Laz people in Georgia

The Laz people in Georgia (Georgian: ლაზები საქართველოში, Lazebi Sakartveloshi; Laz: ლაზეფე ოქორთურაშე, Lazepe Okorturaşe) refers to an indigenous Kartvelian-speaking ethnic group inhabiting the Black Sea coastal regions of Turkey and Georgia. There are about 2,000 Laz in Georgia[1], mainly in Sarpi, Kvariati and Gonio villages and Batumi. Laz identity in Georgia has largely merged with a Georgian identity, and the meaning of "Laz" is seen as merely a regional category.[2] Kolkhoba is an annual Laz festival held each year at the end of August or the beginning of September in Sarpi, a village in Georgia.[3] Sopho Khalvashi was a first Georgian musician of Laz heritage who represented her home nation at the Eurovision Song Contest 2007.

Laz people in Georgia
ლაზები საქართველოში
ლაზეფე ოქორთურაშე
Part of historical Lazeti in modern international borders of Georgia.
Total population
2,000
Regions with significant populations
Adjara, Abkhazia, Mingrelia, Tbilisi
Languages
Laz, Georgian
Religion
Georgian Orthodoxy
Laz people

Abkhazia

Today real number of Lazs in Abkhazia is unknown. According to 1926 statistics Abkhazia was populated at least by 2000 Lazs. Those were place of distribution: cities of Ochamchire, Sokhumi and Gudauta, villages Shatskvara (4 households), Pachanta (10 households), Kharuta (8 households), Pshaltilughi (32 households), Tsara-Shubara (45 households) and Adzyubzha.

Mingrelia

In Samegrelo and Zemo Svaneti region there are some Laz families in Anaklia village of Zugdidi Municipality and few in Poti city, where they highly assimilated with local Mingrelians.


References
  1. (PDF) http://www.gfbv.de/uploads/download/download/85.pdf. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  2. Minorsky, V. "Laz." Encyclopaedia of Islam, Second Edition. Edited by: P. Bearman , Th. Bianquis , C.E . Bosworth , E. van Donzel and W.P. Heinrichs. Brill, 2010.,
  3. batumelebi.netgazeti.ge
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