Javakheti ( ka, ჯავახეთი ) or Javakhk ( hy, Ջավախք, ''Javakhk'') is a historical province in southern
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 ...
, corresponding to the modern municipalities of
Akhalkalaki
Akhalkalaki ( ka, ახალქალაქი, tr; hy, Ախալքալաք / Նոր-Քաղաք, translit=Axalk’alak’ / Nor-K’aġak’) is a town in Georgia's southern region of Samtskhe–Javakheti and the administrative centre of the Ak ...
,
Aspindza (partly),
Ninotsminda
Ninotsminda ( Georgian: ნინოწმინდა ; Armenian: Նինոծմինդա) is a town and a center of the eponymous municipality located in Georgia's southern district of Samtskhe-Javakheti. According to the 2014 census the town ...
, and partly to the Turkey's
Ardahan Province. Historically, Javakheti borders were defined by the
Kura River (Mtkvari) to the west, and the Shavsheti,
Samsari
Mount Samsari ( ka, სამსარი) is a peak of the Abul-Samsari Range in Southern Georgia. The elevation of the mountain is above sea level. Mount Samsari represents a volcanic cone, inside of which lies a caldera with a diameter of wit ...
and Nialiskuri mountains to the north, south and east, respectively. The principal economic activities in this region are
subsistence agriculture
Subsistence agriculture occurs when farmers grow food crops to meet the needs of themselves and their families on smallholdings. Subsistence agriculturalists target farm output for survival and for mostly local requirements, with little or no su ...
, particularly
potato
The potato is a starchy food, a tuber of the plant ''Solanum tuberosum'' and is a root vegetable native to the Americas. The plant is a perennial in the nightshade family Solanaceae.
Wild potato species can be found from the southern Unit ...
es and raising
livestock
Livestock are the domesticated animals raised in an agricultural setting to provide labor and produce diversified products for consumption such as meat, eggs, milk, fur, leather, and wool. The term is sometimes used to refer solely to animals ...
.
In 1995, the
Akhalkalaki
Akhalkalaki ( ka, ახალქალაქი, tr; hy, Ախալքալաք / Նոր-Քաղաք, translit=Axalk’alak’ / Nor-K’aġak’) is a town in Georgia's southern region of Samtskhe–Javakheti and the administrative centre of the Ak ...
and
Ninotsminda
Ninotsminda ( Georgian: ნინოწმინდა ; Armenian: Նինոծմինդա) is a town and a center of the eponymous municipality located in Georgia's southern district of Samtskhe-Javakheti. According to the 2014 census the town ...
districts, comprising the historical territory of Javakheti, were merged with the neighboring land of
Samtskhe
Meskheti ( ka, მესხეთი) or Samtskhe ( ka, სამცხე) ( Moschia in ancient sources), is a mountainous area in southwestern Georgia.
History
Ancient tribes known as the Mushki (or Moschi) and Mosiniks (or Mossynoeci) were t ...
to form a new administrative region,
Samtskhe-Javakheti. As of January 2020, the total population of
Samtskhe-Javakheti is 152,100 individuals.
Armenians
Armenians ( hy, հայեր, ''hayer'' ) are an ethnic group native to the Armenian highlands of Western Asia. Armenians constitute the main population of Armenia and the ''de facto'' independent Artsakh. There is a wide-ranging diaspora ...
comprise the majority of Javakheti's population. According to the 2014 Georgian census, 93% (41,870) of the inhabitants in
Akhalkalaki Municipality and 95% (23,262) in
Ninotsminda Municipality
Ninotsminda ( ka, ნინოწმინდის მუნიციპალიტეტი, ''Ninots’mindis munitsip’alit’et’i'') is a municipality in southern Georgia, in the region of Samtskhe-Javakheti with an area of and a populat ...
were Armenians.
Etymology
The name ''Javakheti'' consists of the root ''javakh'' with the Georgian suffix ''-eti'', commonly found in the names of countries and regions. ''Javakheti'' means the land of the
Javakhs (an ethnic subgroup of Georgians), as for example, the word ''Ossetia'' is taken from Georgian ''Osi'' plus ''-eti''.
