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Kutaisi Governorate

The Kutaisi or Kutais Governorate[a] was a province (guberniya) of the Caucasus Viceroyalty of the Russian Empire. It roughly corresponded to most of western Georgia throughout most of its existence, and most of the Artvin Province (except the Hopa and Yusufeli districts) of Turkey between 1878 and 1903. Created out of part of the former Georgia-Imeretia Governorate in 1846, the governorate also included Akhaltsikhe uezd before its cession to the Tiflis Governorate in 1867. The Kutaisi Governorate bordered the Sukhumi Okrug to the northwest, the Kuban Oblast to the north, the Terek Oblast to the northeast, the Tiflis Governorate to the southeast, the Batum Oblast to the southwest, and the Black Sea to the west. The governorate was eponymously named for its administrative center, Kutais (present-day Kutaisi).[1]

Kutaisi Governorate
Кутаисская губернія
Governorate
Coat of arms of Kutaisi Governorate
Coat of arms
Administrative map of the Kutaisi Governorate (1905–17)
Administrative map of the Kutaisi Governorate (1905–17)
CountryRussian Empire
ViceroyaltyCaucasus
Established1849
Abolished1917
CapitalKutais
(present-day Kutaisi)
Area
 • Total19,956.06 km2 (7,705.08 sq mi)
Highest elevation
(Shkhara)
5,193 m (17,037 ft)
Population
 (1916)
 • Total1,034,468
 • Density52/km2 (130/sq mi)
 • Urban
8.51%
 • Rural
91.49%

History

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The Kutaisi Governorate was formed in 1846 as a result of the division of the Georgia-Imeretia Governorate. In 1883, the governorate included the Sukhumi Okrug and two districts (Artvin and Batum) of the then abolished Batum Oblast. In 1903, the Artvin and Batum districts were detached and re-formed into the Batum Oblast. In 1905, the Sukhumi Okrug also received the status of a special district of the Russian Empire, tantamount to a governorate or oblast.[1]

Following the Russian Revolution, in 1918 the Kutaisi Governorate became part of the short-lived Georgian Democratic Republic.[1]

Administrative divisions

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Kutaisi Governorate in 1883-1903

The counties (uezds) of the Kutaisi Governorate in 1917 were as follows:[2]

Name Administrative centre Population Area
1897[3] 1916[4] 1897 1916
Zugdidi uezd (Зугдидскій уѣздъ) Zugdid

(Zugdidi)

3,407 4,000 114,869 127,978 2,346.43 square versts (2,670.38 km2; 1,031.04 sq mi)
Kutaisi uezd (Кутаисскій уѣздъ) Kutais

(Kutaisi)

32,476 58,151 221,665 291,969 2,042.64 square versts (2,324.65 km2; 897.55 sq mi)
Lechkhumi uezd (Лечхумскій уѣздъ) Tsagery

(Tsageri)

687 --- 47,779 61,914 4,281.88 square versts (4,873.05 km2; 1,881.49 sq mi)
Ozurgeti uezd (Озургетскій уѣздъ) Ozurgety

(Ozurgeti)

4,710 11,198 90,326 115,339 1,899.04 square versts (2,161.23 km2; 834.45 sq mi)
Racha uezd (Рачинскій уѣздъ) Oni 1,255 --- 60,421 88,162 2,476.58 square versts (2,818.50 km2; 1,088.23 sq mi)
Senaki uezd (Сенакскій уѣздъ) Senaki 1,248 --- 115,785 159,678 1,869.20 square versts (2,127.27 km2; 821.34 sq mi)
Shorapani uezd (Шорапанскій уѣздъ) Kvirily

(Zestafoni)

2,010 --- 156,633 189,428 2,619.35 square versts (2,980.98 km2; 1,150.96 sq mi)

Demographics

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Russian Empire census (1897)

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According to the Russian Empire Census, the Kutaisi Governorate had a population of 1,058,241 on 28 January [O.S. 15 January] 1897, including 549,504 men and 508,737 women. The majority of the populated indicated a Kartvelian language to be their mother tongue, principally comprising Georgian, Imeretian and Mingrelian.[5]

