Bediani

Bediani (Georgian ბედიანი) is a village in Kvemo Kartli region of Georgia, in the south-East part of Tsalka region, on the right bank of the river Khrami, at approx. 850 m from sea level.

Location and natural conditions

Borough Bediani is situated in the narrow gorge of the river Khrami and stretched from the North-West to the South-East direction. The climate of Bediani is distinguished with quite cold winter (temperature is sometimes falls till 20 `C below zero in January) and relatively hot summer. Bediani and its surroundings are mostly covered with forests of oak, nut, hornbeam, pine, birch. There are a lot of different wild fruits; there is also an evergreen pine in the high zone of the forest. There are too rich fauna world, you will find: roe, wild pig, hare, fox, hedgehog, bear, wolf, and lynx. It is too important the recreational potential of Bediani and its surroundings, which is created by the magnificent natural landscape and lots of historical monuments. Bediani is app. 30 km. far from regional centre (Tsalka) and town Tetri Tskaro.

History

There were only monastery complexes on the territory of Bediani in the historical past and their history begins since the early medieval centuries. It is known that Bediani church had been functioning till the Communist annexation and after the establishing the Soviet Union government it stopped its function. There was no settlement till the 50-s of XX c. Bediani settlement was founded in 1954, based on the cascade of Khramhesi. The first inhabitants were the workers of this construction. In 1963 the republic psycho-neurological hospital began to function, it was for 800 patients. The creation of the borough caused the developing of the social infrastructures; the medicine dispensary was opened that served the settlements combined in the borough community; also the school for 220 pupils was founded. There were two pioneer camps on the territory of the borough community: Khramhes 2 (Chatakvi); and on the territory of the village Pantiani that received the hundreds of visitors every year. The economical and political crises of the country at the end of the 1980s and in the beginning of the 1990s had the strict effect on Bediani life. The number of the inhabitants reduced catastrophically because of all these processes.

Inhabitants

The absolute majority (90%) of Bediani inhabitants were Greeks till the 1990s. At the end of September of 1999, the new settlers appeared in the borough who were the children and teachers of the [http://www.bediani.ge Children Centre] existing near the nunnery named after St. George Mtatsmindeli. The new settlers mainly and completely changed the structure of the borough, its life and create the new perspectives. Before arriving the new settlers the nunnery was re established by the bless of patriarch of Georgia Ilia II, where the nuns moved from Tbilisi Peristsvaleba Nunnery. The nuns had close relation with children and the first children were sheltered in this nunnery. The children moved in Bediani and they were distributed in the different houses which were bought for them by the help of foreign organizations. One teacher lives with children in a house that gives the ability to create the family surroundings that is necessary condition for child’s normal, valuable developing. Nowadays there are app. 200 inhabitants in the borough.

Resources

* [http://www.bediani.ge Charity and Education Centre - Bediani]
* [http://bediani.dsl.ge/DATA/Summer%20in%20Bediani%20-%202005.wmv Summer camp in bediani, 2005 video]