Javakheti | |
|---|---|
Historical region | |
 Map highlighting the historical region of Javakheti in Georgia | |
| Largest city | Akhalkalaki |
| Area | |
• Total | 2,588 km2 (999 sq mi) |
| Elevation (highest point:Didi Abuli) | 3,300 m (10,800 ft) |
| Population (2014)[1] | |
• Total | 69,561 |
| • Density | 26.88/km2 (69.61/sq mi) |
| Javakheti is not an official subdivision of theGeorgia; it constitutes ahistorical region only. | |
Javakheti (Georgian:ჯავახეთი[d͡ʒäväχe̞t̪ʰi]) orJavakhk (Armenian:Ջավախք,Javakhk)[a][2] is a historical province in southernGeorgia, corresponding to the modern municipalities ofAkhalkalaki,Aspindza (partly),Ninotsminda, and partly to the Turkey'sArdahan Province. Historically, Javakheti's borders were defined by theKura River (Mtkvari) to the west, and the Shavsheti,Samsari and Nialiskuri mountains to the north, south and east, respectively. The principal economic activities in this region aresubsistence agriculture, particularlypotatoes and raisinglivestock.
In 1995, theAkhalkalaki andNinotsminda districts, comprising the historical territory of Javakheti, were merged with the neighboring land ofSamtskhe to form a new administrative region,Samtskhe–Javakheti. As of January 2020, the total population of Samtskhe–Javakheti is 152,100 individuals.[3]Armenians comprise the majority of Javakheti's population. According to the 2014 Georgian census, 93% (41,870) of the inhabitants inAkhalkalaki Municipality and 95% (23,262) inNinotsminda Municipality were Armenians, with only tiny numbers of ethnicGeorgians andCaucasus Greeks remaining.[1]
The nameJavakheti consists of the rootjavakh with the Georgian suffix-eti, commonly found in the names of countries and regions.Javakheti means the land of theJavakhs (an ethnic subgroup of Georgians).[4] The earliest mention of the name is believed to be from 785 BC, in the inscriptions of theUrartian kingArgishti I, asZabakha.[5]
The ancient tribe ofMeskhetians is the first known inhabitants of the area.[6]
In the sources, the region was recorded asZabakha in 785 BC, by KingArgishti I ofUrartu and, probably, meaning one of the ethnic groups of Urartu. According toCyril Toumanoff, Javakheti, together withErusheti, was part of theIberian 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, inGreater Armenia.
Saint Nino enteredIberia from Javakheti, one of the southern provinces of Iberia, and, following the course of the River Kura, she arrived inMtskheta, the capital of the kingdom, once there, she eventually began to preach Christianity, which culminated byChristianization of Iberia.
One of the earliest Armenian sources,Faustus of Byzantium (the 5th century) writes: “Maskut KingSanesan, extremely angry, was filled with hate for his tribesman, ArmenianKing 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.”[7]
In the 5th century during the rule ofVakhtang I of Iberia Javakheti was a province of Iberia and after his death his second wife the Byzantine princess settled inTsunda (part of Javakheti).[8]
In the struggle against theArab occupation,Bagrationi dynasty came to rule overTao-Klarjeti and established theKouropalatate of Iberia. Rulers of Tao-Klarjeti fought the Arabs from this region, and gradually incorporated surrounding lands ofSamtskhe and Javakheti, along with a few other lands, into its territory.[10]
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 theJavakhs to be Iberians.[11] 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.[12]
In the mid-10th century, part of Javakheti was incorporated intoKingdom of Abkhazia. In 964Leon III of Abkhazia extended his influence to Javakheti, and during his reign theKumurdo Cathedral was built.[13][14] In subsequent centuries, Javakheti remained in the hands of theunified Georgian monarchy and had a period of significant development, during which numerous bridges, churches, monasteries, and royal residences (Lgivi, Ghrtila, Bozhano,Vardzia, etc.) were built. This territory suffered greatly from the invasions ofAlp Arslan in 1064. In 1118, the Seljuks again invaded Javakheti and killed its ruling Georgian feudal lord,Beshken II Jaqeli [ka]. However, KingDavid the Builder managed to take revenge on them and defeat them.[15]
In 1245, Javakheti came under the control of theToreli feudal family. In 1268, Javakheti was annexed by the principality ofSamtskhe-Saatabago, ruled by theHouse of Jaqeli. In 1587, the region, along with the entirety of the Principality, was occupied by theOttoman Empire becoming theChildir Eyalet. The area's population was devastated by theTurco-Mongol incursions. In 1484,Yaqub bin Uzun Hasan of theAq Qoyunlu devastated the principality. Islam began to spread in the area among both Georgians and Armenians.
