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{{Short description|FormIdeology of nationalism revolving aroundpromoting the Georgian identity}}
'''Georgian nationalism''' ({{lang-ka|ქართული ნაციონალიზმი|tr}}) is a [[Nationalism|nationalist]] ideology promoting [[Georgians|Georgian]] national identity, the [[Georgian language]] and [[Culture of Georgia (country)|culture]].
[[File:Flag of Georgia.svg|thumb|[[Flag of Georgia (country)|Flag of Georgia]] ]]
 
'''Georgian nationalism''' is a form of [[nationalism]] which argues for promotion of [[Georgians|Georgian]] national identity and a [[nation state]] based on it.
 
The beginning of Georgian nationalism can be traced to the middle of the 19th century, when [[Georgia (country)|Georgia]] [[Georgia under the Russian Empire|was part]] of the [[Russian Empire]]. Georgian nationalism evolved from its [[Cultural nationalism|culture-focused]] roots in the [[Russian Empire|Imperial Russian]] and [[Soviet Union|Soviet]] periods, into a radically [[Ethnic nationalism|ethnocentric]] form in the late 1980s and early post-Soviet period, before taking on a more inclusive and [[Civic nationalism|civic]] form in the mid-2000s. However, vestiges of ethnic nationalism remain among many Georgians.<ref name=StephenJones>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hcMZCAAAQBAJ&pg=PR19|title=Georgia: A Political History Since Independence|first=Stephen|author-link=Stephen F. Jones|page=21|last=Jones|date=2013|publisher=I.B. Tauris|via=Google Books|access-date=12 January 2019}}</ref>
 
== Emergence ==
[[File:Flag_of_Georgia_(1918–1921,_4-5).svg|thumb|upright|Flag of [[Georgian Democratic Republic]] ]]
While the notion of Georgian exceptionalism can be traced back to the middle ages (as demonstrated by the writings of [[John Zosimus]]), modern Georgian nationalism emerged in the middle of the 19th century as a reaction to the Russian annexation of fragmented Georgian polities, which terminated their precarious independence, but brought to the Georgians unity under a single authority, relative peace and stability. The first to inspire national revival were aristocratic poets, whose [[Romanticism|romanticist]] writings were imbued with patriotic laments. After a series of ill-fated attempts at revolt, especially, after the failed [[1832 Georgian plot|coup plot of 1832]], the Georgian elites reconciled with the Russian rule, while their calls for national awakening were rechanneled through cultural efforts. In the 1860s, the new generation of Georgian intellectuals, educated at Russian universities and exposed to European ideas, promoted national culture against assimilation by the Imperial center. Led by the literati such as [[Ilia Chavchavadze]], their program attained more nationalistic colors as the nobility declined and capitalism progressed, further stimulated by the rule of the Russian bureaucracy and economic and demographic dominance of the Armenian middle class in the capital city of [[Tbilisi]]. Chavchavadze prominently founded "Land Bank" of Tbilisi, with the aim of protecting Georgian land from being sold off by poor Georgian nobles to rich Armenian bourgeoisie. He also created slogan "Language, Homeland, Religion", which served as a motto of Georgian nationalism. Chavchavadze and his associates called for the unity of all Georgians and put national interests above class and provincial divisions. Their vision did not envisage an outright revolt for independence, but demanded autonomy within the reformed Russian Empire, with greater cultural freedom, promotion of the Georgian language, and support for Georgian educational institutions and the [[Georgian Orthodox Church|national church]], whose independence had been suppressed by the Russian government.{{sfn|Sabanadze|2010|loc=[http://books.openedition.org/ceup/573?lang=en#bodyftn5 Online]}}
[[File:Flag of Georgia.svg|thumb|upright|[[Flag of Georgia (country)|Flag of Georgia]].]]
Modern Georgian nationalism emerged in the middle of the 19th century as a reaction to the Russian annexation of fragmented Georgian polities, which terminated their precarious independence, but brought to the Georgians unity under a single authority, relative peace and stability. The first to inspire national revival were aristocratic poets, whose [[Romanticism|romanticist]] writings were imbued with patriotic laments. After a series of ill-fated attempts at revolt, especially, after the failed [[1832 Georgian plot|coup plot of 1832]], the Georgian elites reconciled with the Russian rule, while their calls for national awakening were rechanneled through cultural efforts. In the 1860s, the new generation of Georgian intellectuals, educated at Russian universities and exposed to European ideas, promoted national culture against assimilation by the Imperial center. Led by the literati such as [[Ilia Chavchavadze]], their program attained more nationalistic colors as the nobility declined and capitalism progressed, further stimulated by the rule of the Russian bureaucracy and economic and demographic dominance of the Armenian middle class in the capital city of [[Tbilisi]]. Chavchavadze and his associates called for the unity of all Georgians and put national interests above class and provincial divisions. Their vision did not envisage an outright revolt for independence, but demanded autonomy within the reformed Russian Empire, with greater cultural freedom, promotion of the Georgian language, and support for Georgian educational institutions and the [[Georgian Orthodox Church|national church]], whose independence had been suppressed by the Russian government.{{sfn|Sabanadze|2010|loc=[http://books.openedition.org/ceup/573?lang=en#bodyftn5 Online]}}
 
