Barbare Jorjadze (1833-1895), also known as Barbare Eristavi-Jorjadze, was 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 ...

princess, author, and

women's rights Women's rights are the rights and entitlements claimed for women and girls worldwide. They formed the basis for the women's rights movement in the 19th century and the feminist movements during the 20th and 21st centuries. In some countries, ...

advocate.

Background

Jorjadze was born in Kistauri, Georgia in 1833 and the daughter of Prince Davit Eristavi. She was married to Zakaria Jorjadze when she was 12. Her brother was the poet and historian Rapiel Eristavi.

Writing

Considered Georgia's first

feminist Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...

, Jorjadze was a poet, playwright and essayist. She began writing in 1858, publishing poetry in ''Tsiskari'' magazine. Despite public criticism, she continued publishing, including in newspapers and magazines such as ''

Droeba ''Droeba'' (, "the Times") was an influential Georgian political and cultural newspaper published in Tiflis from 1866 to 1885. ''Droeba'' first came out in Tiflis, the capital of the Russian Caucasus Viceroyalty, on March 4, 1866, to be publ ...

'', '' Iveria'', ''Kvali,'' and ''Jejili.'' In 1861 she was vocal in debates around the modernization of the

Georgian language Georgian (, , ) is the most widely-spoken Kartvelian language, and serves as the literary language or lingua franca for speakers of related languages. It is the official language of Georgia and the native or primary language of 87.6% of its p ...

, specifically challenging the ideas of

Ilia Chavchavadze Prince Ilia Chavchavadze ( ka, ილია ჭავჭავაძე; 8 November 1837 – 12 September 1907) was a Georgian public figure, journalist, publisher, writer and poet who spearheaded the revival of Georgian nationalism during the ...

. Jorjadze's play, ''What I was looking for and what I found'', was first staged in 1867 at the Kutaisi Theatre. It was performed for several years and various other theatres. In 1874 she published the cookbook, ''Georgian Cuisine and Tried Housekeeping Notes''. Published by Ekvtime Kheladze's printing house, it collected recipes for both Georgian and European dishes. Many of her recipes are considered to be standard practice for preparation of traditional Georgian dishes and the book continues to be popular. Jorjadze penned the letter "A Few of Words to the Attention of Young Men" which was published in 1893 in ''Kvali'' magazine. Addressing women's rights, it is considered to be a manifesto of Georgian feminism. In 2017 the

National Parliamentary Library of Georgia The National Parliamentary Library of Georgia ( ka, საქართველოს პარლამენტის ეროვნული ბიბლიოთეკა, ''sakartvelos p'arlament'is erovnuli bibliotek'a'') is a governmenta ...

named a reading room after Jorjadze. The room also contains murals by Anuk Beluga, depicting Jorjadze and other Georgian female writers and activists.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Eristavi-Jorjadze, Barbare 1833 births 1895 deaths Writers from the Russian Empire Feminists from Georgia (country) Cookbook writers Place of birth missing 19th-century women writers from Georgia (country) 19th-century writers from Georgia (country) Women's rights activists from Georgia (country)

Background

Writing

See also

References