GEORGIAN LANGUAGE

Georgian language, Georgian Kartuli ena, official language of Georgia.

The Georgian language is one of the oldest in the world. It has its own alphabet and differs from any other language. It’s not fully known when the Georgian script emerged or which alphabet was the inspiration for it. There are different historical sources and opinions on each. What makes this language so unique? Here are some incredible facts you need to know.

Parnavaz

According to one Georgian scholar, King Parnavaz created Georgian script. The exact dates of King’s reign are not known, but according to the latest sources, he ruled in the third century BCE, and many scholars do consider this period as the birth of Georgian alphabet.

Georgian script has three alphabets

Over time Georgian script has evolved from its original form and has undergone three stages – Asomtavruli, Nuskhakhutsuri, and Mkhedruli. The latter is what Georgians use today and has 33 letters. The script doesn’t have capital letters, and you can often see three or four and even up to eight consonants in a word.

Georgian isn’t hard to learn

The stereotype that the Georgian language is complicated and very hard to learn is probably due to its uniqueness and isolation from other languages. It is straightforward to learn. The only real difficulty is the verb system.

‘Hello’ in Georgian means victory

The standard greeting ‘Hello’ in Georgian, ‘Gamarjoba’, means ‘victory’ and reflects country’s complicated past of endless attacks and war. Similar to ‘Gamarjoba’, ‘good morning/evening’ in Georgian would be ‘dila/saghamo mshvidobisa‘ which means ‘morning/evening of peace.’