Georgians in Iran
Encyclopedia
Iranian Georgians are an ethnic group living in Iran. Today's Georgia
was a subject to the Safavid empire in 17th century and Shah Abbas I relocated communities of Christian
, Muslim
, and Georgian Jews
as part of his programs to develop industrial economy, strengthen the military and populate newly built towns in various places in Iran
including the provinces of Isfahan and Mazandaran. The Georgian community of Fereydunshahr have retained their distinct Georgian identity until this day , while adopting aspects of Iranian culture such as Persian language
, and Twelver Shia Islam.
and Kartli
. Most of modern-day Iranian Georgians are their descendants thoug h subsequent waves of deportations also occurred throughout the 17th and 18th centuries. The Georgian deportees were settled by the Shah's government into the scarcely populated lands which were quickly made by their new inhabitants into the lively agricultural areas. Many of these new settlements were given Georgian names, reflecting the toponyms found in Georgia. During the Safavid era, Georgia became so politically and somewhat culturally intertwined with Iran that Georgians almost replaced the Qezelbash among the Safavid officials.
During the last days of the Safavid empire, Ottoman Turks
and Afghans
took advantage of Iranian internal weakness and invaded Iran.
The Iranian Georgian contribution in wars against the invading Afghans was crucial. Georgians fought in the battle of Golnabad, and in the battle of Fereydunshahr. In the latter battle they brought a humiliating defeat to the Afghan army.
Despite their isolation from Georgia, many Georgians have preserved their language and some traditions, but embraced Islam. The ethnographer Lado Aghniashvili was first from Georgia to visit this community in 1890.
In the aftermath of World War I, the Georgian minority in Iran was caught in the pressures of the rising Cold War
. In 1945, this compact ethnic community, along with other ethnic minorities that populated northern Iran, came to the attention of the Soviet
as a possible instrument for fomenting unrest in Iranian domestic politics. While the Soviet Georgian leadership wanted to repatriate them to Georgia, Moscow clearly preferred to keep them in Iran. The Soviet plans were abandoned only after Joseph Stalin
realized that his plans to obtain influence in northern Iran foiled by both Iranian stubbornness and United States pressure.
In June 2004, the new Georgian president, Mikheil Saakashvili
, became the first Georgian politician to have visited the Iranian Georgian community in Fereydunshahr. The locals gave to the delegation a warm welcome, which included waving of the newly adopted Georgian national flag
with its five crosses. Saakashvili who stressed that the Iranian Georgians have historically played an important role in defending Iran put flowers on the graves of the Iranian Georgian dead of the eight years long Iran–Iraq War.
, was the son of a Georgian
slave. Mustafa, fourth son of Tahmasp I, was the son of a Georgian princess.
Allahverdi Khan Undiladze, whom the famous landmark of 33 pol
in Isfahan
is named after, was among the Georgian elite that were involved in the Safavid government. Also his son Emam-gholi Khan Undiladze, who defeated the Portuguese army in the Persian Gulf
was a famous Iranian Georgian serving the Safavid empire. Other famous Georgians of Safavid empire were Daud Khan Undiladze
, Gorgin Khan
, Rostam Khan the Sepahsalar
, Parsadan Gorgijanidze
, Siyâvash
, and Yusef Khan-e Gorji
the Sepahdar, who established modern Arak
.
Amin al-Sultan, Prime Minister of Iran
, was also a Georgian. He was the son of a Georgian father.
Manucheher Khan Motamed-od-Dowleh and General Bahram Aryana
were other famous Iranian Georgians.
The names of actors Cyrus Gorjestani and Sima Gorjestani, as well as the late Nematollah Gorji
, suggest that they are/were (at least from the paternal side) of Georgian origin.
Also the Mazandarani poet Nima Yooshij
had Georgian roots. It is believed that Reza Shah
Pahlavi
's grandmother was a Georgian (from Mazandaran).
The Iranian-Australian University Professor in Organisational Psychology and Applied Statistics, Dr Leila Karimi born in a Georgian Family (originally known as Goginashvili) in Esfahan. Mahmoud Karimi (Mahmud Karimi Sibaki), an Iranian football striker who plays for Sepahan F.C. (Esfahan) in the Iranian Premier Football League is the most famous Iranian Georgian football player in Iran. The Iranian-Canadian historian Kaveh Farrokh has Georgian roots. Another contemporary figure of partial Georgian background is the Iranian-American harpsichordist Mahan Esfahani
.
