia''. Accessed on 1 September 2007. {{Authority control Adjara People from Georgia (country) by ethnic or national origin

History and Religion

Language

Famous Adjarians

See also

Notes

References