The earliest mention of the name is believed to be from 785 BC, in the inscriptions of the
Urartian
Urartian or Vannic is an extinct Hurro-Urartian language which was spoken by the inhabitants of the ancient kingdom of Urartu (''Biaini'' or ''Biainili'' in Urartian), which was centered on the region around Lake Van and had its capital, Tushpa, ...
king
Argishti I
Argishti I (), was the sixth known king of Urartu, reigning from 786 BC to 764 BC. He founded the citadel of Erebuni in 782 BC, which is the present capital of Armenia, Yerevan. Alternate transliterations of the name include ''Argishtis'', ''Argis ...
, as ''Zabakha''.
History
Antiquity
The ancient tribes of
Meskhi (or Moschi) and Mosiniks are the first known inhabitants of the area.
In the sources, the region was recorded as ''Zabakha'' in 785 BC, by King
Argishti I
Argishti I (), was the sixth known king of Urartu, reigning from 786 BC to 764 BC. He founded the citadel of Erebuni in 782 BC, which is the present capital of Armenia, Yerevan. Alternate transliterations of the name include ''Argishtis'', ''Argis ...
of
Urartu
Urartu (; Assyrian: ',Eberhard Schrader, ''The Cuneiform inscriptions and the Old Testament'' (1885), p. 65. Babylonian: ''Urashtu'', he, אֲרָרָט ''Ararat'') is a geographical region and Iron Age kingdom also known as the Kingdom of Va ...
and, probably, meaning one of the ethnic groups of Urartu. According to
Cyril Toumanoff
Cyril Leo Toumanoff (russian: Кирилл Львович Туманов; 13 October 1913 – 4 February 1997) was a Russian-born Georgian historian and genealogist who mostly specialized in the history and genealogies of medieval Georgia, Armenia, ...
, Javakheti, together with
Erusheti
Erusheti ( ka, ერუშეთი) was a medieval Georgian fiefdom, currently part of the Ardahan Province in northeastern Turkey, close to the border with Georgia. The district was centered in the eponymous settlement, at the present-day vill ...
, was part of the
Iberian duchy of Tsunda from the 4th or 3rd century BC. Since 2nd century BC to 5th century AD this region was a part of an Armenian province -
Gugark
Gugark ( hy, Գուգարք, lat, Gogarene, Greek: ''Γογαρινή'') was the 13th province of the ancient kingdom of Armenia. It now comprises parts of northern Armenia, northeast Turkey, and southwest Georgia.
Etymology
Etymologically ...
, in
Greater Armenia
Greater Armenia ( hy, Մեծ Հայք, translit=Mets Hayk) is the name given to the Armenian state that emerged on the Armenian Highlands during the reign of King Artaxias I at the turn of the 2nd century BC. The term was used to refer princi ...
.
Saint Nino
Saint Nino ( ka, წმინდა ნინო, tr; hy, Սուրբ Նունե, Surb Nune; el, Αγία Νίνα, Agía Nína; sometimes ''St. Nune'' or ''St. Ninny'') ''Equal to the Apostles and the Enlightener of Georgia'' (c. 296 – c. 33 ...
entered
Iberia
The Iberian Peninsula (),
**
* Aragonese and Occitan: ''Peninsula Iberica''
**
**
* french: Péninsule Ibérique
* mwl, Península Eibérica
* eu, Iberiar penintsula also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in southwestern Europe, defi ...
from Javakheti, one of the southern provinces of Iberia, and, following the course of the River Kura, she arrived in
Mtskheta
Mtskheta ( ka, მცხეთა, tr ) is a city in Mtskheta-Mtianeti province of Georgia. It is one of the oldest cities in Georgia as well as one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the World. Itis located approximately north of T ...
, the capital of the kingdom, once there, she eventually began to preach Christianity, which culminated by
Christianization of Iberia
The Christianization of Iberia ( ka, ქართლის გაქრისტიანება, tr) refers to the spread of Christianity in the early 4th century by the sermon of Saint Nino in an ancient Georgian kingdom of Kartli, known ...
.
One of the earliest Armenian sources,
Faustus of Byzantium
Faustus of Byzantium (also Faustus the Byzantine, hy, Փաւստոս Բուզանդ, translit=P'awstos Buzand) was an Armenian historian of the 5th century. Faustus' ''History of the Armenians'' (also known as '' Buzandaran Patmut'iwnk) exists ...
(the 5th century) writes: “Maskut King Sanesan, extremely angry, was filled with hate for his tribesman, Armenian King Khosrow, and gathered all of his troops—Huns, Pokhs, Tavaspars, Khechmataks, Izhmakhs, Gats, Gluars, Gugars, Shichbs, Chilbs, Balasich, and Egersvans, as well as an uncountable number of other diverse nomadic tribes, all the numerous troops he commanded. He crossed his border, the great River Kura, and invaded the Armenian country.”
