- Key People:
- Shota Rustaveli
- Related Topics:
- literature
- Western literature
- Georgian language
Georgian literature
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What is Georgian literature?
Georgian literature is the written body of works in the Georgian language. Its origins date back to the 4th century, coinciding with the Georgian people's conversion to Christianity and the development of the Georgian alphabet.
A cultural golden age, from the late 11th to the early 13th century, saw the flourishing of secular literature, encouraged by King David IV and Queen Tamara. This era was influenced by Persian literature and marked by the emergence of courtly romance and epic poetry, including Shota Rustaveli’s The Knight in the Panther’s Skin.
The 18th and 19th centuries saw the rise of modern schooling and printing, led by Sulkhan-Saba Orbeliani. Romantic poets such as Aleksandre Chavchavadze and Nikoloz Baratashvili were inspired by European literature and philosophy. In the 21st century, Georgian literature reoriented itself from Russian towards English and American influences.
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What language is Georgian literature written in?
Georgian literature is written in the Georgian language, the official language of the Republic of Georgia. The Georgian language is part of the Kartvelian language family. It has its own alphabet, which is believed to have evolved around the 5th century. The Georgian literary tradition dates back to the 5th century, with many literary works remaining from the Old Georgian period (5th–11th century), including a translation of the Bible. The New Georgian literary language originated in the 12th century and became fully established in the middle of the 19th century.
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Who are some important early writers in Georgian literature?
Georgian literature began in the 4th century with the conversion to Christianity and the development of the Georgian alphabet. Iakob Tsurtaveli is among the earliest known Georgian writers, credited with Tsameba tsmidisa Shushanikisi dedoplisa (470 or later; "The Passion of Saint Queen Shushanik").
Old Georgian ecclesiastical literature reached its height in the 10th century with Ioane Minchkhi and Mikael Modrekili's lyrical hymns; Giorgi Merchule wrote Grigol Khandztelis tskhovreba ("Grigol of Khandzta"). Moktseva Kartlisa ("The Conversion of Georgia") and Kartlis tskhovreba ("The Life of Kartli") are examples of chronicles that evolved into genuine historiography.
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What are some famous works or epics in Georgian literature?
Georgian literature dates back to the 4th century, marked by the conversion to Christianity and the development of the Georgian alphabet.
One of the most famous works is Shota Rustaveli's Vepkhvistqaosani (The Knight in the Panther’s Skin), a national epic from the cultural golden age during the reign of Queen Tamara (late 11th to early 13th century). Rustaveli's masterpiece blends Platonism, Christianity, and worldly wisdom.
Other notable mentions include:
* Tsameba tsmidisa Shushanikisi dedoplisa (“The Passion of Saint Queen Shushanik”) by Iakob Tsurtaveli
* Amiran-Darejaniani, a prose tale attributed to Mose Khoneli
* Stumar-maspindzeli (“Host and Guest”) and Gvelis mchameli (“The Snake-Eater”) by Vazha-Pshavela2 Britannica SourcesCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles. -
How did Georgian literature change during the Soviet period?
The Soviet Red Army's invasion in 1921 significantly impacted Georgian literature. During the 1920s and 30s, Mikheil Javakhishvili, a prose writer who had previously been condemned to death by Soviet authorities, produced captivating stories of doomed rogues. Konstantine Gamsakhurdia, influenced by German culture, wrote grand novels on mythological and historical themes.
However, the Bolsheviks decimated Georgian writers in the 1920s, and the Great Purge of the 1930s destroyed the survivors. In 1932, all independent literary groups were replaced by the Union of Soviet Writers, which became the state's instrument of control over literature. In 1934, socialist realism was proclaimed the only acceptable form of writing. Despite the losses, lyrical poets such as Ana Kalandadze, Murman Lebanidze, and Mukhran Machavariani achieved popularity in the 1960s.
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How does modern Georgian literature reflect the country's culture and history?
Modern Georgian literature reflects the nation's culture and history through various themes and styles. The Rose Revolution of 2003 and the rise of a middle class enabled Georgian publishers and theaters to operate again.
After independence in the 1990s, Georgian literature portrays the civil war, economic collapse, and emigration that crippled the country. Writers such as Chiladze captured the crumbling of personal and national empires. A reorientation from Russian to English and American influences is visible in the works of a new generation of prose writers like Aka Morchiladze, who also demonstrates a shift in Georgian literature in the early 21st century. Giorgi Amirejibi's historical novels, on the other hand, preach national pride.
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Georgian literature, the body of written works in the Georgian language, kartuli ena.
