Nigali or the Nigali valley ( ka, ნიგალი, ნიგალის ხევი, ''nigalis khevi''), also known, through a subsequent metathesis, as Ligani (ლიგანი) or Livana (ლივანა; ) Toumanoff, Cyril (1963). ''Studies in Christian Caucasian History'', p. 439.

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 ...

. is a historical district on the lower course of the Çoruh or Chorokhi river, currently divided between

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

and

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 ...

History

The land known as ''Nigal'' first appears as one of the districts of

Colchis In classical antiquity and Greco-Roman geography, Colchis (; ) was an exonym for the Georgian polity of Egrisi ( ka, ეგრისი) located on the eastern coast of the Black Sea, centered in present-day western Georgia. Its population, the ...

in the 7th-century Armenian geography attributed to Ananias of Shirak. Hewsen, Robert H. (1992), ''The Geography of Ananias of Širak: Ašxarhac'oyc', the Long and the Short Recensions'', p. 210. Reichert, In the 8th century, Nigali became part of an appanage of the Georgian Bagratid family. It was bounded by Adjara on the north-east, Shavsheti on the east, and Klarjeti on the south. The medieval Georgian sources also make mention of Niali, which is likely a corruption of Nigali.Rapp, Stephen H. (2003), ''Studies in Medieval Georgian Historiography: Early Texts And Eurasian Contexts'', p. 398. Peeters Publishers, The early 18th-century Georgian scholar Prince Vakhushti refers to it as Ligani and locates the district on either bank of the Chorokhi as far as Art'vani (now

Artvin Artvin (Laz language, Laz and ; ; ) is a List of cities in Turkey, city in northeastern Turkey about inland from the Black Sea. It is the seat of Artvin Province and Artvin District.Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

, which administered it as the ''

kaza A kaza (, "judgment" or "jurisdiction") was an administrative divisions of the Ottoman Empire, administrative division of the Ottoman Empire. It is also discussed in English under the names district, subdistrict, and juridical district. Kazas co ...

'' or ''

sanjak A sanjak or sancak (, , "flag, banner") was an administrative division of the Ottoman Empire. The Ottomans also sometimes called the sanjak a liva (, ) from the name's calque in Arabic and Persian. Banners were a common organization of nomad ...

'' of Livâne. It had the sub-district of

Maçahel Machakheli ( ka, მაჭახელი, ''Mač’axeli''; ) is a historical geographical area in Adjara and long valley along the river Machakhlistskali between Turkey and Georgia (country), Georgia. There are 23 settled villages in this valley. ...

administratively dependent on it. In 1878, Nigali was part of the territory ceded by the Ottomans to the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

in the Treaty of Berlin. It was included in the Artvin circuit (''uchastok'') of the Batum Oblast. Following

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

(1914–1918) and the short-lived independence of

(1918–1921), Nigali was divided between Turkey and recently Sovietized Georgia in accordance with the 1921 treaties of

Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...

and

Kars Kars ( or ; ; ) is a city in northeast Turkey. It is the seat of Kars Province and Kars District.� ...

. Beridze, Eter (2009)
ნიგალი
("Nigali", with En., Rus., Turk. summaries), pp. 8-10. Shota Rustaveli State University, .

Current division

Currently, the Turkish portion of Nigali comprises parts of the Borçka, Murgul, and

Artvin Artvin (Laz language, Laz and ; ; ) is a List of cities in Turkey, city in northeastern Turkey about inland from the Black Sea. It is the seat of Artvin Province and Artvin District.Artvin Province Artvin Province (; Armenian language, Armenian: Արտվինի նահանգ ''Artvini nahang''; ka, , ''Artvinis p'rovintsia''; Laz language, Laz: ართვინიშ დობადონა ''Artvinish dobadona;'') is a Provinces of Turke ...

. The Georgian-speaking element is still present in this area, but knowledge of the Georgian language is weakening among the younger generation. Beridze, Eter (2009)
Языковая ситуация в Нигальском ущелье
("Linguistic situation in the Nigali valley"). ''Vlast' i Obshchestvo'' 1: 71-82. The Georgian portion consists of only 9 villages administered as part of the Khelvachauri Municipality of the Autonomous Republic of Adjara.

References

{{Subregions of Tao-Klarjeti Historical regions of Georgia (country) Sanjaks of the Ottoman Empire Geography of Adjara History of Artvin Province Tao-Klarjeti

History

Current division

See also

References