Despite their advocacy of ethnic culture and demographic grievances over Russian and Armenian dominance in Georgia's urban centers, a program of the early Georgian nationalists was inclusive and preferred non-confrontational approach to inter-ethnic issues. Some of them, such as [[Niko Nikoladze]], envisaged the creation of a free, decentralized, and self-governing federation of the Caucasian peoples based on the principle of ethnically proportional representation.{{sfn|Sabanadze|2010|loc=[http://books.openedition.org/ceup/573?lang=en#bodyftn13 Online]}}
 
The idea of Caucasian federation within the reformed Russian state was also voiced by the ideologues of Georgian [[social democracy]], who came to dominate Georgian political landscape by the closing years of the 19th century. Initially, the [[Social Democratic Party of Georgia|Georgian Social Democrats]] were opposed to nationalism and viewed it as a rival ideology, but they remained proponents of [[self-determination]].{{sfn|Sabanadze|2010|loc=[http://books.openedition.org/ceup/573?lang=en#bodyftn25 Online]}} In the words of the historian [[Stephen F. Jones]], "it was socialism in Georgian colors with priority given to the defense of national culture."{{sfn|Jones|2009|p=254}} The Georgian social-democrats were very active in [[Russian Social Democratic Labor Party|all-Russian socialist movement]] and after its split in 1905 sided with the [[Menshevik]] faction adhering to relatively liberal ideas of their Western European colleagues.{{sfn|Sabanadze|2010|loc=[http://books.openedition.org/ceup/573?lang=en#bodyftn21 Online]}}
 
Meanwhile, in Geneva, Georgian emigres formed "Free Georgia" group, which published the newspaper with the same name and openly called for the Georgian independence. It often featured the articles of [[Georgian Socialist-Federalist Revolutionary Party|Socialist-Federalists]] and [[National Democrats of Georgia |National Democrats]]. In one of its issues in 1914, it read:
{{Blockquote|text=For a nation, the state is the only weapon for self-defense. The history of the past confirms that Georgians have the ability to form their own state and manage it. We have survived invasions of numerous enemies and preserved our statehood until 19th century. The Georgians did not accept losing their statehood, they immediately began fighting against Russian Tsarism. After successfully ending this battle and restoring national statehood, Georgian people will evenly settle on its historical land and will achieve many successes in economics and cultural development as well.}}
 
