According to a number of Georgian scholars,Gagra is derived fromGakra meaning "walnut" in theSvan language, whileGakari/Kakari means "a place with walnut trees", which is in accordance to toponym used in old maps.[4][5] The name of the city is claimed by Z. Danelia to originate from the Gagaa family, who, according to Danelia, once lived there. However, the historicity of the Gagaa family and its connection to the city is disputed due to lack of evidence.[6][7] According to V. Kvarchia, the nameGagra is derived from a combination of two Abkhaz words:a-ga ("coast") anda-kra ("to close"), that is, "a place where the shore is closed".[8] According to Z. Anchabadze, etymology of the city is derived from "Gagrifshi." The term "Gak" or "Kak" is considered a personal name, while the affix "-ri" denotes possession. Additionally, the affix "-fsh-" is interpreted as indicating "the importance of the place."[5]
The town was established as aGreek colony inColchis, called Triglite (Ancient Greek:Τριγλίτη). Colchis came under the control of thekingdom of Pontus in the 1st century BC before being absorbed by theRoman Empire, which renamed the town asNitica. Its geographical position led the Romans to fortify the town, which was repeatedly attacked byGoths and other invaders. The town and the whole region ofColchis remained part ofByzantine Empire.
It was known to theGenoese merchants and the Gagra harbour might have been used by them.[9] The name "Gagra" appeared for the first time on a map in 1308, on a map of the Caucasus made by the Italian Pietro Visconti, which is now in theLibrary of Saint Mark in Venice.[citation needed]
Palace of the Prince of OldenburgOld houses in Gagra
In the 16th century, Gagra and the rest of western Georgia were conquered by theOttoman Empire. The western merchants were expelled and the town entered a prolonged period of decline, with much of the local population fleeing into the mountains. By the 18th century, the town had been reduced to little more than a village surrounded by forests and disease-ridden swamps.[citation needed]
Russia built a small fort in Gagra in 1833 which was destroyed during theCrimean War.[10] TheSadz Abkhaz who inhabited the land between Gagra and the Khosta wereexpelled to the Ottoman Empire after fierce battles.[11] The swamps around the town were drained and the town was rebuilt around a new military hospital. Its population, however, was still small; in 1866, a census recorded that 336 men and 280 women, mostly local families or army officers and their dependents, lived in Gagra. The town suffered badly in theRusso-Turkish War, 1877-1878, when Turkish troops invaded, destroyed the town and expelled the local population. Russia won the war, however, and rebuilt Gagra again.[citation needed]
View of Gagra's wharf sometime between 1905 and 1915.
In 1904 the town was discovered byDuke Alexander of Oldenburg, a member of the Russian royalty.[12] He saw the potential of the region's sub-tropical climate and decided to build a high-class resort there. Having raised a large sum of money from the government, he built a palace there for himself and constructed a number of other buildings in an eclectic variety of architectural styles from around Europe. A park was laid out with tropical trees, and parrots and monkeys were imported to give it an exotic feel. Despite the expensive work, the resort was not initially a success, although it did later attract a growing number of foreign tourists visiting on cruises of the Black Sea. Following the founding of the resort, the area was ceded fromSukhumi Okrug toBlack Sea Governorate in 1904.[12]
In theRussian Revolution of 1905, a local uprising produced a revolutionary government in the town, which founded a short-lived Republic of Gagra. This was soon defeated and the revolutionaries were arresteden masse. The First World War a few years later was a disaster for Gagra, destroying the tourist trade on which it depended. TheRussian Revolution shortly afterwards saw theBolsheviks take over the town; despite a brief French attempt to repel them during theRussian Civil War, the town was firmly incorporated into the new Soviet Union withinGeorgian SSR.
Bolshevik leaderVladimir Lenin issued a decree in 1919 establishing a "worker's resort" in Gagra, nationalising the resort that had been built by Oldenburg. It became a popular holiday resort for Soviet citizens and during World War II gained a new role as a site for the rehabilitation of wounded soldiers. After the war, various state-runsanatoriums were built there. The resort grew and was developed intensively as part of the "Soviet Riviera". A 1985 musical filmWinter Evening in Gagra further popularized the resort.
In the late 1980s, tensions grew between the Georgian and Abkhazian communities in the region. An all-out war erupted between 1992 and 1993 which ended in a defeat of the Georgian government's forces. Hundreds of thousands of ethnic Georgians were expelled from their homes in Abkhazia and thousands were massacred in an outbreak of massethnic cleansing.[13] Gagra and the Abkhazian capitalSukhumi were at the centre of the fighting and suffered heavy damage. To this date ethnic Georgians have an IDP status and have not been able to return to their homes.
View from an aircraft in 1958. North side of Gagra, with the Abaata station and Zhoekvar river valley in the center. The city of Gagra itself is to the right.
Apartment buildings of New Gagra
New Gagra aerial view
New Gagra in wintertime
Streets in Gagra
Avenue in Gagra
Nartaa square, Gagra
Colonnade in Primorsky Park
Winter Theater
19th-century palace of the Prince of Oldenburg (at restoration)
^The Governor ofGagra District is at the same time Mayor of the Gagra municipality.
^The political status of Abkhazia is disputed. Having unilaterally declared independence fromGeorgia in 1992, Abkhaziais formally recognised as an independent state by 5 UN member states (two other states previously recognised it but then withdrew their recognition), while the remainder of the international community recognizes it asde jure Georgian territory. Georgia continues to claim the area as its own territory, designating it asRussian-occupied territory.
^The political status of Abkhazia is disputed. Having unilaterally declared independence fromGeorgia in 1992, Abkhaziais formally recognised as an independent state by 5 UN member states (two other states previously recognised it but then withdrew their recognition), while the remainder of the international community recognizes it asde jure Georgian territory. Georgia continues to claim the area as its own territory, designating it asRussian-occupied territory.
^abKekelia, Igor (2022).აფხაზეთის ისტორიული და თანამედროვე ტოპონიმია [Historical and modern toponymy of Abkhazia] (in Georgian). Artanuji. pp. 162–165.ISBN978-9941-494-94-9.
^Kekelia, Igor (2022).აფხაზეთის ისტორიული და თანამედროვე ტოპონიმია (in Georgian). Artanuji. pp. 162–165.ISBN978-9941-494-94-9.
^Кәарҷиа В. Е. Аҧсны атопонимика — Аҟәа. 2002. P. 92
^Чирикба, В. А. (2020).Абхазия и итальянские города-государства (XIII–XV вв.). Очерки взаимоотношений [Abkhazia and Italian City-States (13th–15th centuries). Essays on Mutual Relations] (in Russian). Алетейя. p. 15.ISBN978-5-00165-119-2.
^Hewitt, George (2013).Discordant Neighbours: A Reassessment of the Georgian-Abkhazian and Georgian-South Ossetian Conflicts. Brill. pp. 25–26.ISBN978-90-04-24893-9.
^abSaparov, Arsène (2014).From Conflict to Autonomy in the Caucasus: The Soviet Union and the Making of Abkhazia, South Ossetia and Nagorno Karabakh. Routledge. p. 134.
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