Otia Ioseliani ( ka, ოტია იოსელიანი) (June 16, 1930 – July 14, 2011) was a Georgian prose writer and dramatist, whose plays have been successfully staged in Georgia as well as in other countries of the former

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and

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Rayfield, Donald Patrick Donald Rayfield OBE (born 12 February 1942, Oxford) is an English academic and Emeritus Professor of Russian and Georgian at Queen Mary University of London. He is an author of books about Russian and Georgian literature, and about Jose ...

(1994), '' The Literature of Georgia: A History'', p. 322.

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, .

Biography

Otia Ioseliani was born in the village of Gvishtibi, Tsqaltubo District, in then-

Soviet Georgia The Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic, also known as Soviet Georgia, the Georgian SSR, or simply Georgia, was one of the republics of the Soviet Union from its second occupation (by the Red Army) in 1921 to its independence in 1991. Cotermin ...

. He began writing in the mid-1950s and published his first collection of stories in 1957. The nationwide recognition came with his first novel ''The Falling Stars'' (ვარსკვლავთცვენა, 1962), which, like Ioseliani's many early works, treated the theme of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. He then tackled in his works a great variety of themes using different artistic styles. In the 1960s and 1970s, he published popular novels such as ''Once There Was a Woman'' (იყო ერთი ქალი, 1970), ''Taken Prisoner by Prisoners'' (ტყვეთა ტყვე, 1975), and a number of stories. In the 1960s, Ioseliani first tried his hand at screen scripts and theatre plays, resulting, among others, in the comedies ''Until the Ox-Cart Turns Over'' (სანამ ურემი გადაბრუნდება, 1969) and ''Six Old Maids and a Man'' (ექვსი შინაბერა და ერთი მამაკაცი, 1971), which were successful enough to fill the theatres in

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. Ioseliani died in 2011 at the age of 81. He was buried in the yard of his own house in his native Gvishtibi according to the will of the late writer. Among his awards was Georgia's Order of Honor.The President of Georgia expressed his sorrow on Otia Ioseliani's death

Administration of the President of Georgia The president of Georgia ( ka, საქართველოს პრეზიდენტი, tr) is the ceremonial head of state of Georgia as well as the commander-in-chief of the Defence Forces. The constitution defines the presidential ...

. July 15, 2011. Accessed April 10, 2012.

References

External links

Otia Ioseliani
at the Georgian National Filmography * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ioseliani, Otia 1930 births 2011 deaths Burials at Didube Pantheon People from Imereti Svan people Dramatists and playwrights from Georgia (country) Novelists from Georgia (country) Recipients of the Order of Honor (Georgia) 20th-century novelists 20th-century dramatists and playwrights from Georgia (country)