Linguistic composition of the Kutaisi Governorate in 1897[5]
Language Native speakers %
Georgian 343,929 32.50
Imeretian[b] 270,513 25.56
Mingrelian[b] 238,655 22.55
Abkhaz 59,469 5.62
Turkish 46,665 4.41
Armenian 24,043 2.27
Russian 19,273 1.82
Svan[b] 15,669 1.48
Greek 14,482 1.37
Jewish 7,006 0.66
Ossetian 4,240 0.40
Ukrainian 4,008 0.38
Polish 1,938 0.18
Kurdish 1,824 0.17
German 1,065 0.10
Persian 1,022 0.10
Tatar[c] 750 0.07
Estonian 621 0.06
Lithuanian 450 0.04
Romanian 197 0.02
Belarusian 162 0.02
Sartic 156 0.01
Avar-Andean 148 0.01
English 135 0.01
Kazi-Kumukh 111 0.01
Other 1,710 0.16
TOTAL 1,058,241 100.00
Religious composition of the Kutaisi Governorate in 1897[8]
Faith Male Female Both
Number %
Eastern Orthodox 462,243 438,687 900,930 85.13
Muslim 64,043 53,577 117,620 11.11
Armenian Apostolic 11,610 7,370 18,980 1.79
Judaism 4,674 4,190 8,864 0.84
Armenian Catholic 2,631 2,894 5,525 0.52
Roman Catholic 3,065 1,195 4,260 0.40
Lutheran 999 676 1,675 0.16
Old Believer 156 92 248 0.02
Karaite 29 17 46 0.00
Reformed 15 13 28 0.00
Buddhist 16 5 21 0.00
Anglican 12 6 18 0.00
Baptist 2 10 12 0.00
Mennonite 5 2 7 0.00
Other Christian denomination 3 3 6 0.00
Other non-Christian denomination 1 0 1 0.00
TOTAL 549,504 508,737 1,058,241 100.00

Kavkazskiy kalendar

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According to the 1917 publication of Kavkazskiy kalendar, the Kutaisi Governorate had a population of 1,034,468 on 14 January [O.S. 1 January] 1916, including 546,957 men and 487,511 women, 990,297 of whom were the permanent population, and 44,171 were temporary residents. The population total of the governorate is slightly less than in 1897 due to the province's administrative reorganization involving the detachment of the Artvin, Batum and Sukhumi okrugs (to be administered separately):[2]

Nationality Urban Rural TOTAL
Number % Number % Number %
Georgians 56,543 64.20 936,869 98.99 993,412 96.03
Jews 11,346 12.88 6,450 0.68 17,796 1.72
Russians 14,506 16.47 1,379 0.15 15,885 1.54
Armenians 3,416 3.88 1,189 0.13 4,605 0.45
Asiatic Christians 1,450 1.65 29 0.00 1,479 0.14
Other Europeans 654 0.74 328 0.03 982 0.09
Sunni Muslims[d] 70 0.08 74 0.01 144 0.01
Shia Muslims[e] 95 0.11 38 0.00 133 0.01
North Caucasians 0 0.00 32 0.00 32 0.00
TOTAL 88,080 100.00 946,388 100.00 1,034,468 100.00

Notes

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  1. ^
    • Russian: Кутаи́сская губе́рнія, romanized: Kutaísskaya gubérniya
    • Georgian: ქუთაისის გუბერნია, romanized: kutaisis gubernia
  2. ^ a b c Considered a dialect of Georgian.
  3. ^ Before 1918, Azerbaijanis were generally known as "Tatars". This term, employed by the Russians, referred to Turkic-speaking Muslims of the South Caucasus. After 1918, with the establishment of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic and "especially during the Soviet era", the Tatar group identified itself as "Azerbaijani".[6][7]
  4. ^ Primarily Turco-Tatars.[9]
  5. ^ Primarily Tatars.[9]

References

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  1. ^ a b c Tsutsiev, Arthur (2014). Atlas of the Ethno-Political History of the Caucasus. Translated by Nora Seligman Favorov. New Haven: Yale University Press. ISBN 9780300153088.
  2. ^ a b Кавказский календарь на 1917 год, pp. 198–205.
  3. ^ "Демоскоп Weekly - Приложение. Справочник статистических показателей". www.demoscope.ru. Retrieved 2024-09-20.
  4. ^ Кавказский календарь .... на 1917 год | Президентская библиотека имени Б.Н. Ельцина. 2021-11-04. Archived from the original on 2021-11-04. Retrieved 2024-09-20.
  5. ^ a b "Демоскоп Weekly - Приложение. Справочник статистических показателей". www.demoscope.ru. Retrieved 2022-03-04.
  6. ^ Bournoutian 2018, p. 35 (note 25).
  7. ^ Tsutsiev 2014, p. 50.
  8. ^ "Демоскоп Weekly - Приложение. Справочник статистических показателей". www.demoscope.ru. Retrieved 2022-03-04.
  9. ^ a b Hovannisian 1971, p. 67.

Bibliography

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42°15′00″N 42°42′00″E / 42.2500°N 42.7000°E / 42.2500; 42.7000

 

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