== First Georgian republic ==
The [[October Revolution|Bolshevik revolution of 1917]] was perceived by the Georgian Mensheviks, led by [[Noe Zhordania]], as a breach of links between Russia and Europe.{{sfn|Sabanadze|2010|loc=[http://books.openedition.org/ceup/573?lang=en#bodyftn21 Online]}} When they declared Georgia an [[Democratic Republic of Georgia|independent democratic republic]] on 26 May 1918, they viewed the move as a tragic inevitability against the background of unfolding geopolitical realities.{{sfn|Sabanadze|2010|loc=[http://books.openedition.org/ceup/573?lang=en#bodyftn21 Online]}}
[[File:Flag of Georgia (1918–1921, 4-5).svg|thumb|150px|[[Flag of Georgia (country)|Flag of Georgia]] from 1918 to 1921.]]
The [[October Revolution|Bolshevik revolution of 1917]] was perceived by the Georgian Mensheviks, led by [[Noe Zhordania]], as a breach of links between Russia and Europe.{{sfn|Sabanadze|2010|loc=[http://books.openedition.org/ceup/573?lang=en#bodyftn21 Online]}} When they declared Georgia an [[Democratic Republic of Georgia|independent democratic republic]] on 26 May 1918, they viewed the move as a tragic inevitability against the background of unfolding geopolitical realities.{{sfn|Sabanadze|2010|loc=[http://books.openedition.org/ceup/573?lang=en#bodyftn21 Online]}}
 
As the new state faced a series of domestic and international challenges, the internationalist Social-Democratic leadership became more focused on narrower national problems.{{sfn|Sabanadze|2010|loc=[http://books.openedition.org/ceup/573?lang=en#bodyftn32 Online]}}{{sfn|Suny|1994|p=207}} With this reorientation to a form of nationalism, the Georgian republic became a "nationalist/socialist hybrid."{{sfn|Jones|2009|p=254}} The government's efforts to make education and administration more Georgian drew protests from ethnic minorities, further exacerbated by economic hardship and exploited for their political ends by the Bolsheviks who promoted the [[export of revolution]]. The government's response to dissent, including among the ethnic minorities, such as the [[Abkhaz people|Abkhaz]] and [[Ossetians]], was frequently violent and excessive. The decision to resort to military solutions was driven by security concerns rather than readiness to settle ethnic scores.{{sfn|Jones|2009|pp=254–255}} Overall, the Georgian Mensheviks did not turn to authoritarianism and terror.<ref name="suny06">{{cite journal|last1=Suny|first1=Ronald Grigor|title=A tolerant nationalism|journal=St. Petersburg Times|date=27 January 2006|url=http://en.zhamanak.1in.am/article/123/|access-date=4 December 2016}}</ref> However, the events of that time played an important role in reinforcing stereotypes on all involved sides in the latter-day ethnic conflicts in Georgia.{{sfn|Jones|1997|p=508}}{{sfn|Cornell|2000|p=135}}
In the First Republic there were several nationalist parties, the most influential of which was the [[National Democrats of Georgia|
National Democratic Party]].<ref>Ketevan Gotsiridze, "An attempt to form Civic nationalism in the Democratic Republic of Georgia of 1918-1921", Tbilisi, 2017, p. 41</ref>
 