In the 5th century during the rule of
Vakhtang I of Iberia
Vakhtang I Gorgasali ( ka, ვახტანგ I გორგასალი, tr; or 443 – 502 or 522), of the Chosroid dynasty, was a king of Iberia, natively known as Kartli (eastern Georgia) in the second half of the 5th and first quarter o ...
Javakheti was a province of Iberia and after his death his second wife the Byzantine princess settled in Tsunda (part of Javakheti).
Middle Ages
In the struggle against the
Arab occupation,
Bagrationi dynasty came to rule over
Tao-Klarjeti Tao-Klarjeti may refer to:
* Tao-Klarjeti, part of Georgian historical region of Upper Kartli
* Kingdom of Tao-Klarjeti, AD 888 to 1008
{{set index article
Kingdom of Iberia
Historical regions of Georgia (country) ...
and established the
Kouropalatate of Iberia. Rulers of Tao-Klarjeti fought the Arabs from this region, and gradually incorporated surrounding lands of
Samtskhe
Meskheti ( ka, მესხეთი) or Samtskhe ( ka, სამცხე) ( Moschia in ancient sources), is a mountainous area in southwestern Georgia.
History
Ancient tribes known as the Mushki (or Moschi) and Mosiniks (or Mossynoeci) were t ...
and Javakheti, along with a few other lands, into its territory.
10th century Armenian historian,
Ukhtanes, wrote about the family tree of Kyrion, the Catholicos of Iberia. The literal translation of this text is as follows: Kyrion “came from the Iberians in terms of country and lineage, from the region of the Javakhs.” There can be no doubt that Ukhtanes believed Javakheti to be part of Iberia, and the Javakhs to be Iberians . Z. Aleksidze examines the viewpoint of this historian and the enlightened Armenian society of the 10th century on the problem that interests us in depth.
Between 9th-11th centuries part of Javakheti/Javakhk was ruled by
Bagratid Armenia
The Bagratid Kingdom of Armenia, also known as Bagratid Armenia ( xcl, Բագրատունեաց Հայաստան, or , , 'kingdom of the Bagratunis'), was an independent Armenian state established by Ashot I Bagratuni of the Bagratuni dynasty ...
. In the mid-10th century, part of Javakheti was incorporated into
Kingdom of Abkhazia
The Kingdom of Abkhazia ( ka, აფხაზთა სამეფო, tr; lit. "Kingdom of the Abkhazians"), also known as Abasgia or Egrisi-Abkhazia, was a Middle Ages, medieval feudalism, feudal state in the Caucasus which was established i ...
. In 964
Leon III of Abkhazia
Leon III () was King of Abkhazia from 957 AD until 967 AD. He was the second son and successor of George II of the Anchabadze dynasty.
Life
He succeeded in 926 as viceroy of Kartli to his older brother Constantine, the latter was blinded and c ...
extended his influence to Javakheti, and during his reign the
Kumurdo Cathedral
Kumurdo Cathedral ( ka, კუმურდო) is a Georgian Orthodox Cathedral. It is situated on Javakheti Plateau, southwest from Akhalkalaki. According to the inscriptions on the walls, written with the ancient Georgian writing of Asomtavruli ...
was built.
In subsequent centuries, Javakheti remained in the hands of the
unified Georgian monarchy and had a period of significant development, during which numerous bridges, churches, monasteries, and royal residences (Lgivi, Ghrtila, Bozhano,
Vardzia
Vardzia ( ka, ვარძია ) is a cave monastery site in southern Georgia, excavated from the slopes of the Erusheti Mountain on the left bank of the Kura River, thirty kilometres from Aspindza. The main period of construction was the sec ...
, etc.) were built. In 1064 the
Seljuk Turks
The Seljuk dynasty, or Seljukids ( ; fa, سلجوقیان ''Saljuqian'', alternatively spelled as Seljuqs or Saljuqs), also known as Seljuk Turks, Seljuk Turkomans "The defeat in August 1071 of the Byzantine emperor Romanos Diogenes
by the Turk ...
conquered the area and ruled over the area until 1118 when the
David the Builder
David IV, also known as David the Builder ( ka, დავით აღმაშენებელი, ') (1073–1125), of the Bagrationi dynasty, was the 5th king of United Georgia from 1089 until his death in 1125.