For a more lengthy discussion on Georgians and Persia refer to.
is still used by some people in Iran. The center of Georgians
in Iran is Fereydunshahr, a small city, 150 km to the west of Isfahan
in the area historically known as Fereydan
. In this area there are 10 Georgian towns and villages around Fereydunshahr. In this region the old Georgian identity is retained the best compared to other places in Iran.
There were other compact settlements in Khorasan
at Abbas Abad
(half-way between Shahrood
and Sabzevar
where there remained only one old woman who remembered Georgian in 1934), Mazandaran at Behshahr
and Farah Abad, Gilan, Isfahan Province at Najafabad
, Rahmatabad, Yazdanshahr and Amir Abad. There areas are frequently called Gorji Mahalle ("Georgian neighborhood"). Many Georgians or Iranians of partial Georgian descent are also scattered in major Iranian cities, such as Tehran
, Esfahan, Karaj
and Shiraz
.
Most of these communities no longer speak the Georgian language, but retain aspects of Georgian culture. Some argue that Iranian Georgians retain remnants of Christian traditions, but there is no evidence for this. The Georgian alphabet
is also known to some in Fereydunshahr. Iranian Georgians observe the Shia traditions and also non-religious traditions similar to other people in Iran. They observe the traditions of Nowruz
.
The number of Georgians in Iran is estimated from 50,000 to over 100,000. According to Encyclopaedia Georgiana (1986) some 12,000-14,000 lived in rural Fereydan c. 1985 but these numbers are obvious underestimations.
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...
was a subject to the Safavid empire in 17th century and Shah Abbas I relocated communities of Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
, Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
, and Georgian Jews
Georgian Jews
The Georgian Jews are from the nation of Georgia, in the Caucasus...
as part of his programs to develop industrial economy, strengthen the military and populate newly built towns in various places in Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
including the provinces of Isfahan and Mazandaran. The Georgian community of Fereydunshahr have retained their distinct Georgian identity until this day , while adopting aspects of Iranian culture such as Persian language
Persian language
Persian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is primarily spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and countries which historically came under Persian influence...
, and Twelver Shia Islam.
History
The first compact Georgian settlements appeared in Iran in the 1610s when Shah Abbas I relocated thousands from their historical homeland, eastern Georgian provinces of KakhetiKakheti
Kakheti is a historical province in Eastern Georgia inhabited by Kakhetians who speak a local dialect of Georgian. It is bordered by the small mountainous province of Tusheti and the Greater Caucasus mountain range to the north, Russian Federation to the Northeast, Azerbaijan to the Southeast, and...
and Kartli
Kartli
Kartli is a historical region in central-to-eastern Georgia traversed by the river Mtkvari , on which Georgia's capital, Tbilisi, is situated. Known to the Classical authors as Iberia, Kartli played a crucial role in ethnic and political consolidation of the Georgians in the Middle Ages...
. Most of modern-day Iranian Georgians are their descendants thoug h subsequent waves of deportations also occurred throughout the 17th and 18th centuries. The Georgian deportees were settled by the Shah's government into the scarcely populated lands which were quickly made by their new inhabitants into the lively agricultural areas. Many of these new settlements were given Georgian names, reflecting the toponyms found in Georgia. During the Safavid era, Georgia became so politically and somewhat culturally intertwined with Iran that Georgians almost replaced the Qezelbash among the Safavid officials.
During the last days of the Safavid empire, Ottoman Turks
Ottoman Turks
The Ottoman Turks were the Turkish-speaking population of the Ottoman Empire who formed the base of the state's military and ruling classes. Reliable information about the early history of Ottoman Turks is scarce, but they take their Turkish name, Osmanlı , from the house of Osman I The Ottoman...
and Afghans
Demographics of Afghanistan
The population of Afghanistan is around 29,835,392 as of the year 2011, which is unclear if the refugees living outside the country are included or not. The nation is composed of a multi-ethnic and multi-lingual society, reflecting its location astride historic trade and invasion routes between...
took advantage of Iranian internal weakness and invaded Iran.
The Iranian Georgian contribution in wars against the invading Afghans was crucial. Georgians fought in the battle of Golnabad, and in the battle of Fereydunshahr. In the latter battle they brought a humiliating defeat to the Afghan army.
Despite their isolation from Georgia, many Georgians have preserved their language and some traditions, but embraced Islam. The ethnographer Lado Aghniashvili was first from Georgia to visit this community in 1890.