As the new state faced a series of domestic and international challenges, the internationalist Social-Democratic leadership became more focused on narrower national problems.{{sfn|Sabanadze|2010|loc=[http://books.openedition.org/ceup/573?lang=en#bodyftn32 Online]}}{{sfn|Suny|1994|p=207}} With this reorientation to a form of nationalism, the Georgian republic became a "nationalist/socialist hybrid."{{sfn|Jones|2009|p=254}}
== Soviet Georgia ==
After the [[Red Army invasion of Georgia|sovietization]] ofand Georgiaits [[sovietization]] in 1921, followed by suppression of an [[August Uprising|armed rebellion]] against the new regime in 1924, many leading nationalist intellectuals went in exile in Europe. In the [[Soviet Union]], Georgian nationalism went underground or was rechanneled into cultural pursuits, becoming focused on the issues of language, promotion of education, protection of old monuments, literature, film, and sports. Any open manifestation of local nationalism was repressed by the Soviet state, but it did provide cultural frameworks and, as part of its policy of [[korenizatsiya]], helped institutionalize the Georgians as a "[[titular nationality]]" in the [[Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic]], allowing Georgia to develop its own national communist elite and cultural [[intelligentsia]].{{sfn|Sabanadze|2010|loc=[http://books.openedition.org/ceup/573?lang=en#bodyftn35 Online]}}{{sfn|Jones|2009|pp=255–256}} Works of writers such as [[Mukhran Machavariani]]Thus, [[Murman Lebanidze]] and others, were imbued with strongly nationalist themes. Byby maintaining the focus of Georgian nationalism on cultural issues, the Soviet regime was able to prevent it from becoming a political movement until the 1980s ''[[perestroika]]'' period.{{sfn|Jones|2009|pp=255–256}}
 
The late 1970s saw a re-emergence of Georgian nationalism that clashed with Soviet power. Plans to revise the status of [[Georgian language|Georgian]] as the official language of Soviet Georgia were drawn up in the Kremlin in early 1978, but after stiff and unprecedented [[1978 Georgian demonstrations|public resistance]] the [[Soviet government|Soviet central government]] abandoned the plans. At the same time, it also abandoned similar revision plans for the official languages in the [[Armenian SSR|Armenian]] and [[Azerbaijani SSR|Azerbaijani SSRs]]s.
 
Georgian nationalism was eventually more tolerated during the waning years of the USSR due to [[Mikhail Gorbachev|Mikhail Gorbachev's]] Glasnost policy. The Soviet government attempted to counter the Georgian independence movement in the early 1990s with promises of greater decentralisation from Moscow.
 
== See also ==
In 1980s, Georgian nationalism became a mass movement focused on independence. Many nationalist movements have arisen during this time. Most of them were focused on contemporary issues, such as demographic decline of ethnic Georgians, growing [[anti-Georgian sentiment|anti-Georgian]] and separatist sentiments among ethnic minorities and Soviet affirmative action policies, which were believed to be discriminatory towards Georgians and unjustly beneficial to the ethnic minorities. According to the [[Soviet Census (1979)|1979 Soviet Census]], ethnic Georgians made up 68.8% of population in [[Soviet Georgia]]. Ethnic Georgians were outnumbered and weakly represented in peripheral districts: [[Kvemo Kartli]], and [[Samtskhe–Javakheti]] in the south, in the [[South Ossetian Autonomous Oblast]], and in the [[Abkhazian ASSR]] (where Georgians were a plurality), which was a cause of concern. Anti-Georgian riots [[1989 Sukhumi riots|in Abkhazia]] and South Ossetia intensified fears that with separation from the Soviet Union, Georgia's ethnic minorities would seek to dismember Georgian territory. The so-called Lykhny Assembly was held on March 18, 1989, when several thousand Abkhaz demanded secession from Georgia. In response, the anti-Soviet nationalist groups organized a series of unsanctioned meetings across Georgia, claiming that the Soviet government was using Abkhaz separatism in order to oppose the Georgia's pro-independence movement. The [[April 9 tragedy|demonstration]] in Tbilisi was suppressed by the [[Red Army|Soviet Army]], which finally diminished Georgians' trust towards the Soviet system and paved the path to the independence.
 
