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

Kvemo Kartli is a region located in the Southeastern part of Georgia. It borders

Tbilisi Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), is the capital and the largest city of Georgia, lying on the banks of the Kura River with a population of approximately 1.5 million pe ...

, Shida Kartli, and Mtskheta-Mtianeti on the north;

Samtskhe–Javakheti Samtskhe–Javakheti ( ka, სამცხე-ჯავახეთი, , ) is a region ( mkhare) in southern Georgia with a population of 151.110 (2021) and an area of . The region has Akhaltsikhe as its administrative center, while Besik Amiran ...

on the west; Kakheti on the east; and the countries of

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 ''O ...

and

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 ...

on the south.

General information

The region is one of the most economically developed in Georgia. After

, the region is ranked second in industrial production. The area of the region is of 6528 km squares, which accounts for 10% of the Georgian territory; and it is the fourth largest region by area. The region is the third most populated region in Georgia with a population of 434,000. The administrative center is Rustavi. There are 353 populated areas, including: * 7 cities: Rustavi, Bolnisi, Gardabani, Dmanisi, Tetritsqaro, Marneuli and Tsalka * 6 "daba":

Kazreti Kazreti ( ka, კაზრეთი) is a daba in Bolnisi Municipality, in the region of Kvemo Kartli, in Georgia. Its primary economic activity is mining. The largest employer in Kazreti is JSC RMG Copper. Gold and copper are the principal pre ...

, Manglisi, Tamarisi, Shaumiani, Bediani and Trialeti * 338 villages

Demographics

In 2014, Kvemo Kartli province of Georgia had the following ethnic makeup of 423,986 total population: *

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, ...

– 217,305 (51.25%) *

Azerbaijanis Azerbaijanis (; az, Azərbaycanlılar, ), Azeris ( az, Azərilər, ), or Azerbaijani Turks ( az, Azərbaycan Türkləri, ) are a Turkic people living mainly in northwestern Iran and the Republic of Azerbaijan. They are the second-most nume ...

– 177,032 (41.75%) *

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 ...

– 21,500 (5.07%) *

Greeks The Greeks or Hellenes (; el, Έλληνες, ''Éllines'' ) are an ethnic group and nation indigenous to the Eastern Mediterranean and the Black Sea regions, namely Greece, Cyprus, Albania, Italy, Turkey, Egypt, and, to a lesser extent, ot ...

– 2,631 (0.62%) *

Russians , native_name_lang = ru , image = , caption = , population = , popplace = 118 million Russians in the Russian Federation (2002 '' Winkler Prins'' estimate) , region1 = , pop1 ...

– 2,113 (0.49%) The population estimate in 2012 was 511,300, but the 2014 census shows it now reduced to about 424,000. The ethnic

live mostly in northern part of the region and comprise the majority in the municipalities of Tetritsqaro, Gardabani Municipality, Tsalka and in Rustavi. The

live in the southern part and comprise for the majority in the municipalities of Marneuli, Dmanisi and Bolnisi. The ethnic

and

mostly live in the Tsalka Municipality.

Religions

According to 2014 census, 51.4% of the population identifies as Orthodox Christians, mostly

Russians , native_name_lang = ru , image = , caption = , population = , popplace = 118 million Russians in the Russian Federation (2002 '' Winkler Prins'' estimate) , region1 = , pop1 ...

and

; 42.9% are

Muslims 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 ...

, mostly

; 3.3% are

Armenian Christians , native_name_lang = hy , icon = Armenian Apostolic Church logo.svg , icon_width = 100px , icon_alt = , image = Էջմիածնի_Մայր_Տաճար.jpg , imagewidth = 250px , a ...

and 0.2% are irreligious.

Administrative divisions

Kvemo Kartli is divided into 6 municipalities and 1 special status city, Rustavi:

Economy

Owing to its location, the region has great transport links. There passes the railway and the motorways which link Georgia with its neighbours

and

. The main industries are located in Rustavi and Marneuli. The industrial production of Kvemo Kartlo comprises 20% of the global Georgian production.

Monuments

Kvemo Kartli inherited a lot of historical monuments such as the Bolnisi Sioni, the Pitareti Monastery,

Birtvisi Birtvisi ( ka, ბირთვისი) is a ruined medieval fortress in Kvemo Kartli, Georgia, nested within limestone cliffs in the Algeti river gorge. It is now within the boundaries of the Tetritsqaro Municipality, adjacent to the Algeti Nati ...

Samshvilde Samshvilde ( ka, სამშვილდე, ) is a ruined fortified city and archaeological site in Georgia, in the country's south, near the homonymous modern-day village in the Tetritsqaro Municipality, Kvemo Kartli region. The ruins of the ...

and the old inhabited area near Dmanisi

References

External links

*
Kartli Portal

Result of population census 2002 in Georgia

{{coord, 41, 31, N, 44, 31, E, display=title, region:GE_type:adm1st_source:GNS-enwiki Regions of Georgia (country) Former provinces of Georgia (country)