In the aftermath of World War I, the Georgian minority in Iran was caught in the pressures of the rising Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
. In 1945, this compact ethnic community, along with other ethnic minorities that populated northern Iran, came to the attention of the Soviet
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
as a possible instrument for fomenting unrest in Iranian domestic politics. While the Soviet Georgian leadership wanted to repatriate them to Georgia, Moscow clearly preferred to keep them in Iran. The Soviet plans were abandoned only after Joseph Stalin
Joseph Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin was the Premier of the Soviet Union from 6 May 1941 to 5 March 1953. He was among the Bolshevik revolutionaries who brought about the October Revolution and had held the position of first General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union's Central Committee...
realized that his plans to obtain influence in northern Iran foiled by both Iranian stubbornness and United States pressure.
In June 2004, the new Georgian president, Mikheil Saakashvili
Mikheil Saakashvili
Mikheil Saakashvili is a Georgian politician, the third and current President of Georgia and leader of the United National Movement Party.Involved in the national politics since 1995, Saakashvili became president on 25 January 2004 after President Eduard Shevardnadze resigned in a November 2003...
, became the first Georgian politician to have visited the Iranian Georgian community in Fereydunshahr. The locals gave to the delegation a warm welcome, which included waving of the newly adopted Georgian national flag
Flag of Georgia (country)
The official flag of Georgia is the "five-cross flag", restored to official use on January 14, 2004, after a break of some 500 years...
with its five crosses. Saakashvili who stressed that the Iranian Georgians have historically played an important role in defending Iran put flowers on the graves of the Iranian Georgian dead of the eight years long Iran–Iraq War.
Notable Georgians of Iran
Many direct and indirect members of Safavid family had some Georgian background. Heydar Ali, third son of Tahmasp ITahmasp I
Tahmasp or Tahmasb I was an influential Shah of Iran, who enjoyed the longest reign of any member of the Safavid dynasty...
, was the son of a Georgian
Georgian people
The Georgians are an ethnic group that have originated in Georgia, where they constitute a majority of the population. Large Georgian communities are also present throughout Russia, European Union, United States, and South America....
slave. Mustafa, fourth son of Tahmasp I, was the son of a Georgian princess.
33 pol
Si-o-se Pol , also called the Allah-Verdi Khan Bridge, is one of the eleven bridges of Isfahan, Iran. It is highly ranked as being one of the most famous examples of Safavid bridge design....
in Isfahan
Isfahan (city)
Isfahan , historically also rendered in English as Ispahan, Sepahan or Hispahan, is the capital of Isfahan Province in Iran, located about 340 km south of Tehran. It has a population of 1,583,609, Iran's third largest city after Tehran and Mashhad...
is named after, was among the Georgian elite that were involved in the Safavid government. Also his son Emam-gholi Khan Undiladze, who defeated the Portuguese army in the Persian Gulf
Persian Gulf
The Persian Gulf, in Southwest Asia, is an extension of the Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.The Persian Gulf was the focus of the 1980–1988 Iran-Iraq War, in which each side attacked the other's oil tankers...
was a famous Iranian Georgian serving the Safavid empire. Other famous Georgians of Safavid empire were Daud Khan Undiladze
Daud Khan Undiladze
Daud-Khan an Iranian military commander and politician of Georgian origin who served as governor of Ganja and Karabakh from 1625 to 1630....
, Gorgin Khan
George XI of Kartli
George XI was a Georgian monarch who ruled Eastern Georgia from 1676 to 1688 and again from 1703 to 1709. He is best known for his struggle against the Safavid Persia which dominated his weakened kingdom. Being an Eastern Orthodox Christian, he converted to Islam prior to his appointment as...
, Rostam Khan the Sepahsalar
Rostom of Kartli
Rostom or Rustam Khan was a ruler of Kartli, eastern Georgia, from 1633 until his death. Appointed by a Persian shah as a Wāli of Kartli, he styled himself king of kings and sovereign.- Life :...
, Parsadan Gorgijanidze
Parsadan Gorgijanidze
P'arsadan Gorgijanidze was a Georgian factotum and historian who served at both the Georgian and Persian courts and is principally known for his informative chronicles The History of Georgia ....
, Siyâvash
Siyâvash (artist)
Siyâvash, Siyavush, or Siyavush Beg was an Iranian illustrator of Georgian origin known for his miniatures with dramatic landscape elements and well-organized compositions....