* [[Laz nationalism]]
Demographic situation was a particular cause of concern with immigration of non-Georgian ethnicities being thought to be encouraged by Soviet authorities. In parallel, ethnic Georgian population experienced demographic decline, while non-Georgian population was booming and often harbored anti-Georgian sentiment. This caused fears that such trends would lead to non-Georgian ethnicities outnumbering ethnic Georgians in their own country and that Georgian ethnicity would eventually become extinct. Immigration of non-Georgians was believed to be encouraged by the Soviet government with a goal of artificially bumping up ethnically non-Georgian population and using it to create ethnic conflicts and obstruct Georgia's path towards independence. In 1989, a letter of Georgian writer [[Revaz Mishveladze]] was published in ''Young Communist'' newspaper, which discussed demographic issues. It read:
 
{{Blockquote|text=Georgia is on the verge of a real disaster – extinction…. We have to increase the proportion of the Georgians at all costs (today it is 65%). Georgia can tolerate no more than 5% of guests}}
 
[[Zviad Gamsakhurdia]] and other Georgian nationalists saw Georgian nation as a historically forged community with ancient rights over its homeland. In the rhetoric of Zviad Gamsakhurdia, Georgians, as a native population on Georgian soil, have intrinsic rights to be regarded as titular and dominant nation, while non-Georgians are "guests" who should not overstay their welcome. In a speech in the Georgian region of [[Kakheti]], Gamsakhurdia said:
 
{{Blockquote|text=Kakheti has always been a very demographically pure region, where the Georgian element has always predominated and always wielded power. Now things have taken shape there in such a way that we are wondering how to save Kakheti. [[Azerbaijanis|Tatardom]] is rearing its head there and measuring its strength against Kakheti, there are [[Lezgins|Leks]] in one place, [[Armenians]] in another, [[Ossetians]] in a third place, and they are on the point of swallowing up Kakheti. This was done to us by these communists, these traitors. They sold our beloved, holy land for money. Kakheti, the homeland of our heroes, this homeland of saints was sold, sold to foreign seeds, and today we are facing a catastrophe.}}
 
===Revival of religion===
 
The re-emergence of Georgian nationalism coincided with the revival of the [[Georgian Orthodox Church]], which returned to its conservative roots, proselytizing Georgian orthodoxy as the national creed. The church showed its solidarity with the national movement, and the most of the parties of the national movement ascribed the church a special national role. Georgian nationalists identified ethnicity and religion (orthodox Christianity) as primary markers of the Georgian national identity, a fact which was described by scholars as ethno-religious nationalism. In 1987, the Georgian Orthodox Church canonized Illia Chavchavadze as ''Saint Ilia the Righteous'' (წმინდა ილია მართალი, tsminda ilia martali). According to philosopher Giga Zedania, this was a starting point from which the emerging ethno-religious nationalism defined itself as the successor of Georgian nationalism of the nineteenth century. Illia Chavchavadze’s motto "Language, Homeland, Religion" served as a source for legitimizing the Orthodox Christianity as the dominant religion. During a clerical ceremony in 1988, [[Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia|Georgian Patriarch]] [[Ilia II of Georgia|Illia II]] used the concept of "celestial, heavenly Georgia": an otherworldly Georgia, where Orthodox Christian Georgians could acquire an eternal place in paradise. A prominent Georgian nationalist, [[Zviad Gamsakhurdia]], closely linked Georgian ethnicity with Orthodox Christianity. His speeches were imbued with religious themes. He often used phrases such as "Christ-like sacrifice of Georgian nation", "inevitable revival", "protection of the Holy Virgin", "long live an independent, free, Christian, invincible Georgia" and many other. The legend about [[Virgin Mary]] picking Georgia as a place where she would spread the word of Christ after Jesus ascended to heaven served as an inspiring narrative for Georgian exceptionalism and a sense of uniqueness. According to ethno-religious nationalism, Orthodox Christianity is "national faith" and "ancestral religion", which preserved Georgian ethnicity, language and nationhood throughout the history of struggles with [[Muslim]] empires. Orthodox Christianity is seen as being wholly bound up with Georgia's national history – historically, Georgia was surrounded by Muslim empires like Ottoman Empire, Safavid Iran, Great Seljuk Empire, Arab Caliphate and others, and only Orthodox Christianity allowed Georgia to avoid being absorbed by these external powers. Thus, Orthodox Christianity historically shaped Georgian identity. Therefore, according to this view, Orthodox Christianity and Georgian nation are inseparable concepts, and to be considered as "True Georgian", one needs to be devoted Orthodox Christian. Orthodox Christianity is seen as "nourishing faith" for the nation, and in the words of one of the priest: "As a human being is the harmony of soul and flesh, similarly faith nourishes the nation and you cannot divide them. It has to be one entity".
 
