[287] On the basis of that back-projection, Geostat has corrected its data for these years. [289] The population of Georgia, including the breakaway regions, has declined by more than 1 million due to net emigration in the period 19902010. [318] The school system is divided into elementary (six years; ages 612), basic (three years; ages 1215), and secondary (three years; ages 1518), or alternatively vocational studies (two years). [21] Ancient Greeks (Strabo, Herodotus, Plutarch, Homer, etc.) [355], The first and only race circuit in the Caucasian region is located in Georgia. [207][209], Since independence, Georgia maintained harsh policies against drugs, handing out lengthy sentences even for marijuana use. Communist Party of Georgia ( Georgian: , Sakartvelos Komunisturi Partia) is a communist party in Georgia. [1] The party is member of Union of Communist Parties Communist Party of the Soviet Union . [277], Like most native Caucasian peoples, the Georgians do not fit into any of the main ethnic categories of Europe or Asia. For most of the subsequent decade, post-Soviet Georgia suffered from economic crisis, political instability, ethnic conflict, and secessionist wars in Abkhazia and South Ossetia. [182], During later periods of the Iraq War Georgia had up to 2,000 soldiers serving in the Multi-National Force. Temur Pipia (TP): Since 2011, a law under the title "Charter of Freedom" has been in force in Georgia. Boeder; et al. [168], In 2011, the North Atlantic Council designated Georgia as an "aspirant country". [163], The explicit western orientation of Georgia, deepening political ties with the US and European Union, notably through its EU and NATO membership aspirations, the US Train and Equip military assistance programme, and the construction of the BakuTbilisiCeyhan pipeline, have frequently strained Tbilisi's relations with Moscow. [179], Georgia's military is organized into land and air forces. One of the most famous late 19th/early 20th century Georgian artists was primitivist painter Niko Pirosmani. [351] Counterfeiting problems stem from mislabelling by foreign producers and falsified Georgian Wine labels on wines produced outside of Georgia and imported into Russia under the auspices of being Georgian produced. In June 1941, Germany invaded the Soviet Union on an immediate course towards Caucasian oil fields and munitions factories. Georgia (excluding Abkhazia) was one of the six republics along with Armenia, Moldova and the Baltic States who boycotted participation in the March 1991 union-wide preservation referendum. This method of cultivation is called maglari. The construction of new highways has been prioritized and, as such, major cities like Tbilisi have seen the quality of their roads improve dramatically; despite this however, the quality of inter-city routes remains poor and to date only one motorway-standard road has been constructed the 1 (S1), the main eastwest highway through the country. Georgia: in the mountains of poetry 3rd rev. New duties performed by the police include border security and customs functions and contracted security provision; the latter function is performed by the dedicated 'security police'. Leon I then married Mirian's daughter, and a successor, Leon II exploited this dynastic union to acquire Lazica in the 770s. Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for soviet union ussr tee shirt Red Army Communist at the best online prices at eBay! Cross-dome architecture developed in Georgia during the 9th century; before that, most Georgian churches were basilicas. The Action Plan was formally approved at the EUGeorgia Cooperation Council session on 14 November 2006, in Brussels. The head of the Bagrationi dynasty Ashot I of Iberia (r. 813826), who had migrated to the former southwestern territories of Iberia, came to rule over Tao-Klarjeti and restored the Principate of Iberia in 813. For much of the 20th century, Georgia's economy was within the Soviet model of command economy. Those who disagreed were temporarily arrested. [117] Russia recognized Abkhazia and South Ossetia as separate republics on 26 August. The former communist countries of the Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asia needed to reform the financing of their healthcare systems and make efforts to strengthen the role of primary care while limiting the role of hospital care. The mission and functions of the GDF are based on the Constitution of Georgia, Georgia's Law on Defense and National Military Strategy, and international agreements to which Georgia is signatory. [31][32] The classical period saw the rise of a number of early Georgian states, the principal of which were Colchis in the west and Iberia in the east. As in the western parts of the nation, elevation plays an important role in eastern Georgia where climatic conditions above 1,500 metres (4,921ft) are considerably colder than in the low-lying areas. [231], Slightly more than 6,500 species of fungi, including lichen-forming species, have been recorded from Georgia,[232][233] but this number is far from complete. [339][340], Georgia is known for its folklore, traditional music, dances, theatre, cinema, and art. In Abkhazia, a minority of the Abkhaz population is also Sunni Muslim. [citation needed], Georgian ecclesiastic art is one of the most notable aspects of Georgian Christian architecture, which combines the classical dome style with the original basilica style, forming what is known as the Georgian cross-dome style. [175] In June 2014, the EU and Georgia signed an Association Agreement, which entered into force on 1 July 2016. [343], Georgia has an ancient musical tradition, which is primarily known for its early development of polyphony. The party was founded on 23 February 1992 as the Socialist Labour Party. [281][c] The Georgian Jews are one of the oldest Jewish communities in the world. [204][205][206][207] While human rights activists maintained that the protests were peaceful, the government pointed out that many protesters were masked and armed with heavy sticks and molotov cocktails. The head of supra is known as tamada. [189][190], In Georgia, law enforcement is conducted and provided for by the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia. [228], Eastern Georgia has a transitional climate from humid subtropical to continental. On the other hand, Georgia, the country in the Caucasus region between Europe and Asia, is a sovereign state. The region between Kazbek and Shkhara (a distance of about 200km (124mi) along the Main Caucasus Range) is dominated by numerous glaciers. Since the early 21st century visible positive developments have been observed in the economy of