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 Georgia| Facts & Figures |
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| President: Mikhail
Saakashvili (2004) Prime
Minister: Nikoloz Gilauri (2009) Minister of State: Avtandil Jorbenadze
(2001) Total area: 26,911 sq mi (69,700 sq
km) Population (2009 est.): 4,615,807
(growth rate: –0.3%); birth rate: 10.6/1000; infant mortality
rate: 16.2/1000; life expectancy: 76.7; density per sq km: 66
Capital and largest city (2003 est.):
Tbilisi, 1,440,000 (metro. area), 1,240,200
(city proper) Other large cities:
Kutaisi, 268,800; Batoumi, 145,400; and Sokhumi, 110,300 Monetary unit: Lari More Facts & Figures |
GeographyGeorgia is bordered by the Black Sea in the
west, by Turkey and Armenia in the south, by Azerbaijan in the east, and
Russia in the north. The republic also includes the Abkhazia and Ajara
autonomous republics and South Ossetia.
GovernmentRepublic.
HistoryGeorgia became a kingdom about 4
B.C.
and Christianity was introduced in
A.D.
337. During the reign of Queen Tamara
(1184–1213), its territory included the whole of Transcaucasia.
During the 13th century, Tamerlane and the Mongols decimated its
population. From the 16th century on, the country was the scene of a
struggle between Persia and Turkey. In the 18th century, it became a
vassal to Russia in exchange for protection from the Turks and
Persians.
Georgia joined Azerbaijan and Armenia in 1917 to
establish the anti-Bolshevik Transcaucasian Federation, and upon its
dissolution in 1918, Georgia proclaimed its independence. In 1922, Georgia,
Armenia, and Azerbaijan were annexed by the USSR and formed the
Transcaucasian Soviet Socialist Republic. In 1936, Georgia became a
separate Soviet republic. Under Soviet rule, the country was transformed from an
agrarian to a largely industrial, urban society.
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