Abasha აბაშა | |
|---|---|
Town | |
 Abasha's main street | |
 Flag  Seal | |
  Abasha Location in Georgia Show map of Georgia Abasha Abasha (Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti) Show map of Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti | |
| Coordinates:42°12′15″N42°12′10″E / 42.20417°N 42.20278°E /42.20417; 42.20278 | |
| Country |  Georgia |
| Region | Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti |
| District | Abasha |
| Elevation | 23 m (75 ft) |
| Population (2024)[1] | |
• Total | 4,225 |
| Time zone | UTC+4 (Georgian Time) |
| Website | abasha.ge |
Abasha (Georgian:აბაშა) is a town in westernGeorgia with a population of 4,941.[2] It is situated between the rivers ofAbasha and Noghela, at 23mabove sea level and is located some 283 km (176 mi) to the west ofTbilisi. The settlement ofAbasha acquired the status of a town in 1964 and currently functions as an administrative center of theAbasha Municipality within theSamegrelo-Zemo Svaneti region. The headquarters of theGeorgian OrthodoxEparchy of Chkondidi is also located in Abasha.
The modern history of Abasha is primarily associated with a resonantSoviet-era economic experiment introduced by the GeorgianCommunist party chiefEduard Shevardnadze in the 1970s. In 1971, Shevardnadze grouped all regional agricultural institutions, including thekolkhoz, into a single management association. At the same time, those who worked on the land received material and financial preference. The move facilitated local initiative and coordination and led to a rapid increase in agricultural production in the previously very poor Abasha District. It had been the first private enterprise in the Soviet Union sinceLenin. Early in the 1980s, the "Abasha experiment" was expanded, with varying degrees of success, to other regions of Georgia.[3]
The word "Abasha" comes fromArabic. According to a legend, the Arabs wanted to cross the river, but it was swollen and they shouted at one another "Aba-sha" i.e. "retreat". According to the memoir by Juansher, a 23,000 Abyssinianinfantryman of Ethiopian origin in theMarwan II's army in the 8th century drowned in one river, and the other river seized 35,000 horses. Due to that one river was namedAbasha and the other oneTskhenistsqali.
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
