- Russians in Georgia
There is a substantial Russian population in Georgia. For many years, Georgia was a part of the
Russian Empire , and later theSoviet Union withRussia , and as the two countries share a border, many Russians emigrated to live in the Northern regions of Georgia, notablyAbkhazia andSouth Ossetia . However, the population has decreased in recent years following the collapse of the Soviet Union, due to a number of factors such as economic hardship and ethnic tensions.History
Ethnic Russians appeared in Georgia in significant numbers after Georgia became part of the Russian Empire in
1803 (Kartli andKakheti ) - 1878 (Ajara ). There were 79082 and 19273 people who indicated Russian as their mother language inTiflis Governorate [http://demoscope.ru/weekly/ssp/rus_lan_97.php?reg=104] andKutais Governorate [http://demoscope.ru/weekly/ssp/rus_lan_97.php?reg=101] respectively. Dukhobors have to be mentioned as well.Census data shows that the Russian population had risen from 83 to the high-point of 319,000 between 1926 and 1959 and then began to decline slowly to 266,000 in 1989. Migration and lower birth rates were the main reasons of this decline.
Many Russians left Georgia during the 1990s due to economic hardships, ethnic tensions and other reasons.
Abkhazia
A great part of its indigenous population emigrated to
Turkey after the Muhajirism, with the result that the Russian Empire started a programme of repopulation, with many ethnicities being settled there. Russians were among them (source - [http://ippk.edu.mhost.ru/elibrary/elibrary/uro/v10/a10_14.htm ТРАПШ Н.А. РУССКАЯ ОБЩИНА АБХАЗИИ: ИСТОРИЯ И СОВРЕМЕННОСТЬ. СОБРАНИЕ ТРУДОВ "ЮЖНОРОССИЙСКОЕ ОБОЗРЕНИЕ", # 10, 2002] ) and made up 2% of the 100,000 population of Abkhazia by 1897. Here Russian population also rose between 1926 and 1970 and declined thereafter. Post-independence decline was particularly steep due to theWar in Abkhazia .outh Ossetia
References
Censuses
* [http://www.ethno-kavkaz.narod.ru/rngeorgia.html Georgia]
* [http://www.ethno-kavkaz.narod.ru/rnsossetia.html South Ossetia]
* [http://www.ethno-kavkaz.narod.ru/rnabkhazia.html Abkhazia]ee also
*
Demographics of Georgia
*Russian diaspora
*Georgia-Russia relations
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