Jews in Georgia
Jews (self-designation – "Ivri") in Georgia are, language wise, people Semitic-origin who have lived historically on the territory of modern-day Israel and Palestine.
Today, about 8,000 Jews live in Georgia. According to historical sources, Jews first arrived in Georgia in the late 8th century BC (according to Vakhushti Batonishvili), and again at the end of the 580s BC (according to Leonti Mroveli). A significant group is believed to have arrived around 70 AD, following the Jewish-Roman war. Jewish migration continued through the Middle Ages, with arrivals from Byzantium in the 8th century. After the fall of the Khazar Kingdom in the 10th century, Khazars of Jewish faith fleeing Slavic tribes also settled in the Caucasus, including Georgia. In the early 19th century, new Jewish communities arrived from Turkey, Iran, Iraq and other countries.
In antique and early feudal Georgia, Jews primarily lived in Kartli. Epigraphic evidence written in Hebrew and Aramaic (from the 3rd to 5th centuries) has been found in Urbnisi and Mtskheta. These inscriptions, along with archaeological material and historical sources, confirm the existence of a large Jewish community in Hellenistic-period Mtskheta. During the feudal period, Jews in Georgia enjoyed full legal rights equal to those of the Christian population. Alongside Georgian feudal law, Jewish Mosaic Law was also practiced. Jewish property was protected under Georgian law to the same extent as that of Georgian nobles. Jews were allowed to own and sell immovable property. Historically, the majority of Georgian Jews were engaged in agriculture. In the 18th and early 19th centuries, as monetary relations developed, many Jews became involved in trade.
By the 1890s, the first Zionist groups appeared in Tbilisi, Poti, Kutaisi, Batumi, and Sokhumi. A five-grade Jewish elementary school was opened in Tbilisi, followed by schools in Kutaisi, Oni, Tskhinvali, and other towns. In the first parliament of independent Georgia, three Jewish deputies—I. Eligulashvili, M. Davarashvili, and I. Goldman—were elected; the first two signed the Act of Independence of Georgia on 26 May 1918.
The study of Jewish history and culture in Georgia was greatly supported by the founding of the Georgian Jewish Historical-Ethnographic Museum in 1933. A major cultural milestone was the 1969 Hebrew translation of The Knight in the Panther’s Skin by B. Gaponov. From 1985, Jewish cultural and educational activity increased: Hebrew was taught freely, the Georgian Jewish Cultural Center was founded (1987), followed by the Georgian Maccabi Society (1990), the Jewish Women’s Organization “Miriam” (1990), the Association “Derekh Yehudi” (1991), and the Jewish Women’s Fund (1997). The Georgia–Israel Friendship Society is active as well.
In 1992, the Georgian Jewish Historical-Ethnographic Museum was restored. Hebrew language is taught at Tbilisi State University (since 1944). The Chief Rabbi of Georgia is currently Yakob Gagulashvili. Several synagogues and Jewish religious communities operate throughout the country. Jewish newspapers are published in Georgian and Russian in Tbilisi. Jewish holidays and cultural evenings celebrating Jewish poetry and the centuries-old friendship between Georgian and Jewish peoples are regularly held. In 2002, the Georgian–Jewish Women’s Friendship Association was established. On 1 August 2003, the Jewish Community House opened in Tbilisi. Under the auspices of the “Joint” (JDC), it houses several organizations: the Hesed Eliyahu Charitable Center, the Jewish Cultural-Educational Foundation, the Center for Knowledge and Information, and the Jewish youth organization “Hillel Tbilisi.”
Jewish organizations are active in various other Georgian cities, including Kutaisi, Gori, Batumi, Rustavi, and others.
Sources: ბიბლია (ძველი აღთქმა); მოქცევაჲ ქართლისაჲ (შატბერდის კრებული), თბ., 1979.
Literature: ბ ა თ ო შ ვ ი ლ ი ა., ებრაელი ხალხის ისტორიიდან, თბ., 1991; კ ი კ ნ ა ძ ე ზ., მ ი რ ზ ა შ ვ ი ლ ი თ., კარსა ზედა ბაგინისასა, თბ., 1989; მ ა მ ი ს თ ვ ა ლ ი შ ვ ი ლ ი ე., ქართველ ებრაელთა ისტორია (ანტიკური და ფეოდალური ხანა), თბ., 1995; მ ი ს ი ვ ე, ქრისტეს კვართის ისტორია, გორი, 2003; მ ე ტ რ ე ვ ე ლ ი რ., ებრაელები საქართველოში, წგ.: საისტორიო ნარკვევები, თბ., 2009; საქართველოს ებრაელთა ისტორიულეთნოგრაფიული მუზეუმის შრომები, ტ. 1–3, თბ., 1940–45; ტ. 4–6, თბ., 2006–10.
Z. Davarashvili
Z. Kiknadze
E. Mamistvalishvili
Sh. Tsitsuashvili
