Kutaisi
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Kutaisi ქუთაისი |
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| State : |
 Georgia
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| Region : | Imereti | ||
| Coordinates : | 42 ° 15 ′ N , 42 ° 42 ′ E | ||
| Height : | 80-120 m. ü. M. | ||
| Area : | 70 km² | ||
| Residents : | 147,635 (2014) | ||
| Population density : | 2,109 inhabitants per km² | ||
| Time zone : | Georgian Time (UTC + 4) | ||
| Telephone code : | (+995) 431 | ||
| Postal code : | 4600 | ||
| Mayor : | Nugzar Shamugia | ||
| Website : | |||
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Kutaisi ( Georgian ქუთაისი ) is the third largest city in Georgia and the capital of the Imereti region .
geography
The third largest city in Georgia (after Tbilisi and Batumi ) has 147,635 inhabitants (2014) and extends over 60 km². It is located in the Colchian Plain on the banks of the Rioni and is the economic, industrial and cultural center of western Georgia. The Parliament of Georgia has been meeting in a newly constructed spectacular building in Kutaisi since May 2012.
history
In the 8th century BC Chr. Was Kutaia the capital of Colchis . The name of the city comes from the old Georgian word kuata and means "stony". In the 3rd century BC The city was mentioned in the poem Argonautika by Apollonios of Rhodes .
In 792 the Abkhazian King Leon made it his residence. From the 10th century until 1122, Kutaisi was the residence of the Georgian kings . In the 13th, 15th and 16th centuries, Kutaisi was the capital of the western Georgian kingdom of Imereti. In 1666 Kutaisi was conquered by the Ottomans . In 1769, Russian troops under General Tottleben drove them out of the city. In 1810 Kutaisi ( Russian Кутаиси ) was annexed by Russia , in 1811 the capital of Imereti Oblast and in 1846 of the Kutaisi Governorate .
In 1877 the city received a railway connection with an 8 km long branch line from the Rioni branch station on the Tbilisi – Poti railway line. In the Georgian founding years 1880 to 1900, the population of Kutaisi grew to 32,500. The Duke of Oldenburg , a relative of the Russian Tsar , built a sparkling wine and brandy factory, the Russian entrepreneur Iwanowski a juice press and mineral water production. In 1883, 13,000 people lived from trade.
For 14 days in 1921, Kutaisi was the seat of the Menshevik government of the Democratic Republic of Georgia , which had been expelled from Tbilisi by the Red Army . On March 10, 1921, Kutaisi was also occupied by the Red Army.
From 2012 to 2019 Kutaisi was the seat of the Georgian legislature , i.e. the parliament.
Economy, culture and science
The city's largest employers are Akaki Tsereteli University and Nikolos Muschelishvili Technical University , the Georgian Academy of Sciences, the nearby Warsaw hydropower plant cascade , car, tractor, aircraft and chemical plants. In 1951 the Kutaisier Automobilwerk ( KAS ) was founded. It produced trucks until the end of the Soviet Union .
Kutaisi has five theaters, including a dramatic, a comedic and a mask theater, an opera house and a music college.
The Georgian Gymnasium Kutaisi, founded in 1830 (today Akaki Tsereteli Classical Gymnasium ), produced personalities of world renown, such as the linguist Nikolai Marr , the psychologist Dimitri Usnadze , the poets Vladimir Mayakovsky and Grigol Robakidze as well as Georgia's parliamentary president Nino Burdzhanadze and the businessman Shalva Tschigirinadze.
traffic
Kutaisi is on two railway lines , both of which branch off from the Poti – Baku line, the Rioni – Tqibuli railway and the Brozeula – Zqaltubo railway . At the former is the Kutaisi Tschawtschawadsis Kutscha station , a terminus , also referred to as " Kutaisi 1 " in the timetable . The station "Kutaisi 2" is on the second route. The majority of passenger traffic is handled via Kutaisi 1 station. Only the route to Tskaltubo is served by local trains from Kutaisi 2, a pair of trains is connected from there to Kutaisi 1.
In 2008, Kopitnari Airport was opened 14 kilometers west of Kutaisi .
Attractions
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The medieval cityscape is still visible today. Sights include the Bagrati Cathedral , built by Georgian King Bagrat III in 1003 . built and blown up by the Turkish sultan in 1696. The cathedral has now been completely reconstructed, which is why its entry on the UNESCO World Heritage List has now been deleted. Near the church are the ruins of the city fortress and the royal palace. The Gelati monastery complex not far from the city is still a UNESCO World Heritage Site .
