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Tbilisi

From Biocrawler, the free encyclopedia.

Tbilisi downtown

Tbilisi (Georgian თბილისი) — also known by its old Russian name Tiflis — is the capital city of the country Georgia, located on the shore of Kura (Mtkvari) river, at 41°43′ N 44°47′ E (http://kvaleberg.com/extensions/mapsources/index.php?params=41_43_N_44_47_E_). The city covers an area of 350 km² (135 square miles) and has more than 1.345 million inhabitants.

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History

Tbilisi was founded in the 5th century by the King of Georgia Vakhtang I Gorgasali (452-502). There had been a small village on the site since the 4th century. Tbilisi has been occupied by many foreign rulers, including Persians, Arabs and Seljuks (Turks). In 1122, after heavy fighting, the troops of the King of Georgia David the Builder entered Tbilisi. After this battle, David moved his residence from Kutaisi to Tbilisi, making it his capital. In 1801, the Russian Empire occupied Georgia, after it was devastated by frequent Persian invasions that began in 1783. From 1918 and until 1921 Georgia was again independent, and Tbilisi functioned as its capital. In 1921, the Democratic Republic of Georgia was occupied by the Soviet Russia and until 1991, Tbilisi functioned as the capital city of the Transcaucasian Socialist Federated Soviet Republic, and later the Georgian SSR. Since April 9, 1991 Tbilisi is the capital of the independent Georgia.

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Landmarks

View of Tiflis from the Grounds of Saint David Church, ca. 1907-1915. By Sergei Mikhailovich Prokudin-Gorskii

In Tbilisi there are the parliament and government of Georgia, several universities, Tbilisi State Conservatoire, Tbilisi State Opera Theatre, Shota Rustaveli State Academic Theatre, Marjanishvili State Academic Theatre, many state museums, the National Public Library of the Parliament of Georgia, the National Bank of Georgia and other important institutions.

In Tbilisi exists also Narikala fortress (4th century AD), Church of Anchiskhati (6th century), Sioni Cathedral (8th century), Church of Metekhi (13th century), etc.

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Miscellaneous

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How to pronounce

Georgians pronounce Tbilisi with a barely-spoken 't', so that it almost sounds like "Bill-EE-see"; English speakers often mispronounce it like "Tib-LEE-see", but that is incorrect. The correct pronunciation is T*-bi-li-si. The "i" is pronounced as in machine. The "t*" is pronounced as english "t", but aspirated--with a puff of breath after the consonant sound. There is no voiced sound between the "t" and "b" in Tbilisi. Moreover, the Georgian language is unstressed. To approximate the correct pronunciation, English speakers should say t*-BI-li-si, with a light emphasis on the first syllable "BI."

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Education

Universities in Tbilisi include:

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Sister cities

Tbilisi's sister cities include:

Bristol, the principal city of south-west England, UK
Innsbruck, the capital of the Austrian province Tyrol
Atlanta, the capital of the U.S. state of Georgia
Nantes the principal city of west France.

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External links

History, geography and climate of Tbilisi (http://ceroi.net/reports/tbilisi/background/about.htm)
info-tbilisi.com, city guide (http://www.info-tbilisi.com/index.php)
Pictures of Tbilisi (http://community.webshots.com/album/51035101fKfQlF)
Aerial photo of the city center, April 2000 (http://ceroi.net/reports/tbilisi/background/2000.htm)
Tranquil Tblisi (http://www.polosbastards.com/artman/publish/tbilisi.shtml)ab:К̩арт̩