Meskheti/Samtskhe მესხეთი/სამცხე | |
|---|---|
 Map highlighting the historical region of Meskheti in Georgia | |
| Country |  Georgia |
| Mkhare | Samtskhe-Javakheti |
| Capital | Akhaltsikhe |
| Meskheti is not an official subdivision of theGeorgia; it constitutes ahistorical region only. | |
Meskheti (Georgian:მესხეთი[me̞s̪χe̞t̪ʰi],Turkish:Meshetya) orSamtskhe (Georgian:სამცხე[s̪ämt̪͡s̪ʰχe̞]), also known asMoschia in ancient sources, is a mountainous area in southwesternGeorgia.
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The ancient tribe ofMeskhetians is the first known inhabitants of the modernSamtskhe-Javakheti region.[1]
Between the 2nd millennium BC and the 4th century BC, Meskheti was part of the kingdom ofDiauehi. It was subsequently, until the 6th century, part of theKingdom of Iberia.
During the 10th-15th centuries, this region was a part of the united Georgian Kingdom. In the 16th century it was the independentPrincipality of Samtskhe until it was occupied and annexed by theOttoman Empire.
In 1829-1917 the region was a part ofTiflis Governorate, and then briefly (1918–1921) part of theDemocratic Republic of Georgia. Between 1921-1990 it was a part of theSoviet Union, as theGeorgian SSR.
Meskheti is now part of theSamtskhe-Javakheti region, together withJavakheti andTori.
Meskhetians or Meskhs (Meskhi) are an ethnographic subgroup ofGeorgians who speak theMeskhetian dialect of theGeorgian language, which among Georgia's regional dialects is relatively close to official Georgian. Meskhetians are the indigenous population of Meskheti, a historical region in southernGeorgia.[2][3] Today they are mainly followers ofGeorgian Orthodox Church, while part of them are Catholics.
Meskhetian Turks are the former inhabitants of the Meskheti region ofGeorgia along the border withTurkey. They weredeported to Central Asia during November 15–25, 1944 byJoseph Stalin and settled withinKazakhstan,Kyrgyzstan, andUzbekistan. Of the 120,000 forcibly deported in cattle-trucks a total of 10,000 perished.[4] Today they are dispersed over a number of other countries of the formerSoviet Union. There are 500,000 to 700,000 Meskhetian Turks in exile inAzerbaijan andCentral Asia.[5][6] Most Meskhetian Turks areSunniMuslims.
Historical regions ofGeorgia | ||
|---|---|---|
| Abkhazia |  | |
| Adjara | ||
| Guria | ||
| Imereti | ||
| Kakheti | ||
| Kvemo Kartli | ||
| Mtskheta-Mtianeti | ||
| Racha-Lechkhumi and Kvemo Svaneti | ||
| Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti | ||
| Shida Kartli | ||
| Tao-Klarjeti | ||
Subregions ofTao-Klarjeti | ||
|---|---|---|
| Tao |  | |
| Klarjeti | ||
| Samtskhe | ||
| Other | ||