Lykhny ( ka, ლიხნი, Abkhaz and

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 ...

: Лыхны) is a village in the

Gudauta District Gudauta District is a district of Abkhazia, Georgia’s breakaway republic. It corresponds to the eponymous Georgian district. Its capital is Gudauta, the town by the same name. The population of the district was 34,869 at the time of the 2003 cen ...

of Abkhazia, a disputed region on the

Black Sea The Black Sea is a marginal mediterranean sea of the Atlantic Ocean lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bounded by Bulgaria, Georgia, Rom ...

coast.

History

In medieval Georgian sources the village is also known as ''Zupu'' (''ზუფუ''). The village lies along the narrow

plain of Abkhazia at an elevation of 50 meters above sea level. Lykhny is located five kilometers from the administrative center of

Gudauta Gudauta ( ka, გუდაუთა, ; ab, Гәдоуҭа, ''Gwdowtha''; russian: Гудаута, ''Gudauta'') is a town in Abkhazia, Georgia, and a centre of the eponymous district. It is situated on the Black Sea, 37 km northwest of Sukhu ...

. There are several important historical monuments in and around Lykhny. Of particular importance are the 10-11th century Church of the Virgin Mary and the ruins of a two-storey palace which was used as a residence by the princes of Abkhazia (the palace collapsed in 1866 when the Russian

punitive expedition A punitive expedition is a military journey undertaken to punish a political entity or any group of people outside the borders of the punishing state or union. It is usually undertaken in response to perceived disobedient or morally wrong beh ...

attacked the village). An older monument, the fortress of Abaanta (built in the 7th century) is located at the edge of the village on the left bank of the Khipsta River. Lykhny palace ruins

''Lykhnashta'', a large square located centrally in the village, is one of the seven shrines of the Abkhaz people and the place where is held the

harvest festival A harvest festival is an annual celebration that occurs around the time of the main harvest of a given region. Given the differences in climate and crops around the world, harvest festivals can be found at various times at different places. ...

every October. The square was also the place of the gathering of all the Abkhaz in 1931 and 1989.Shervashidze, L. ''Georgian Soviet Encyclopedia.'' 1983. Book 6. p. 271.

References

Populated places in Gudauta District Sukhum Okrug Immovable Cultural Monuments of National Significance of Georgia {{georgia-geo-stub

History

See also

References