Georgia. [203], The government came under criticism for its alleged use of excessive force on 26 May 2011 when it dispersed protesters led by Nino Burjanadze, among others, with tear gas and rubber bullets after they refused to clear Rustaveli Avenue for an independence day parade despite the expiration of their demonstration permit and despite being offered to choose an alternative venue. As with all other post-Soviet states, Georgia faced a severe economic collapse. There are two main climatic zones, roughly corresponding to the eastern and western parts of the country. [354], Within Georgia, one of the most popularized styles of wrestling is the Kakhetian style. Georgian territory under central control in dark green; The country's name likely derives from Persian, Largest cities or towns in Georgia (country). [164] The European Union has identified Georgia as a prospective member,[165] and Georgia has sought membership. Economic reforms since independence have led to higher levels of economic freedom, as well as reductions in corruption indicators, poverty, and unemployment. The following four universities are also located in Tbilisi: Georgian Technical University,[324] which is Georgia's main and largest technical university, The University of Georgia (Tbilisi),[325] as well as Caucasus University[326] and Free University of Tbilisi. "[197] In 2012, the World Bank called Georgia a "unique success" of the world in fighting corruption, noting "Georgia's experience shows that the vicious cycle of endemic corruption can be broken and, with appropriate and decisive reforms, can be turned into a virtuous cycle. It was founded in June 1994 through the merger of the Stalin Society, the Georgian Workers Communist Party and the Union of Communists of Georgia. [80] In August 1991, Romania became the first country to recognize Georgia. Despite the Soviet takeover, Zhordania was recognized as the legitimate head of the Georgian Government by France, UK, Belgium, and Poland through the 1930s. [225] Historically, the western portion of Georgia was known as Colchis while the eastern plateau was called Iberia.[226]. The Greater Caucasus Mountain Range forms the northern border of Georgia. [48][49], David suppressed dissent of feudal lords and centralized the power in his hands to effectively deal with foreign threats. "[24] Before the 1995 constitution came into force, the country's official name was the Republic of Georgia (Georgian: , romanized: Sakartvelos Resp'ublik'a) and it is still sometimes referred to by that name. [93][94] A bomb explosion on 1 August 2008 targeted a car transporting Georgian peacekeepers. Burkhard Herbote, tourism Hero. Many Ossetians living in Georgia left the country, mainly to Russia's North Ossetia. In 1121, he decisively defeated much larger Turkish armies during the Battle of Didgori and liberated Tbilisi. As result of the mixed proportional-majoritarian system, with a threshold of 5% for the proportional vote and redefined majoritarian districts, only four parties entered parliament, with the Georgian Dream party gaining a constitutional majority of 77% (+36 seats). [34], After the Roman Republic completed its brief conquest of what is now Georgia in 66 BC, the area became a primary objective of what would eventually turn out to be over 700 years of protracted Irano-Roman geo-political rivalry and warfare. The sons and grandsons of Ashot I established three separate branches, frequently struggling with each other and with neighbouring rulers. Alexander Mikaberidze wrote that these century-old explanations for the word Georgia/Georgians are rejected by the scholarly community, who point to the Persian word gur/gurn (, 'wolf'[17]) as the root of the word. Against the expectations of the then ruling United National Movement (UNM) of president Mikheil Saakashvili, the 6-party opposition coalition around newly found Georgian Dream won the parliamentary elections in October 2012, bringing an end to nine years of UNM rule and marking the first peaceful, electoral, transfer of power in Georgia. [257], Georgia's telecommunications infrastructure is ranked the last among its bordering neighbours in the World Economic Forum's Network Readiness Index (NRI) an indicator for determining the development level of a country's information and communication technologies. Russia received by far the most migrants from Georgia. [193], The new Patruli force was first introduced in the summer of 2005 to replace the traffic police, a force which was accused of widespread corruption. Members of parliament are elected for four-year terms. In 19181919, Georgian general Giorgi Mazniashvili led an attack against the White Army led by Moiseev and Denikin in order to claim the Black Sea coastline from Tuapse to Sochi and Adler for the independent Georgia. [55] The Mongols were expelled by George V of Georgia (r. 12991302), son of Demetrius II of Georgia (r. 12701289), who was named "Brilliant" for his role in restoring the country's previous strength and Christian culture. The 2010 Russian census recorded about 158,000 ethnic Georgians living in Russia,[293] with approximately 40,000 living in Moscow by 2014. Ca. [229] A number of large carnivores live in the forests, namely Brown bears, wolves, lynxes and Caucasian Leopards. [185][186] Over 11,000 Georgian soldiers have been rotated through Afghanistan. 1. Notable painters from the 20th century include Niko Pirosmani, Lado Gudiashvili, Elene Akhvlediani; notable ballet choreographers include George Balanchine, Vakhtang Chabukiani, and Nino Ananiashvili; notable poets include Galaktion Tabidze, Lado Asatiani, and Mukhran Machavariani; and notable theatre and film directors include Robert Sturua, Tengiz Abuladze, Giorgi Danelia, and Otar Ioseliani. by Juergen T Steinmetz. The country then became embroiled in a bitter civil war, which lasted until nearly 1994. [234] Although the amount of available information is still very small, a first effort has been made to estimate the number of fungal species endemic to Georgia, and 2,595 species have been tentatively identified as possible endemics of the country. [11] As the Ottomans advanced into the Caucasian territories of the crumbling Russian Empire, Georgia declared independence on 26 May 1918. [110], During the conflict, there was a campaign of ethnic cleansing against Georgians in South Ossetia,[111] including destruction of Georgian settlements after the war had ended. With the beginning of perestroika in 1986, the Georgian Soviet leadership proved so incapable of handling the changes that most Georgians, including rank and file communists, concluded that the only way forward was a break from the existing Soviet system.