Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti ( Georgian: სამეგრელო-ზემო სვანეთი ) is a region (

Mkhare A ''mkhare'' ( ka, მხარე, ''mxare'') is a type of administrative division in the country of Georgia (country), Georgia. It is usually translated into English as "region". According to presidential decrees issued in 1994 and 1996, Geo ...

) in western

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

with a population of 308,358 (2021) and a surface of . The region has Zugdidi as its administrative center, while Giorgi Guguchia is governor of the region since June 2021. Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti is compiled of the historical Georgian provinces of Samegrelo ( Mingrelia) and Zemo Svaneti (i.e., Upper Svaneti).

Subdivisions

The region has one self governing city (

Poti Poti ( ka, ფოთი ; Mingrelian language, Mingrelian: ფუთი; Laz language, Laz: ჶაში/Faşi or ფაში/Paşi) is a port city in Georgia (country), Georgia, located on the eastern Black Sea coast in the mkhare, region of ...

) and 8 municipalities with 143 administrative communities (temi), totalling to 531 populated settlements: * Eight cities: Abasha, Khobi, Martvili,

, Jvari, Zugdidi, Senaki and Tsalenjikha. * Two dabas: Mestia, Chkhorotsku * Villages: 521

Geography

The Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti

can be split into two historical regions; Svaneti and Samegrelo. In the northern part of Samegrelo lies the Egrisi Mountains. The municipalities of Chkhorotsqu, Martvili, and Tsalenjikha are located right next to the Egrisi mountain range in Northern Samegrelo. In the south lies the Kolkheti valley, which is a mostly flat region. The municipalities that lie in the valley are Zugdidi, Khobi, Senaki, Abasha, and the city of

. The west side of Samegrelo borders Apkhazeti right on the Enguri River and the east borders Imereti on the Tskhenistsqali River. The important Rioni River of West Georgia also passes through Samegrelo, flowing into the black sea in the city of Poti. The other region; Zemo Svaneti, is located right next to the Northern Caucasus Mountain Range. Its only municipality is Mestia. Svaneti has the tallest mountain in Georgia, Mt. Shkhara, at 5,193 meters, or 17,037 feet.

Demographic

Ethnic groups

According to the Georgian census of 2014, 99.37% of the population is Georgian and 0.35% is Russian. Other ethnic groups living in the region include

Ukrainians Ukrainians (, ) are an East Slavs, East Slavic ethnic group native to Ukraine. Their native tongue is Ukrainian language, Ukrainian, and the majority adhere to Eastern Orthodox Church, Eastern Orthodoxy, forming the List of contemporary eth ...

Armenians Armenians (, ) are an ethnic group indigenous to the Armenian highlands of West Asia.Robert Hewsen, Hewsen, Robert H. "The Geography of Armenia" in ''The Armenian People From Ancient to Modern Times Volume I: The Dynastic Periods: From Antiq ...

, Apsuans and

Greeks Greeks or Hellenes (; , ) are an ethnic group and nation native to Greece, Greek Cypriots, Cyprus, Greeks in Albania, southern Albania, Greeks in Turkey#History, Anatolia, parts of Greeks in Italy, Italy and Egyptian Greeks, Egypt, and to a l ...

Languages

Georgian is spoken by the entire population of the region and by the ethnic minorities like

Russians Russians ( ) are an East Slavs, East Slavic ethnic group native to Eastern Europe. Their mother tongue is Russian language, Russian, the most spoken Slavic languages, Slavic language. The majority of Russians adhere to Eastern Orthodox Church ...

and others. Mingrelian is a Kartvelian language spoken by the

Mingrelians The Mingrelians (; ka, მეგრელები, tr) are an indigenous Kartvelian-speaking ethnic subgroup of Georgians that mostly live in the Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti (; ka, სამეგრელო, tr) region of Georgia. They also l ...

, a sub-group of Georgian people and native to Mingrelia. Svan is also a Kartvelian language, spoken by the Svans, a sub-group of Georgian people native to Svaneti.

Religion

About 99% of the population identifies as Orthodox Christian. Small minorities of Armenian Christians and

Roman Catholics The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

also exist.

References

External links

Official web-site Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti
* Regions of Georgia (country) {{Georgia-geo-stub