, and Yusef Khan-e Gorji
Yusef Khan-e Gorji
Yusef Khan Gorji ; , a pro-Iranian Georgian warlord given refuge by the Iranian Shah Agha Mohammad Khan Qajar following a territorial dispute with his cousins who were supported by Imperial Russian Empress Catherine the Great...
the Sepahdar, who established modern Arak
Arak, Iran
-Industries:thumb|right|250px|wagon parsArak is one of the main industrial cities of Iran, possessing many plants for heavy industries especially for the metal and machinery industries, including:...
.
Amin al-Sultan, Prime Minister of Iran
Prime Minister of Iran
Prime Minister of Iran was a political post in Iran that had existed during several different periods of time starting with the Qajar era until its most recent revival from 1979 to 1989 following the Iranian Revolution.-Prime Ministers of Qajar era:In the Qajar era, prime ministers were known by...
, was also a Georgian. He was the son of a Georgian father.
Manucheher Khan Motamed-od-Dowleh and General Bahram Aryana
Bahram Aryana
Artesh-Boad Bahram Aryana was a top Iranian military commander in the during the reign of Mohammed Reza Pahlavi.He was educated at École Spéciale Militaire de Saint-Cyr, and was instrumental in many of the nationalist policies in the 1950-1960s...
were other famous Iranian Georgians.
The names of actors Cyrus Gorjestani and Sima Gorjestani, as well as the late Nematollah Gorji
Nematollah Gorji
Nemat'o'llāh Gorji was an Iranian theatre and film actor. Mr Gorji's last name is suggestive that his ancestors may have been Georgians....
, suggest that they are/were (at least from the paternal side) of Georgian origin.
Also the Mazandarani poet Nima Yooshij
Nima Yooshij
Nimā Yushij also called Nimā, born Ali Esfandiāri , was a contemporary Tabarian and Persian poet who started the she’r-e no also known as she’r-e nimaa'i trend in Iran...
had Georgian roots. It is believed that Reza Shah
Reza Shah
Rezā Shāh, also known as Rezā Shāh Pahlavi and Rezā Shāh Kabir , , was the Shah of the Imperial State of Iran from December 15, 1925, until he was forced to abdicate by the Anglo-Soviet invasion of Iran on September 16, 1941.In 1925, Reza Shah overthrew Ahmad Shah Qajar, the last Shah of the Qajar...
Pahlavi
Pahlavi dynasty
The Pahlavi dynasty consisted of two Iranian/Persian monarchs, father and son Reza Shah Pahlavi and Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi The Pahlavi dynasty consisted of two Iranian/Persian monarchs, father and son Reza Shah Pahlavi (reg. 1925–1941) and Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi The Pahlavi dynasty ...
's grandmother was a Georgian (from Mazandaran).
The Iranian-Australian University Professor in Organisational Psychology and Applied Statistics, Dr Leila Karimi born in a Georgian Family (originally known as Goginashvili) in Esfahan. Mahmoud Karimi (Mahmud Karimi Sibaki), an Iranian football striker who plays for Sepahan F.C. (Esfahan) in the Iranian Premier Football League is the most famous Iranian Georgian football player in Iran. The Iranian-Canadian historian Kaveh Farrokh has Georgian roots. Another contemporary figure of partial Georgian background is the Iranian-American harpsichordist Mahan Esfahani
Mahan Esfahani
Mahan Esfahani is an Iranian-American keyboardist; he is the first harpsichordist named as a BBC New Generation Artist. As a concerto soloist, recitalist, and collaborative musician, he has gained an international reputation on a variety of early keyboards.- Biography :Born in 1984 in Tehran,...
.
For a more lengthy discussion on Georgians and Persia refer to.
Geographic distribution, language and culture
The Georgian languageGeorgian 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...
is still used by some people in Iran. The center of Georgians
Georgian people
The Georgians are an ethnic group that have originated in Georgia, where they constitute a majority of the population. Large Georgian communities are also present throughout Russia, European Union, United States, and South America....
in Iran is Fereydunshahr, a small city, 150 km to the west of Isfahan
Isfahan (city)
Isfahan , historically also rendered in English as Ispahan, Sepahan or Hispahan, is the capital of Isfahan Province in Iran, located about 340 km south of Tehran. It has a population of 1,583,609, Iran's third largest city after Tehran and Mashhad...
in the area historically known as Fereydan
Fereydan
- Georgians in Fereydan :The Fereydan Georgians are an ethnographic group of the Georgian people who mostly live in the city of Fereydoon Shahr and in the Fereydan region of Iran.- Origins :...