Popularly considered to be ...
liberated the area from the Turks. It then became part of
the Principality of Armenia ruled by the
Zakarian family, as a vassal state of the
Kingdom of Georgia
The Kingdom of Georgia ( ka, საქართველოს სამეფო, tr), also known as the Georgian Empire, was a medieval Eurasian monarchy that was founded in circa 1008 AD. It reached its Golden Age of political and economic ...
.
In 1245, Javakhketi came under the control of the
Toreli feudal family. In 1268, Javakheti was annexed by the principality of
Samtskhe-Saatabago
The Samtskhe-Saatabago or Samtskhe Atabegate ( ka, სამცხე-საათაბაგო), also called the Principality of Samtskhe (სამცხის სამთავრო), was a Georgian feudal principality in Zemo Kartli, ru ...
, ruled by the
House of Jaqeli
The House of Jaqeli ( ka, ჯაყელი) was a Georgian princely ('' mtavari'') family and a ruling dynasty of the Principality of Samtskhe, an offshoot of the House of Chorchaneli.
History
"Jaqeli", literally meaning "of/from Jaqi", was ...
. In the 1587, the region, along with the entirety of the Principality, was occupied by the
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...
becoming the
Childir Eyalet
The Eyalet of Childir ( ota, ایالت ایالت چلدر; Eyālet-i Çıldır) or AkhalzikOther variants of this name include Akalzike (from ) was an eyalet of the Ottoman Empire in the Southwestern Caucasus. The area of the former Çıldır Ey ...
. The area's population was devastated by the
Turco-Mongol
The Turco-Mongol or Turko-Mongol tradition was an ethnocultural synthesis that arose in Asia during the 14th century, among the ruling elites of the Golden Horde and the Chagatai Khanate. The ruling Mongol elites of these Khanates eventually ...
incursions. In 1484,
Yaqub bin Uzun Hasan
Yaqub b. Uzun Hasan ( fa, یعقوب بن اوزون حسن) or Abū al-Muẓaffar Yaʿqūb Bahādur Ḫān, commonly known as Sultan Ya'qub ( fa, سلطان یعقوب; az, Sultan Yaqub ) was the ruler of the Aq Qoyunlu from 1478 until his dea ...
of the
Aq Qoyunlu devastated the principality. Islam began to spread in the area among both Georgians and Armenians. As the Georgian Church began to lose influence in the area, many Chalcedonian
Armenians
Armenians ( hy, հայեր, ''hayer'' ) are an ethnic group native to the Armenian highlands of Western Asia. Armenians constitute the main population of Armenia and the ''de facto'' independent Artsakh. There is a wide-ranging diaspora ...
began to join the
Armenian Catholic Church
, native_name_lang = hy
, image = St Elie - St Gregory Armenian Catholic Cathedral.jpg
, imagewidth = 260px
, alt =
, caption = Cathedral of Saint Elias and Saint Gregory the Illuminat ...
. The Islamized locals began to mix with the Turkic settlers, forming the
Meskhetian Turk
Meskhetian Turks, also referred to as Turkish Meskhetians, Ahiska Turks, and Turkish Ahiskans, ( ka, მესხეთის თურქები ''Meskhetis turk'ebi'') are an ethnic subgroup of Turks formerly inhabiting the Meskheti regio ...
identity, that became dominant to the west of Javakheti in
Meskheti
Meskheti ( ka, მესხეთი) or Samtskhe ( ka, სამცხე) ( Moschia in ancient sources), is a mountainous area in southwestern Georgia.
History
Ancient tribes known as the Mushki (or Moschi) and Mosiniks (or Mossynoeci) were t ...
. In 1731
Nader Shah of
Afsharid Iran
Afsharid Iran ( fa, ایران افشاری), also referred as the Afsharid Empire was an Iranian empire established by the Turkoman Afshar tribe in Iran's north-eastern province of Khorasan, ruling Iran (Persia). The state was ruled by the Af ...
launched an incursion into the Caucasus and during this time enslaved 6,000 Armenians from the
Childir Eyalet
The Eyalet of Childir ( ota, ایالت ایالت چلدر; Eyālet-i Çıldır) or AkhalzikOther variants of this name include Akalzike (from ) was an eyalet of the Ottoman Empire in the Southwestern Caucasus. The area of the former Çıldır Ey ...
according to Armenian Catholicos
Abraham Kretatsi Catholicos Abraham III (also Abraham of Crete or Abraham Kretatsi d. 1737) was the Catholicos of the Armenian Apostolic Church between 1734 and 1737. Born in Heraklion, Crete, to a Greek mother, he was bishop of Rodosto, Thrace and then Armenian p ...