==Independent Georgia==
{{unreferenced section|date=September 2023}}
Georgian nationalism emerged as a powerful force in the independent Georgia. Zviad Gamsakhurdia, a nationalist dissident, became the first democratically elected President of Georgia in the post-Soviet era. Researcher [[Stephen F. Jones]] describes Gamsakhurdia's view of the nation as "romantic, premodern, and transcendent". Gamsakhurdia is quoted saying:
 
{{Blockquote|text=Nationalism has been turned into a buzzword by socialists, communists, cosmopolitans, degenerate national nihilists. Nationalism is condemned in the world by those amorphous, untraditional, denationalized conglomerates that have no history, no self-contained culture; who want to turn humanity into a homogeneous mass, driven only by beastly instincts and interest in material values.}}
 
Despite nationalist rhetoric, President Zviad Gamsakhurdia signed into law the Citizenship Act of July 1991, which granted citizenship to all residents of the republic and children of stateless people born in Georgia. In mid-1991, he conceded to the Abkhaz on the reform of the electoral law and granted the Abkhaz wide over-representation in the Supreme Soviet (the Abkhaz, who were minority in Abkhazia, were granted majority of seats). This was criticized by the Georgians in Abkhazia, who regarded this change as "apartheid".
 
Nationalist parties were also present in the opposition as well, namely [[National Democratic Party (Georgia)|National Democratic Party]] and [[National Independence Party of Georgia|National Independence Party]]. [[Giorgi Chanturia|Gia Chanturia]] included slogan "Georgia for Georgians" in the political program of NDP, a slogan which often featured at the nationalist demonstrations along with other slogans such as "The Soviet Union is the Prison of Nations" and "Long Live a Free, Democratic Georgia".
 
Tensions between Zviad Gamsakhurdia and his opposition led to [[1991–1992 Georgian coup d'état]]. Under next president, [[Eduard Shevardnadze]], a nationalist discourse weakened on state level. However, a nationalist movement reemerged in public during the last years of Shevardnadze’s rule. It emphasized supreme authority of the Georgian Orthodox Church as a pillar of the national survival. Many prominent nationalist groups and figures emerged during this period. In 1995, [[Guram Sharadze]] founded the nationalist ''Ena, Mamuli, Sartsmunoeba'' ("Language, Homeland, Religion") movement and his own party ''Georgia First of All''. Sharadze was elected to the Parliament of Georgia and actively supported [[Basil Mkalavishvili]] ("Father Basil"), an excommunicated Georgian Orthodox priest who led a vigilate group to defend Orthodox Christianity from recent emergence of so-called "religious sects", such as Jehovah's Witnesses. They also campaigned against the spread of pornography and other material which "corrupts public morals". Basil Mklavashvili and his group favored militant tactics against perceived threats to Georgian nation. Georgian Patriarch Illia II, who did not publicly support vigilante tactics, also expressed concerns about religious sects. In one of his sermons, he said:
 
{{Blockquote|text=The Georgian people have been Christian from the first century and must stay so. Sects and foreign religions should not influence our nation. Georgia was saved by Orthodox Christianity and [Orthodox Christianity] will save it another time. Our people should walk on this way, and the ones betraying Orthodoxy, our church, ''[[Svetitskhoveli Cathedral|Svetitskhoveli]]'', will be the traitors of the nation, that is why every man, who would support spreading a sects beliefs and various religions, is declared as an enemy of the Georgian nation.}}
 
