Guria (Georgian: გურია) is a region (mkhare) in Georgia, in the western part of the country, bordered by the eastern end of the Black Sea. The region has a population of 113,000 (2016),[2] with Ozurgeti as the regional capital.
The territory that is now Guria was part of the kingdom of Colchis, best known in the West for the tale of the Golden Fleece. Following the collapse of the Colchian Kingdom it became part of the Kingdom of Lazica in the first century BC.[3] In antiquity the area was a significant source of iron, as early as the fifth century BC, and also copper and gold.[4]
The toponym "Guria" is first attested in the c. 800 Georgian chronicle of
Historical Guria in modern international borders of Georgia
Guria first appears c. 1352 as a fief of the house of
Gurieli. The principality, comprising modern Guria and much of Adjara with the city of Batumi, was subsequently reduced in size and devastated in a series of conflicts with the Ottoman Empire. A Russian protectorate was established by the treaty concluded on June 19, 1810 between Mamia V Gurieli and the empire, and in 1829, during the regency for the last prince, the Gurieli David, the principality was annexed by Russia.[6]
There were uprisings against Russian rule in 1819 and again
Georgian Social Democratic (Menshevik) Party which dominated the Democratic Republic of Georgia from 1918 to 1921. Guria was a scene of guerrilla resistance to the militarily imposedSoviet rule early in the 1920s. Under the Soviet government, Guria was an agrarian area divided into three administrative districts. In 1995, the Georgian government decreed the creation of the region (mkhare
) of Guria, restoring the province's historical name to official usage.
Gomismta and the Lesser Caucasus mountains (Guria region)
Some say that the root of the word [Guria] refers to restlessness and the word should mean “the land of the restless” and is associated with events during the eighth and ninth centuries when “
Vakhushti Bagrationi’s historical works of the eighteenth century.[8]
According to a later explanation, in the times of Georgia’s prosperity, when its borders stretched from "
Megrelian
word for “heart” – “guri” (Georgian: “guli”).
Economy
Subtropic farming and tourism are a mainstay of the region's economy. Water is one of Guria's main assets. The province is famous for the mineral water of Nabeglavi, which is similar to Borjomi in its chemical composition, and the Black Sea health resort of Ureki, which is rich in magnetic sand. Guria is also one of the largest tea growing regions in Georgia.
Demographics
Ethnic and religious groups
According to the 2014 census, Guria has a population of 113.350 inhabitants, which accounts for 3.1% of the total population of Georgia. 98% of the population is ethnic Georgian (mostly native Gurians), 1% is ethnic Armenian and the remaining 1% is composed of Russians and Ukrainians and the majority of the population is Orthodox Christians (87%), followed by Islam (11%).
Gurians
A Gurian man.
The Gurians or Gurulebi (Georgian: გურულები) is one of the ethnographical groups of Georgians, inhabiting Guria. Gurians are Orthodox Christian and speak the Gurian dialect of the Georgian language.[9]
Politics
Administration
The administration centre is Ozurgeti.
There are 194 populated areas, including:
Media from Commons
Travel information from Wikivoyage
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