.
Russian Empire
In the first third of the 19th century, following the
Russo-Persian War (1804-1813)
The Russo-Persian Wars or Russo-Iranian Wars were a series of conflicts between 1651 and 1828, concerning Iran, Persia (Iran) and the Russian Empire. Russia and Persia fought these wars over disputed governance of territories and countries in th ...
and the
Russo-Persian War of 1826-1828, Russia conquered the
Southern Caucasus
The South Caucasus, also known as Transcaucasia or the Transcaucasus, is a geographical region on the border of Eastern Europe and Western Asia, straddling the southern Caucasus Mountains. The South Caucasus roughly corresponds to modern Arme ...
, and most of Georgia, along with the rest of the Caucasus, was incorporated within the
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...
. When the Russians conquered Javakheti it was home to 1,716
Armenians
Armenians ( hy, հայեր, ''hayer'' ) are an ethnic group native to the Armenian highlands of Western Asia. Armenians constitute the main population of Armenia and the ''de facto'' independent Artsakh. There is a wide-ranging diaspora ...
(67.7%), 639
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 ...
(25.2%), and 179
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 ...
families (7.1%). Many of the Muslim families chose to resettle in the Ottoman Empire following the Russian annexation of the region. The Tsarist government initiated a plan to resettle its new frontier with
Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
and
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 ...
with Armenians who they deemed to be loyal. In total some 90,000 Armenians from the
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...
and 40,000 Armenians from
Qajar Iran
Qajar Iran (), also referred to as Qajar Persia, the Qajar Empire, '. Sublime State of Persia, officially the Sublime State of Iran ( fa, دولت علیّه ایران ') and also known then as the Guarded Domains of Iran ( fa, ممالک م ...
resettled in the Russian Caucasus, primarily the
Armenian Oblast
The Armenian Oblast was a province (''oblast'') of the Caucasus Viceroyalty of the Russian Empire that existed from 1828 to 1840. It corresponded to most of present-day central Armenia, the Iğdır Province of Turkey, and the Nakhchivan excla ...
.
In 1829 some 7,300 Armenian families (58,000 people) resettled in
Meskheti
Meskheti ( ka, მესხეთი) or Samtskhe ( ka, სამცხე) ( Moschia in ancient sources), is a mountainous area in southwestern Georgia.
History
Ancient tribes known as the Mushki (or Moschi) and Mosiniks (or Mossynoeci) were t ...
, Javakheti, and
Trialeti
Trialeti ( ka, თრიალეთი) is a mountainous area in central Georgia. In Georgian, its name means "a place of wandering". The Trialeti Range
Trialeti Range ( ka, თრიალეთის ქედი) is an east-west mountain ...
. Armenians moving to
Trialeti
Trialeti ( ka, თრიალეთი) is a mountainous area in central Georgia. In Georgian, its name means "a place of wandering". The Trialeti Range
Trialeti Range ( ka, თრიალეთის ქედი) is an east-west mountain ...
were joined by Turkish-speaking
Caucasus Greeks
The Caucasus Greeks ( el, Έλληνες του Καυκάσου or more commonly , tr, Kafkas Rum), also known as the Greeks of Transcaucasia and Russian Asia Minor, are the ethnic Greeks of the North Caucasus and Transcaucasia in what is now ...
known as
Urums
The Urums, singular Urum (, ; el, Ουρούμ, ''Urúm''; Turkish and Crimean Tatar: ''Urum,'' ) are several groups of Turkic-speaking Greek Orthodox people in Crimea and Georgia. History
There are two main theories covering how the Urums m ...
. Armenians moving to Javakheti were joined by a number of
Doukhobors
The Doukhobours or Dukhobors (russian: духоборы / духоборцы, dukhobory / dukhobortsy; ) are a Spiritual Christian ethnoreligious group of Russian origin. They are one of many non-Orthodox ethno-confessional faiths in Russia a ...