Origins and early development
The origins of Georgian literature date to the 4th century, when the Georgian people were converted to Christianity and a Georgian alphabet was developed. The emergence of a rich literary language and an original religious literature was simultaneous with a massive effort to translate texts from Greek, Armenian, and Syriac. Among the earliest works in Georgian is the prose Tsameba tsmidisa Shushanikisi dedoplisa (470 or later; “The Passion of Saint Queen Shushanik”), attributed to Iakob Tsurtaveli. Old Georgian ecclesiastical literature reached its acme in the 10th century with the lyrical hymns composed and collected by Ioane Minchkhi and Mikael Modrekili and with such biographies of the Church Fathers as Tskhovreba Seraapionisi (c. 910; “The Life of Serapion”) by Basil Zarzmeli and Grigol Khandztelis tskhovreba (c. 950; “Grigol of Khandzta”) by Giorgi Merchule. Chronicles—such as Moktseva Kartlisa (c. 950; “The Conversion of Georgia”) and Kartlis tskhovreba (compiled between the 10th and 13th centuries; “The Life of Kartli”)—evolved from legend to genuine historiography.
With the weakening of the Byzantine Empire in the 10th century, Georgia’s rulers achieved prosperity sufficient to allow a secular literature to develop. King David IV (the Builder) and, later, Queen Tamara, his great-granddaughter, oversaw a cultural golden age that reached from the late 11th to the early 13th century. They encouraged and commissioned works in all the arts but particularly in poetry and prose. (They themselves, like most of Georgia’s Bagratid monarchs, were also writers.) Influenced by Persian literature—especially Ferdowsī’s Shāh-nāmeh (“Book of Kings”), an 11th-century epic—Georgian courtly romance and epic flourished. In verse, Georgia acquired its national monument, Shota Rustaveli’s extravagant but sophisticated courtly romance Vepkhvistqaosani (c. 1220; The Knight in the Panther’s Skin). It was preceded and perhaps influenced by Amiran-Darejaniani (probably c. 1050; Eng. trans. Amiran-Darejaniani), a wild prose tale of battling knights, attributed by Rustaveli to Mose Khoneli, who is otherwise unknown.
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Georgia’s devastation by Genghis Khan in the 1220s and by Timur in the 1390s resulted in the loss of much of the literature created during the golden age—what survives today is only a fraction of what was written—and effectively ended literary production for two centuries. A renaissance began in the early 17th century with the harrowingly personal, though ornate, poetry of King Teimuraz I; among his works is Tsigni da tsameba Ketevan dedoplisa (“The Book and Passion of Queen Saint Ketevan”), a gruesome account of his mother’s martyrdom written in 1625, soon after her death. Less-inspired authors were content to fabricate sequels to Rustaveli’s The Knight in the Panther’s Skin, but contact with Italian and French missionaries and ambassadors in Tbilisi slowly crystallized into fresh ideas.
The 18th and 19th centuries
In the early 18th century, Sulkhan-Saba Orbeliani, supported by his pupil and nephew King Vakhtang VI, introduced modern schooling and printing to Georgia. Orbeliani also compiled the first extant Georgian dictionary and wrote a book of instructive fables, Tsigni sibrdzne-sitsruisa (c. 1700; The Book of Wisdom and Lies). Two major poets emerged in the next generation: Davit Guramishvili used colloquial language to write revealing autobiographical poetry that has a Romantic immediacy, and Besiki (pseudonym of Besarion Gabashvili) adapted conventional poetics to passionate love poetry. Both died in the 1790s while in exile.
During the 18th century, Georgia sought salvation from Ottoman and Persian rule by making an alliance with Russia. In 1801 Russia abolished the Georgian state, dethroned its kings, and made Russian the language of administration. But Russian rule was fairly bloodless and opened routes to European culture. A generation of Georgian Romantic poets was inspired by French and German literature and philosophy. Aleksandre Chavchavadze, father-in-law to Russian playwright Aleksandr Sergeyevich Griboyedov, was an original, contemplative poet; Nikoloz Baratashvili was a visionary genius comparable to the English poet John Keats.
Prose fiction, which could be sustained only by a large educated readership, was slower to develop. By the 1860s, however, fiction and nonfiction prose was flourishing. Ilia Chavchavadze and Akaki Tsereteli had immense moral and intellectual authority and measurable narrative talent, as displayed, for example, in Chavchavadze’s Katsia-adamiani? (1859–63; “Is That a Human Being?”), which attacks the degenerate gentry, and Tsereteli’s fine autobiographical Chemi tavgadasavali (1894–1909; “The Story of My Life”). Aleksandre Qazbegi was the first commercially successful prose writer in Georgia, his melodramatic fiction drawing on the legends and pagan ethos of the Caucasian highlanders.
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The development of Georgian theatre, which needed prosperous city dwellers, was stunted during the 19th century. Its sole significant dramatist was Giorgi Eristavi, who edited a literary journal, directed the Georgian-language theatre (which functioned only sporadically until the 1880s), and translated Russian comedies. He wrote one effective drama, Sheshlili (written 1839, first performed 1861; “The Madwoman”), about women in conflict, as well as two successful comedies, Dava, anu tochka da zapetaia (written 1840, first performed 1850; “The Lawsuit, or Semicolon”) and Gaqra (1849; “The Family Settlement”). From the 19th century through the turn of the 21st, Georgian theatre had fine actors and directors but an impoverished repertoire.