Bolnisi Sioni
Encyclopedia
Bolnisi Sioni or Bolnisi Sioni Cathedral is a Georgian Orthodox basilica
in the Bolnisi village of Bolnisi District
, Georgia
. The cathedral was built in 478-493. It is the oldest extant church building in the Republic of Georgia.
Bolnisi Sioni Cathedral is known for its Georgian
inscriptions. These are one of the oldest historical documents of the Georgian alphabet
.
Basilica
The Latin word basilica , was originally used to describe a Roman public building, usually located in the forum of a Roman town. Public basilicas began to appear in Hellenistic cities in the 2nd century BC.The term was also applied to buildings used for religious purposes...
in the Bolnisi village of Bolnisi District
Bolnisi District
Bolnisi is a district of Georgia, in the region of Kvemo Kartli. Its main town is Bolnisi.- Geographical location :Bolnisi District is situated south-west part of country and has common border upon Armenia. Area of district amounts 804 km². The highest point is Lok mount. Bolnisi is a district...
, Georgia
Georgia (country)
Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...
. The cathedral was built in 478-493. It is the oldest extant church building in the Republic of Georgia.
Bolnisi Sioni Cathedral is known for its Georgian
Georgian language
Georgian is the native language of the Georgians and the official language of Georgia, a country in the Caucasus.Georgian is the primary language of about 4 million people in Georgia itself, and of another 500,000 abroad...
inscriptions. These are one of the oldest historical documents of the Georgian alphabet
Georgian alphabet
The Georgian alphabet is the writing system used to write the Georgian language and other Kartvelian languages , and occasionally other languages of the Caucasus such as Ossetic and Abkhaz during the 1940s...
.