, a spiritual Christian sect from Russia. In the early 20th century, a large number of
Armenian
Armenian may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent
** Armenian Diaspora, Armenian communities across the ...
refugees from the
Armenian genocide
The Armenian genocide was the systematic destruction of the Armenians in the Ottoman Empire, Armenian people and identity in the Ottoman Empire during World War I. Spearheaded by the ruling Committee of Union and Progress (CUP), it was ...
in the
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...
, and
Doukhobor
The Doukhobours or Dukhobors (russian: духоборы / духоборцы, dukhobory / dukhobortsy; ) are a Spiritual Christian ethnoreligious group of Russian origin. They are one of many non-Orthodox ethno-confessional faiths in Russia a ...
sect members of
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...
, settled the region.
An 1886 report found 63,799 people living in Javakheti, of which 46,384 were Armenians (72.7%), 6,674 Russians (10.5%), 6,091 Turks (9.5%), and 3,741 Georgians (5.9%). The
Russian Empire Census
The first general census of the population of the Russian Empire in 1897 ( pre-reform Russian: ) was the first and only nation-wide census performed in the Russian Empire (the Grand Duchy of Finland was excluded). It recorded demographic data as ...
of 1897 found 72,709 people in Javakheti, of which 52,539 were Armenians (72.3%), 6,868 were Turks (9.4%), 6,448 were Georgians, and 5,155 were Russians (7.1%).
By 1916, the ethno-religious composition of the Javakheti region (Akhalkalaki Uyezd) was the following:
Brief independence
Following the
Russian Revolution
The Russian Revolution was a period of Political revolution (Trotskyism), political and social revolution that took place in the former Russian Empire which began during the First World War. This period saw Russia abolish its monarchy and ad ...
, Javakheti was incorporated into the short-lived
Democratic Republic of Georgia
The Democratic Republic of Georgia (DRG; ka, საქართველოს დემოკრატიული რესპუბლიკა ') was the first modern establishment of a republic of Georgia, which existed from May 1918 to ...
, however, it was strongly disputed by the
Democratic Republic of Armenia
The First Republic of Armenia, officially known at the time of its existence as the Republic of Armenia ( hy, Հայաստանի Հանրապետութիւն), was the first modern Armenian state since the loss of Armenian statehood in the Middle ...
which claimed the region on grounds of history and ethnography.
Hovannisian, a notable historian on the topic of the interwar republic of Armenia describes the fate of the more than eighty-thousand
Armenians
Armenians ( hy, հայեր, ''hayer'' ) are an ethnic group native to the Armenian highlands of Western Asia. Armenians constitute the main population of Armenia and the ''de facto'' independent Artsakh. There is a wide-ranging diaspora ...
of Javakheti after the region's occupation by the
Ottoman army
The military of the Ottoman Empire ( tr, Osmanlı İmparatorluğu'nun silahlı kuvvetleri) was the armed forces of the Ottoman Empire.
Army
The military of the Ottoman Empire can be divided in five main periods. The foundation era covers the ...
:
Thirty thousand had perished as the result of the Turkish occupation, and those who survived were starving. Some mothers attempted to save their daughters by offering them as wives to Georgian militiamen and soldiers ... hundreds of women and children were pressed into servitude in the adjacent Muslim districts. All roads leading away from Akhalkalak were strewn with the bodies of fleeing Armenians. In September ... of the more than 80,000 Armenians in the county at the beginning of 1918, only 40,000 were left and that these were rapidly succumbing to famine, foreign marriages, concubinage, or to even worse fates. Although the Tiflis government regarded Akhalkalak as an integral part of the Republic of Georgia ... it did nothing to relieve the agony.
Lord Curzon
George Nathaniel Curzon, 1st Marquess Curzon of Kedleston, (11 January 1859 – 20 March 1925), styled Lord Curzon of Kedleston between 1898 and 1911 and then Earl Curzon of Kedleston between 1911 and 1921, was a British Conservative statesman ...
during the
Paris Peace Conference discussions on the fate of the independent Transcaucasian republics assessed the ethnographic situation in the southwestern ''uezds'' of the Tiflis Governorate:
Along the line marking the proposed northeastern boundary of Armenia, the counties of Akhalkalaki and Akhaltsikhe fell on the Georgian side, even though, it was stated, they were populated primarily by the Armenian descendants of refugees from Turkey: “On the grounds of nationality, therefore, these districts ought to belong to Armenia, but they command the heart of Georgia strategically, and on the whole it would seem equitable to assign them to Georgia, and give their Armenian inhabitants the option of emigration into the wide territories assigned to the Armenians towards the south-west.”
