The Kazbegi family ( ka, ყაზბეგი), originally known as Chopikashvili (ჩოფიკაშვილი), was an influential clan from the northeastern highland Georgian district of

Khevi Khevi ( ka, ხევი) is a small historical-geographic area in northeastern Georgia. It is included in the modern-day Kazbegi district, Mtskheta-Mtianeti region ( mkhare). Located on the northern slopes of the Greater Caucasus mountains, i ...

. Of a semi-legendary noble descent, the Chopikashvili rose in prominence under the Georgian king

Erekle II Heraclius II, also known as Erekle II ( ka, ერეკლე II) and The Little Kakhetian ( ka, პატარა კახი, link=no ; 7 November 1720 or 7 October 1721 Cyril_Toumanoff.html" ;"title="ccording to Cyril Toumanoff">C. Touman ...

at the end of the 18th century, when the clan's leader Kazi-Beg was made an official (

mouravi ''Mouravi'' ( ka, მოურავი ) was an administrative and military officer in early modern Georgia, translated into English as seneschal, bailiff, or constable. A ''mouravi'' was an appointed royal official who had a jurisdiction over pa ...

) in the village

Stepantsminda Stepantsminda ( ka, სტეფანწმინდა; formerly Kazbegi, ) is a townlet in the Mtskheta-Mtianeti region of north-eastern Georgia. Historically and ethnographically, the town is part of the Khevi province. It is the center of t ...

and placed in charge of collecting tolls on travelers through the key road to the

North Caucasus The North Caucasus, or Ciscaucasia, is a subregion in Eastern Europe governed by Russia. It constitutes the northern part of the wider Caucasus region, which separates Europe and Asia. The North Caucasus is bordered by the Sea of Azov and the B ...

. Kazi-Beg's son Gabriel was made an

aznauri ''Aznauri'' ( ka, აზნაური, ; pl. ''aznaurni'', აზნაურნი, or ''aznaurebi'', აზნაურები) was a class of Georgian nobility. History The word derives from Middle Persian ''āznāvar'', which, in turn, co ...

, noble of a lower rank, and adopted the surname Kazbegi (Kazbek). He played a role in the

Russian Russian(s) may refer to: *Russians (), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *A citizen of Russia *Russian language, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages *''The Russians'', a b ...

-Georgian interaction and pledged his loyalty to the Russians upon their annexation of Georgia in 1801. When the Georgian princes of the deposed

Bagrationi dynasty The Bagrationi dynasty (; ) is a royal family, royal dynasty which reigned in Georgia (country), Georgia from the Middle Ages until the early 19th century, being among the oldest extant Christianity, Christian ruling dynasties in the world. In ...

rallied Georgian and Ossetian highlanders against the

Tsar Tsar (; also spelled ''czar'', ''tzar'', or ''csar''; ; ; sr-Cyrl-Latn, цар, car) is a title historically used by Slavic monarchs. The term is derived from the Latin word '' caesar'', which was intended to mean ''emperor'' in the Euro ...

's rule in 1804, Gabriel Kazbegi fought in the Russian ranks and was promoted to

major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

. The clan ran Stepan-Tsminda – henceforth frequently referred to as Kazbek in Russian accounts – and Khevi as their fief. Gabriel's son Mikheil (1805–1876) fought in the

Caucasian War The Caucasian War () or the Caucasus War was a 19th-century military conflict between the Russian Empire and various peoples of the North Caucasus who resisted subjugation during the Russian conquest of the Caucasus. It consisted of a series o ...

and was made a major general of the Russian army in 1859. Mikheil's son was the famed Georgian prose writer Alexander Kazbegi.

Population

* Chopikashvili - 2050 people

Notable members

* Alexander Kazbegi, writer * Giorgi Kazbegi, general and military writer * Ivane Kazbegi, general * Mikheil Kazbegi, general

References

External links

Kazbegi Outhouse
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Kazbegi Family Noble families of Georgia (country) Georgian-language surnames