Basil Mkalavishvili and his group conducted vigilante activity against "the cults which are flooding the country" and "threatening Georgian religion". Since 1999, the group often disrupted meetings of Jehovah's Witnesses and burnt their literature. They also burnt ''[[Playboy|Playboy]]'' journals and other "pornographic material". According to Father Basil, he was defending the motherland and the “faith of our fathers”. In 2002, MP Guram Sharadze's party – Georgia First of All – spearheaded, though unsuccessfully, a drive to try to ban the Jehovah's Witness religious denomination from the country, filling a lawsuit in the court to prohibit the organization for "anti-national" and "anti-state propaganda". In 1999, Guram Sharadze organized a campaign against opening first [[McDonald’s|McDonald's]] restaurant in Tbilisi, saying that it would jeopardize Georgia's national cuisine. He also spearheaded campaigns to ban several Western-funded NGOs, including [[Liberty Institute (Georgia)|Liberty Institute]], for their liberal-minded work and denounced businessman [[George Soros]].
 
In January 1999, a heated debate developed in Georgian media over amendments which removed "ethnicity" section in newly issued passports. Many protested against the new law, including MP Guram Sharadze. According to Sharadze, for a small nation like Georgians in a difficult demographic situation, knowledge about ethnic processes is very important. The law deprived Georgians of the possibility of regulating the country’s demographic situation and would turn Georgia into "test-ground for cosmopolitanism". Sharadze accused the parliamentarians who supported the bill of "spiritual and national genocide" of Georgians. He was supported by members of the [[Democratic Union for Revival|Democratic Union for Revival]], Georgia's Writers Union and other cultural institutions. However, the campaign ultimately failed as the law was not revised by the parliament.
 
Less mainstream groups in their publications focused on struggle against Jewish and Masonic powers who were seen as seeking to undermine Georgian national identity, its faith and church through encroaching globalization. Small religious magazine ''Metekhi'' wrote about global Jewish-Masonic conspiracy that run the world, while Eldar Nadiradze's book ''Who are the Jehovah’s Witnesses and How Do They Do Battle Against Orthodoxy'' characterized Jehovah’s Witnesses as part of Masonic plot to undermine nations.
 
Several [[Left-wing politics|left-wing parties]] and figures also often used [[Left-wing nationalism|left-wing nationalist]] rhetoric in their speechs and programs. [[Georgian Labor Party]], Socialist Party and [[Industry Will Save Georgia|Industrialists]] fiercely criticized the Shevardnadze government for implementing recommendations of [[International Monetary Fund]] and allowing cheap goods from Turkey, accusing the Georgian government of following "foreign directives" and acting like a "colonial administration". [[Shalva Natelashvili]] of Labor Party also opposed removing "ethnicity" section from passports and called on to revise the law.
 
In 2003, [[Rose Revolution]] occurred in Georgia, which replaced President Shevardnadze with [[Mikheil Saakashvili]]. In his inaugural speech, Saakashvili promoted the idea that Georgia deserved its "rightful place" in the European civilization due to its Christian heritage. The new flag was adopted, which was based on medieval flag of the [[Kingdom of Georgia]] and featured five Christian crosses. Despite this, Saakashvili's nationalism differed from the ethno-religious nationalism and has been described as [[Civic nationalism|civic nationalism]]. In his speeches, Saakashvili emphasized civil identity over ethnic and religious identity. In 2004, Saakashvili conducted purges against Basil Mkalavishvili and his supporters, whom Saakashvili described as "extremist forces". Father Basil was arrested by the special forces. Also, unlike ethno-religious nationalists who emphasized the need to defend Georgian nation from the influences of the globalization, Saakashvili promoted the greatest possible engagement with the globalization, opening doors for foreign investments, relaxing visa policy for foreign citizens to attract more tourists and immigrants, and seeking integration with EU and NATO. Thus, Saakashvili’s nationalism has been described as "the strongest globalizing forces Georgia ever knew". Saakashvili's nationalism emphasized Euro-Atlantic integration as a "national idea" of Georgians and, similarily to Gamsakhurdia's nationalism, perceived Russia as a historic enemy that oppressed its cultures and people and punished Georgia for its social, political, and cultural resistance against Russian domination. However, unlike Gamsakhurdia's nationalism, Saakashvili's nationalism embodied liberal elements.
 
