Georgia: Political System
According to topschoolsintheusa, Georgia is a democratic republic. At the head of the state is a president who is directly elected by the people every 5 years. The parliament is a unicameral system with 235 seats (150 list places and 85 direct seats). See AbbreviationFinder for more information about Georgia politics, and acronyms as well.
In the course of the so-called Rose Revolution in November 2003, opposition demonstrators under his leadership stormed the meeting room of the Georgian parliament, which had been established as a result of electoral fraud, and ousted President Shevardnadze. Mikhail Saakashvili (born 1967) was elected President on January 4th and sworn in on January 25th. Due to early elections on January 5, 2008, he was re-confirmed in office with around 53.4% of the votes and sworn in on January 20.
The official name of the country is:
| Sakartwelo |
National anthem
The national anthem of Georgia (Dideba zetsit kurtheuls, “Praise be to the heavenly giver of benefits”) was written by Kote Potskhverashvili. In 1991 it became the country’s official anthem.
| In Georgian | In the English translation |
| Dideba zetsit kurtheulsDideba kvehnad samotkhes,
Turpha iversa. Dideba dzmobas, ertobas. Dideba tavisuplebas, Dideba samaradiso Kartulmkhne ersa! Dideba chvensa samshoblos, Dideba chveni sitsotskhlis Mizans diadsa; Vasha trphobasa, sikvaruls Vasha shvebasa, siharuls, Salami chesh maritebis, Shuk gantiadsa! |
Praise be to the heavenly giver of benefits,Praise be to the bearer of blessings,Praise be to Paradise on earth,
the radiant Georgians, Praise be brotherhood and unity, Praise be to freedom, Praise be to the eternal, lively Georgian people! Praise be to our fatherland, Praise be the great and brilliant goal of our life; Hail, oh joy and love, Hail helpfulness and happiness, Hail the truth, this light of twilight! |
National flag
The national flag of Georgia, also known as the five-cross flag, was introduced by parliamentary resolution on January 26, 2004. In the center there is a standing right-angled cross on a silver background and four smaller crosses in the four corners. It is the Jerusalem cross, the crosses of which symbolize the five wounds of Christ. The silver background symbolizes innocence, chastity, purity and wisdom. Based on flag descriptions by Countryaah.com, the red of the crosses symbolizes courage, bravery, justice and love.
- Check top-mba-universities for public holidays, sports events, UNESCO world heritage sites and major places to visit in Georgia.
Georgia: People Known
Visual artist
Elgudscha Dawitis dse Amaschukeli (1928 – 2002)
sculptor and painter. The statue “Kartlis Deda” from 1963 and the equestrian statue of the founder of Tbilisi King Wachtang I. Gorgassali from 1967 come from Elgudscha Dawitis dse Amaschukeli, who was born in Tbilisi. He died on Elgudscha on March 10, 2002 and had his final resting place on the Didube Pantheon cemetery found in Tbilisi. You can find more information about the two works at Goruma under Sights.
Musician
Important Georgian composers of the 20th century are:
Sachari Paliaschwili (1871-1933)
He combined European classical music with Georgian folk music.
Otar Taktakishvili (1924-1987)
Sulchan Zinzadse (1925-1991)
Giya Kancheli (born 1935)
The composer Giya Kancheli was born on August 10, 1935 in Tbilisi
Natural scientist
Alexander Porfiryevich Borodin (1833-1887)
He was best known as a chemist, medic and composer.
Politicians and rulers
David IV David the Builder (1073 to 1125)
David was one of the most important kings of Georgia. For example, he built up a standing army and liberated Georgia from the Seljuk Turks between 1110 and 1122. He also moved the country’s capital from Kutaisi to Tbilisi. David is considered the most important statesman in the Middle Ages in the Caucasus region.
Dimitri II. (Demetre II.), The self-sacrifice (1260 -1289)
Dimitri was King of Georgia from 1270 to 1289.
After the death of his father, David VII Ulu, he was still a minor, so that his uncle Sadun Mankaberdeli ran the business of government until 1278. During his reign, the country regained its strength – despite the occupation by the Mongols. During this time, for example, the Metekhi Church in Tbilisi was built. Due to an intrigue, Dimitri was accused of treason by the Mongols. In order to use the threatened damage to the country, Dimitri voluntarily went to the camp of the Mongol ruler Il-Khan’s Arghun, where he was cruelly tortured and later beheaded. Because of his sacrifice, he was nicknamed the self-sacrifice.
Josef Stalin
The Russian dictator Josef Stalin was born in Georgia in 1879 and died in 1953 near Moscow.
Eduard Amwrossijewitsch Shevardnadze (born 1928)
Shevardnadze was Foreign Minister of the Soviet Union from 1985 to 1990 and the second President of Georgia from 1995 to 2003. He died on July 7, 2014 in Tbilisi
Writer and poet
Prominent Georgian writers of the 19th century were:
- Ilia Chavchavadze (1837-1907) (“The Hermit”)
- Akaki Tsereteli (1840-1915) (“Suliko”, “The Tutor”)
- Alexander Kazbegi (1848-1893)
20th century authors were:
- Grigol Robakidze (1882-1962) (“The Snake Shirt”, “The Murdered Soul”)
- Konstantin Gamsachurdia (1893-1975) (“The right hand of the great master”, “David the builder”).
Important contemporary authors are:
- Aka Mortschiladze (born 1966) (“The Journey to Karabakh”, “Dogs of Paliashvili Street”)
- Boris Akunin (born 1956), a Russian detective writer who became the leading genre writer in Russia in the 1990s.
Actors, directors
International prizes won:
Tengis Abuladse (1924-1994)
Magdana’s donkey – Cannes 1956, Remorse – Cannes 1987
Otar Iosseliani (born 1934)
The grape harvest – Cannes 1966, Briganten – Venice 1997
Nana Jordschadze (born 1948)
1001 recipes of a cook in love – Karlovy Vary 1997, 27 Missing Kisses – Brussels 2001
Dito Tsintsadze (born 1957)
fear of gunfire – San Sebastian 2003
Athlete
Nana Ioseliani (born 1962)
She was one of the world’s best chess players.
Others
Saint Nino (around 325-361)
Saint Nino (also Nina) is considered to be the person who played a major role in converting Georgia to Christianity. The “Georgian Orthodox Apostle Church” puts her on an equal footing with the biblical apostles and calls her the “Illuminator of Georgia”.
She died in Bodbe in the Georgian region of “Kakheti”, where she was also buried. A church was built over her grave by King Mirian III, King from 268-345, and an Orthodox monastery was later founded. Today it is the seat of the women’s order “Monastery of St. George”.