In the XVI century, as mentioned, theOttoman Empire conquered the region of Javakheti. Toward the end of the same century, in an effort to maximize tax collection, theOttoman authorities conducted a comprehensive population survey of the area. According to the data obtained from this survey, it is evident thatGeorgians made up approximately 90 – 95 % of Javakheti’s population during the 16th century. Therefore, claims by certain Armenian scholars, publicists, and political commentators suggesting that Javakheti was historically part of the Armenian domain prior to the 19th century are not supported by historical evidence.[16]
As the Georgian Church began to lose influence in the area, many Georgians becameMuslim, the process is also known asTurkification ofMeskhetians (thenMeskhetian Turks).[17]
In the first third of the 19th century, following theRusso-Persian War (1804-1813) and theRusso-Persian War of 1826-1828, Russia conquered theSouthern Caucasus, and most of Georgia, along with the rest of the Caucasus, was incorporated within theRussian Empire. When the Russians conquered Javakheti it was home to 1,716Armenians (67.7%), 639Muslim (25.2%), and 179Georgian 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 withIran andTurkey with Armenians who they deemed to be loyal. In total some 90,000 Armenians from theOttoman Empire and 40,000 Armenians fromQajar Iran resettled in the Russian Caucasus, primarily theArmenian Oblast.[18] In 1829 some 7,300 Armenian families (58,000 people) resettled inMeskheti, Javakheti, andTrialeti.[19] Armenians moving toTrialeti were joined by Turkish-speakingCaucasus Greeks known asUrums.[20] Armenians moving to Javakheti were joined by a number ofDoukhobors, a spiritual Christian sect from Russia. In the early 20th century, a large number ofArmenian refugees from theArmenian genocide in theOttoman Empire, andDoukhobor sect members ofRussian Empire, 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%). TheRussian Empire Census 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:[21]
| Nationality | Urban | Rural | TOTAL | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Armenians | 6,151 | 76,624 | 82,775 | 77.2% |
| Georgians | 265 | 10,039 | 10,304 | 9.6% |
| Russians | 429 | 7,113 | 7,542 | 7.0% |
| Shia Muslims | 0 | 5,431 | 5,431 | 5.1% |
| Kurds | 0 | 904 | 904 | 0.8% |
| Jews | 204 | 0 | 204 | 0.2% |
| TOTAL | 7,055 | 100,118 | 107,173 | 100.0% |
Following theRussian Revolution, Javakheti was incorporated into the short-livedDemocratic Republic of Georgia, however, it was strongly disputed by theDemocratic Republic of Armenia 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-thousandArmenians of Javakheti after the region's occupation by theOttoman army:[22]
Thirty thousand had perished as the result of theTurkish 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 during theParis Peace Conference discussions on the fate of the independent Transcaucasian republics assessed the ethnographic situation in the southwesternuezds of the Tiflis Governorate:[23][24]
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 thewide territories assigned to the Armenians towards the south-west.”
Georgia came fully underSoviet control in 1921, and Javakheti, along with other former Georgian territories, became part of theGeorgian SSR. The remaining Muslim minority in Javakheti, also known as "Meskhetian Turks", were deported toUzbekistan in 1944 during the regime ofStalin.[18]
CurrentlyArmenians form the ethnic majority in the region.[25] Since independence many members of theDoukhobor community have left for Russia.[18]Also, Ecological migrants from Adjara live there.[26]
Between 2006 and 2011, 220km of the highway from Kvemo Kartli to Samtskhe-Javakheti was improved as part of a program of theUSMillennium Challenge Account to more effectively link the region with the rest of Georgia.[27] In more recent years, a railway line has been constructed to run betweenKars,Turkey toBaku,Azerbaijan via the area (see:Baku–Tbilisi–Kars railway), which opened in 2017. The Armenian population of Javakheti was opposed to this rail link because it excludes and isolatesArmenia. There is already another railroad linking Georgia, Armenia and Turkey, which is theKars–Gyumri–Tbilisi railway 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.
...Javakheti (called Javakhk by Armenians).
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41°24′00″N43°30′00″E / 41.4000°N 43.5000°E /41.4000; 43.5000
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 | ||
