Picture of a plaque on the front entrance of the monastery

The House of Maghalashvili (Magalashvili; ka, მაღალაშვილი) or Maghaladze (Magaladze, მაღალაძე) is a Georgian noble family; according to

Cyril Toumanoff Cyril Leo Toumanoff ( ka, კირილ თუმანოვი; ; 10 October 1913 – 4 February 1997) was a Georgian-American historian, and academic genealogist who mostly specialized in the history and genealogies of medieval Georgia, Armen ...

, an offshoot of the medieval house of

Mkhargrdzeli The Zakarid dynasty, also Zakarids or Zakarians () were an Armenian noble dynasty, rulers of Zakarid Armenia (1201–1350) under the suzerainty of the Kingdom of Georgia, and from 1256 under the control of the Mongol Ilkhanate of Persia. Their dyn ...

Toumanoff, Cyril Cyril Leo Toumanoff ( ka, კირილ თუმანოვი; ; 10 October 1913 – 4 February 1997) was a Georgian-American historian, and academic genealogist who mostly specialized in the history and genealogies of medieval Georgia, Armen ...

(1967). ''Studies in Christian Caucasian History'', p. 270.

Georgetown University Press Georgetown University Press is a university press affiliated with Georgetown University that publishes about forty new books a year. The press's major subject areas include bioethics, international affairs, languages and linguistics, political s ...

. The surname Maghalashvili is a combination of Maghala (which means tall or "Great" in

Greek language Greek (, ; , ) is an Indo-European languages, Indo-European language, constituting an independent Hellenic languages, Hellenic branch within the Indo-European language family. It is native to Greece, Cyprus, Italy (in Calabria and Salento), south ...

) and shvili (meaning "son" in

Georgian language Georgian (, ) is the most widely spoken Kartvelian language, Kartvelian language family. It is the official language of Georgia (country), Georgia and the native or primary language of 88% of its population. It also serves as the literary langu ...

Bibiluridze

According to Georgian genealogic tradition of Prince Ioann (1768–1830), the Maghalashvili came from

Imereti Imereti ( Georgian: იმერეთი, ) is a region of Georgia situated in the central-western part of the republic along the middle and upper reaches of the Rioni River. Imereti is the most populous region in Georgia. It consists of 11 mun ...

(western Georgia) to

Kartli Kartli ( ka, ქართლი ) is a historical region in central-to-eastern Georgia traversed by the river Mtkvari (Kura), on which Georgia's capital, Tbilisi, is situated. Known to the Classical authors as Iberia, Kartli played a crucial rol ...

(central Georgia) in 1415, in the reign of

Alexander I of Georgia Alexander I the Great (, ''Aleksandre I Didi'') (1386 – between August 26, 1445 and March 7, 1446), of the Bagrationi house, was king ('' mepe'') of Georgia from 1412 to 1442. Despite his efforts to restore the country from the ruins left by ...

, who granted them an estate at the village of Tsinarekhi in

Shida Kartli Shida Kartli ( ka, შიდა ქართლი, , ; "Inner Kartli") is a landlocked administrative region (''Mkhare'') in eastern Georgia. It comprises a central part of the historical-geographic province of Shida Kartli. With an area of , S ...

. An 18th century Georgian Orthodox Christian monastery, named the Maghalashvili or Maghalaanti Castle complex, was also built in their name, located on a hill outside of Tsinarekhi. By the end of the 17th century, the family had been bestowed with the hereditary office of

Mayors of the Palace Under the Merovingian dynasty, the mayor of the palace or majordomo, ( or ) was the manager of the household of the Frankish king. He was the head of the Merovingian administrative ladder and orchestrated the operation of the entire court. He ...

(Georgian: სახლთუხუცესი, ''saxlt'-uxuc'esi'') of the Church of Georgia. In 1701, the Georgian king

Erekle I Heraclius I ( ka, ერეკლე I, Erekle I; ) or Nazar Alī Khān (; ) (1642–1709), of the Bagrationi dynasty, was a Georgian monarch (''mepe'') who ruled the kingdoms of Kakheti (1675–1676, 1703–1709) and Kartli (1688–1703) under ...

(Nazar Alī Khān) elevated the Maghalashvili to a

prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The ...

ly rank or

tavadi ''Tavadi'' ( ka, თავადი, "prince", lit. "head/chief" an from ka, თავი ''tavi'', "head", with the prefix of agent ''-di'') was a feudal title in Georgia (country), Georgia first applied in the Late Middle Ages usually trans ...

. After

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 ...

annexation of Georgia, the family was incorporated among the princely nobility (

knyaz A , also , ''knjaz'' or (), is a historical Slavs, Slavic title, used both as a royal and noble title in different times. It is usually translated into English language, English as 'prince', 'king' or 'duke', depending on specific historical c ...

Magalov; ) of the empire in 1825.

Tsinarekhi and the Maghalashvili monastery

in the reign of

the Maghalashvilis were granted an estate in the village of Tsinarekhi located in the

region of

Georgia (country) Georgia is a country in the Caucasus region on the coast of the Black Sea. It is located at the intersection of Eastern Europe and West Asia, and is today generally regarded as part of Europe. It is bordered to the north and northeast by Russ ...

. The family was given several pieces of farmland property in the village. in 1716 the construction of the Maghalshvili castle complex or Maghalashvili monastery began, the monastery was built as a

Georgian Orthodox Church The Apostolic Autocephalous Orthodox Church of Georgia ( ka, საქართველოს სამოციქულო ავტოკეფალური მართლმადიდებელი ეკლესია, tr), commonl ...

or monastery where monks and priests prayed. the monastery was built on a small hill beside a field and the kavtura river about 2 kilometres away from Tsinarekhi. A watchtower entrance with a large wooden door was built in the front with a wall going around the monastery, behind the entrance is another watchtower and a small basement entrance on the left side for the watchtower. the inside of the main building was painted depicting Georgian christian saints and a graveyard was built beside the building.

Notable people

Nikita Magaloff Nikita Magaloff (; 26 December 1992) was a Georgia (country), Georgian-Russian pianist. He was born in Saint Petersburg to a Georgian noble family named Maghalashvili. Magaloff and his family left Russia in 1918 for Finland. His musical interes ...

, Georgian-Russian pianist. * Simon Magalashvili, Israeli Olympic judoka. * Ketevan Magalashvili, Georgian painter and art conservator. * Vakhtang Maghalashvili, Georgian engineer and inventor who vastly developed train technology in the USSR.

References

External links

* {{Commonscat-inline, Maghalashvili Georgian-language surnames Noble families of Georgia (country) Russian noble families

Bibiluridze

Tsinarekhi and the Maghalashvili monastery

Notable people

See also

References

External links