Due to a lack of government funds, various historical sights of Kutaisi are in disrepair. The White Bridge over the Rioni River, built in the 18th century, had to be closed in June 2004 due to the danger of collapse for vehicles.
In the vicinity of the city are the Sataplia Nature Park and the ruins of several old fortresses, including the Tamar and Warziche (German: Rosenburg ) fortresses .
The Georgians also call Kutaisi the city of roses and May .
See also: Synagogue (Kutaisi)
War memorial
In Kutaisi there was a memorial until December 2009 in memory of the more than 200,000 Georgian soldiers who fell in World War II . This structure consisted of a 46 meter high main block made of reinforced concrete, which symbolized an oversized archway. In its tympanum-like field was an oversized bronze bas-relief with figural scenes. Above it was a horizontally running arched gallery , which could be reached by stairs and served as a lookout point. At the upper vaulted end there was a group of isolated bronze figures. An individually arranged bronze equestrian statue was transported away and set up not far from the old location. The ensemble was the work of the Georgian sculptor Merab Berdsenishvili .
The monument was blown up on December 19, 2009. A woman and her child were killed by fragments thrown over 200 meters. Prior to this, there had been an exchange of diplomatic protest notes between Georgia and Russia because the handling of the memorial was controversial and was carried out in public in both countries. A re-establishment in Moscow was also discussed publicly. In 2012, the new national parliament building of Georgia was built on the vacated area.
Town twinning
Kutaisi maintains the following seventeen cities a twinning :
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sons and daughters of the town
- Nikolai Marr (1865–1934), Georgian-Russian linguist and orientalist
- Sakaria Paliashvili (1871–1933), composer
- Anastassija Davydovna Wirsaladze (1883–1968), pianist and piano teacher
- Władysław Raczkiewicz (1885–1947), Polish politician, President
- Dimitri Usnadze (1886–1950), psychologist and university founder
- Bessarion Lominadze (1897–1935), Communist Party leader in Transcaucasia and a victim of Stalin
- Joseph Orbeli (1887–1961), Armenian orientalist
- Stepan Alawerdjan (1888–1920), KP functionary
- Veriko Andschaparidse (1897–1987), stage actress
- Viktor Michailow (1901–1990), civil engineer and university lecturer
- Wassil Mschavanadze (1902–1988), Communist Party leader of Georgia
- Schalwa Tschikladze (1912–1997), wrestler
- Tengis Abuladze (1924–1994), film director
- Dodo Chichinadze (1924–2009), actress
- Rewas Gamqrelidse (* 1927), mathematician
- Tamas Gamqrelidse (* 1929), linguist
- Rewas Gabriadze (* 1936), theater and film director, screenwriter and artist
- Omar Pchakadze (1944–1993), track cyclist
- Leonid Lakerbaja (* 1947), Abkhazian politician
- Sergei Schwezow (* 1960), Soviet football player
- Maia Chiburdanidze (* 1961), chess player
- Nino Burjanadze (* 1964), politician, speaker of parliament
- Gogi Koguaschwili (* 1969), Soviet-Russian wrestler
- Micheil Aschwetia (* 1977), football player
- Avtandil Khurtsidze (born 1979), boxer
- Malchas Assatiani (* 1981), football player
- Katie Melua (* 1984), singer-songwriter
- Koba Pchakadse (* 1984), boxer
- Nana Dsagnidse (* 1987), chess player
- Rauli Tsirekidze (* 1987), weightlifter
- Budu Sivsivadze (* 1994), football player
Honorary citizen
- Hermann Wedekind , hero tenor, actor and director
See also
Web links
- Website of the city of Kutaisi (en, ge)
- Akaki Tsereteli University of Kutaisi (en, ge)
- Kutaisi, old new and new old (en)
Individual evidence
- ^ Neil Robinson: World Rail Atlas . Vol. 8: The Middle East and Caucasus . 2006. ISBN 954-12-0128-8 , plate 55.
- ↑ Homepage of the Georgian Railway (en, ge, ru).
- ↑ Report in derStandard.at: Deaths when a controversial Soviet memorial was blown up , from December 19, 2009, with picture (accessed on January 18, 2010)
- ^ The demolition of the monument creates new tensions with Russia . In: Caucasian Post (15) 2009/2010, No. 77, p. 4
- ↑ RIA-novosti: Lavrov: Monument blasting in Georgia is attack on war victims , from December 24, 2009, with picture gallery (accessed on January 18, 2010)
- ^ Interrelations - Kutaisi Municipality. Retrieved December 17, 2018 .