==Georgian nationalist parties and organizations==
===Defunct===
*[[Committee for the Independence of Georgia]]
*[[Georgian Socialist-Federalist Revolutionary Party]]
*[[National Democrats of Georgia]]
*[[Samani (Georgia)|Samani (Young Nationalist Fighters for the Prosperity of Georgia)]]
*[[Tetri Giorgi (organization)|Tetri Giorgi]]
*Gorgasliani
*[[Round Table—Free Georgia]]
*[[Union of Georgian Traditionalists]]
*[[National Independence Party of Georgia]]
*[[National Democratic Party (Georgia)|National Democratic Party]]
*[[People's Front (Georgia)|People's Front]]
*[[Ilia Chavchavadze Society]]
*[[Georgian Legion (1941–1945)|Georgian Legion]]
*Ivane Machabeli Society
*Ena, Mamuli, Sartsmunoeba ("Language, Homeland, Faith")
 
===Current===
*Georgian Power
*[[Georgian March]] (2017–present)
*Georgian National Unity (fascist)
 
==Prominent nationalist figures==
*[[Ilia Chavchavadze]]
*[[Mikheil Tsereteli]]
*[[Leo Kereselidze]]
*[[Grigol Robakidze]]
*[[Konstantine Gamsakhurdia]]
*[[Shalva Maglakelidze]]
*[[Merab Kostava]]
*[[Zviad Gamsakhurdia]]
*[[Giorgi Chanturia]]
*[[Guram Sharadze]]
*[[Basil Mkalavishvili]]
*[[Ilia II of Georgia]]
 
==See also==
* [[Georgians in Turkey]]
* [[Laz people in Turkey]]
* [[Lazistan]]
* [[Lazistan Sanjak]]
 
== Sources ==
Line 115 ⟶ 35:
* {{cite journal|last1=Chikovani|first1=Nino|title=The Georgian historical narrative: From pre-Soviet to post-Soviet nationalism|journal=Dynamics of Asymmetric Conflict|date=July 2012|volume=5|issue=2|pages=107–115|doi=10.1080/17467586.2012.742953}}
* {{cite book|last1=Cornell|first1=Svante|title=Small Nations and Great Powers: A Study of Ethnopolitical Conflict in the Caucasus|date=2000|publisher=Routledge|isbn=0700711627}}
* {{cite book|last1=Jones|first1=Stephen F.|editor1-last=Bremmer|editor1-first=Ian|editor2-last=Taras|editor2-first=Ray|title=New States, New Politics: Building the Post-Soviet Nations|date=1997|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=0521577993|chapter=Georgia: the Trauma of Statehood|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/newstatesnewpoli0000unse}}
* {{cite book|last1=Jones|first1=Stephen|editor1-last=Barrington|editor1-first=Lowell W.|title=After Independence: Making and Protecting the Nation in Postcolonial and Postcommunist States|date=2009|publisher=University of Michigan Press|location=Ann Arbor|isbn=0472025082|pages=248–276|chapter=Georgia: Nationalism from under the Rubble}}
* {{cite book|last1=Jones|first1=Stephen F.|title=Georgia: a political history since independence|date=2013|publisher=I.B. Tauris|location=London; New York|isbn=9781845113384}}
Line 123 ⟶ 43:
{{Ethnic nationalism}}
 
[[Category:Georgian nationalism| ]]
[[Category:Society of Georgia (country)|Nationalism]]
[[Category:Modern history of Georgia (country)]]
[[Category:Georgian nationalism| ]]
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georgian_nationalism"