Soviet era
Georgia came fully under
Soviet
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...
control in 1921, and Javakheti, along with other former Georgian territories, became part of the
Georgian SSR
The Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic (Georgian SSR; ka, საქართველოს საბჭოთა სოციალისტური რესპუბლიკა, tr; russian: Грузинская Советская Соц ...
. The remaining Muslim minority in Javakheti, also known as "
Meskhetian Turks
Meskhetian Turks, also referred to as Turkish Meskhetians, Ahiska Turks, and Turkish Ahiskans, ( ka, მესხეთის თურქები ''Meskhetis turk'ebi'') are an ethnic subgroup of Turks formerly inhabiting the Meskheti regio ...
", were deported to
Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan (, ; uz, Ozbekiston, italic=yes / , ; russian: Узбекистан), officially the Republic of Uzbekistan ( uz, Ozbekiston Respublikasi, italic=yes / ; russian: Республика Узбекистан), is a doubly landlocked cou ...
in 1944 during the regime of
Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvili; – 5 March 1953) was a Georgian revolutionary and Soviet political leader who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until his death in 1953. He held power as General Secretar ...
.
Republic of Georgia
Currently
Armenians
Armenians ( hy, հայեր, ''hayer'' ) are an ethnic group native to the Armenian highlands of Western Asia. Armenians constitute the main population of Armenia and the ''de facto'' independent Artsakh. There is a wide-ranging diaspora ...
form the ethnic majority in the region.
Since independence many members of the
Doukhobor
The Doukhobours or Dukhobors (russian: духоборы / духоборцы, dukhobory / dukhobortsy; ) are a Spiritual Christian ethnoreligious group of Russian origin. They are one of many non-Orthodox ethno-confessional faiths in Russia a ...
community have left for Russia.
Current situation
An expected improvement is the planned construction of the highway (financed by the
US Millennium Challenge Account
The Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) is a bilateral United States foreign aid agency established by the U.S. Congress in 2004. It is an independent agency separate from the State Department and USAID. It provides grants to countries that ...
) to more effectively link the region with the rest of Georgia. Also, a railway line has been constructed to run between
Kars
Kars (; ku, Qers; ) is a city in northeast Turkey and the capital of Kars Province. Its population is 73,836 in 2011. Kars was in the ancient region known as ''Chorzene'', (in Greek Χορζηνή) in classical historiography ( Strabo), part of ...
,
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 ...
to
Baku
Baku (, ; az, Bakı ) is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and of the Caucasus region. Baku is located below sea level, which makes it the lowest lying national capital in the world a ...
,
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan (, ; az, Azərbaycan ), officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, , also sometimes officially called the Azerbaijan Republic is a transcontinental country located at the boundary of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of th ...
via the area (see:
Baku–Tbilisi–Kars railway
The Baku–Tbilisi–Kars (BTK), or Baku–Tbilisi–Akhalkalaki–Kars railway (BTAK), is an international rail link project connecting Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey, which became operational on 30 October 2017 following several years of delay ...
), which opened in 2017. The Armenian population of Javakheti was opposed to this rail link because it excludes and isolates
Armenia
Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ''Ox ...
. There is already another railroad linking Georgia, Armenia and Turkey, which is the
Kars–Gyumri–Tbilisi railway
The Kars–Gyumri–Tbilisi railway line is a railway line that runs from the city of Kars in Turkey to the Armenian city of Gyumri, and from there on to Tbilisi, Georgia.
Originally completed in 1899, the railway was highly important during the ...
line. The existing line is in working condition and could be operational within weeks, but due to the Turkish blockade of Armenia since 1993, the railroad is not operational.
See also
*
Armenians in Georgia
**
Armenians in Samtskhe-Javakheti
Armenians ( hy, հայեր, ''hayer'' ) are an ethnic group native to the Armenian highlands of Western Asia. Armenians constitute the main population of Armenia and the ''de facto'' independent Artsakh. There is a wide-ranging diaspora o ...
*
List of Armenian ethnic enclaves
This is a list of Armenian ethnic enclaves, containing cities, districts, and neighborhoods with predominantly Armenian population, or are associated with Armenian culture, either currently or historically. Most numbers are estimates by variou ...
Notes
References
Bibliography
*
{{Irredentism
Former provinces of Georgia (country)
Historical regions of Georgia (country)
Armenian irredentism