. In this area there are 10 Georgian towns and villages around Fereydunshahr. In this region the old Georgian identity is retained the best compared to other places in Iran.
There were other compact settlements in Khorasan
Greater Khorasan
Greater Khorasan or Ancient Khorasan is a historical region of Greater Iran mentioned in sources from Sassanid and Islamic eras which "frequently" had a denotation wider than current three provinces of Khorasan in Iran...
at Abbas Abad
Abbas Abad
Abbās Ābād is a large north-central neighborhood of Tehran, Iran, designated within the Seventh Municipal District of the capital.-History:...
(half-way between Shahrood
Shahrood
Shahrud Situated about an altitude of 4413 ft , it is located at latitude 36°25'N, longitude 055°01'E. Now, it is the largest city of Semnan Province and also its county has same position in the province...
and Sabzevar
Sabzevar
Sabzevar is a city in, and the capital of Sabzevar County, in Razavi Khorasan Province in northeastern Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 208,172, in 57,024 families.It is approximately 220 kilometres west of Mashhad, the provincial capital...
where there remained only one old woman who remembered Georgian in 1934), Mazandaran at Behshahr
Behshahr
Behshahr is a city in and the capital of Behshahr County, Mazandaran Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 83,537, in 22,034 families.It is approximately forty kilometers from Sari. The name Behshahr literally means The Best city...
and Farah Abad, Gilan, Isfahan Province at Najafabad
Najafabad
Najafabad is a city in and the capital of Najafabad County, Isfahan Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 206,114, in 54,529 families. It is located west of Isfahan and is increasingly becoming a part of Isfahan Metropolitan area....
, Rahmatabad, Yazdanshahr and Amir Abad. There areas are frequently called Gorji Mahalle ("Georgian neighborhood"). Many Georgians or Iranians of partial Georgian descent are also scattered in major Iranian cities, such as Tehran
Tehran
Tehran , sometimes spelled Teheran, is the capital of Iran and Tehran Province. With an estimated population of 8,429,807; it is also Iran's largest urban area and city, one of the largest cities in Western Asia, and is the world's 19th largest city.In the 20th century, Tehran was subject to...
, Esfahan, Karaj
Karaj
Karaj is a city in and the capital of Karaj County, Alborz Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 1,377,450, in 385,955 families, , making it the fifth-largest city in Iran after Tehran, Mashhad, Isfahan and Tabriz.) It is situated west of Tehran, at the foothills of the Alborz...
and Shiraz
Shiraz
Shiraz may refer to:* Shiraz, Iran, a city in Iran* Shiraz County, an administrative subdivision of Iran* Vosketap, Armenia, formerly called ShirazPeople:* Hovhannes Shiraz, Armenian poet* Ara Shiraz, Armenian sculptor...
.
Most of these communities no longer speak the Georgian language, but retain aspects of Georgian culture. Some argue that Iranian Georgians retain remnants of Christian traditions, but there is no evidence for this. 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...
is also known to some in Fereydunshahr. Iranian Georgians observe the Shia traditions and also non-religious traditions similar to other people in Iran. They observe the traditions of Nowruz
Nowruz
Nowrūz is the name of the Iranian New Year in Iranian calendars and the corresponding traditional celebrations. Nowruz is also widely referred to as the Persian New Year....
.
The number of Georgians in Iran is estimated from 50,000 to over 100,000. According to Encyclopaedia Georgiana (1986) some 12,000-14,000 lived in rural Fereydan c. 1985 but these numbers are obvious underestimations.
External links
- Pierre Oberling, Georgian communities in Persia. Encyclopædia IranicaEncyclopædia IranicaEncyclopædia Iranica is a project whose goal is to create a comprehensive and authoritative English language encyclopedia about the history, culture, and civilization of Iranian peoples from prehistory to modern times...
Fereydan - Little Georgia Georgian Radio of Iran - Ali Attār, Georgians in Iran, in Persian, Jadid Online, 2008, http://www.jadidonline.com/story/22082008/frnk/georgians_in_iran.
A Slide Show of Georgians in Iran by Ali Attār, Jadid Online, 2008, http://www.jadidonline.com/images/stories/flash_multimedia/Georgians_in_iran_test/muliani_high.html (5 min 31 sec).