The Georgian Jews traditionally lived separately, not only from the surrounding
Georgian people, but also from the
Ashkenazi Jews in
Tbilisi, who had different practices and language. The community, which numbered almost 60,000 as recently as the 1970s, has largely emigrated to
Israel, the
United States, the
Russian Federation and
Belgium (in
Antwerp). , only about 1,500 Georgian Jews remained in Georgia. According to the 2002 First General National Census of Georgia, there are 3,541 Jewish believers in the country. For example, the
Lezgishvili branch of Georgian Jews have families in
Israel,
Moscow,
Baku,
Düsseldorf, and
Cleveland,
Ohio (US). Several hundred Georgian Jewish families live in the
New York tri-state area, particularly in
New York City and
Long Island.
Origins Georgian-speaking Jewry is one of the oldest surviving Jewish communities in the world, although there are different accounts to how long they have lived in present-day Georgia, and what motivated their migration. By some accounts, Georgian Jews, also known as
Gurjim or
kartveli ebraelebi, have an approximately 2,600-year history in
Colchis, but their origin is debated. The most widely held view is that the first Jews made their way to southern Georgia after
Nebuchadnezzar's conquest of
Jerusalem in 586 BCE and
exile in
Babylon. The post-exile origin view is espoused by the
medieval Georgian historian
Leonti Mroveli, who wrote in the 11th Century: According to Mroveli, a further settlement of the Jews in Georgia was during the
Roman period of Emperor
Vespasian. He wrote that Jews lived in Georgia long before 1st century CE. According to Mroveli: The ancient Georgian historic chronicle,
The Conversion of Kartli, is the oldest and only Georgian source concerning the history of the Jewish community in Georgia. The chronicle describes a version similar to that offered centuries later by Leonti Mroveli, but the period of Jewish migration into Georgia is ascribed to
Alexander the Great: , where Jews lived for thousands of years Georgian sources also refer to the arrival of the first Jews in Western Georgia from the
Byzantine Empire during the 6th century CE. Approximately 3,000 of the Jews fled to Eastern Georgia, which by that time was controlled by the
Persians, to escape severe persecution by the Byzantines. The existence of the Jews in these regions during this period is supported by the
archaeological evidence, which shows that Jews lived in
Mtskheta, the ancient capital of the Eastern Georgian state of
Iberia-Kartli. According to the Georgian
hagiography, Jewish communities existed in Georgia in the 1st century. A Georgian Jew called Elias was said to be in Jerusalem during the
Crucifixion and brought Jesus' robe back with him to Georgia. He had acquired it from a Roman soldier at Golgotha. The Jews spoke Georgian, and later Jewish traders developed a dialect called
Kivruli, or Judaeo-Georgian, which included a number of Hebrew words. In the second half of the 7th century, the
Muslim Empire conquered extensive Georgian territory, which became a province of the
Arab caliphate. Arab emirs ruled in the Georgian capital
Tbilisi and surrounding territory for nearly 500 years, until 1122.
Genetic studies carried out on Georgian Jews as part of a wider survey showed close genetic links with other Jews, and in particular with Iraqi and Persian Jews. This seemed to prove the historical accounts of Jewish migration from Persia into Georgia.
Middle Ages There is not much documentation about Georgian Jews under the
Arab domination. In the late 9th century,
Abu-Imran Musa al-Za'farani (later known as Abu-Imran al-Tiflisi) founded a Jewish
Karai sect called the Tiflis Sect ("Tiflisites"), which lasted for more than 300 years. The sect deviated from
Rabbinic halakhah in its marriage and
kashrut customs. This sect did not represent the great majority of Georgian Jews, who adhered to traditional
Rabbinic Judaism while maintaining strong religious ties with
Baghdad and other
Jews of Iraq. The nature of Georgian Jew's observance to rabbinic law was also noted by
Benjamin of Tudela and
Abraham ben David (also known as the RABAD or RAVAD). Georgian Jews experienced a surge in Jewish pride and wished to make
Aliyah to
Israel. While most Soviet Jewish emigration was individual, Georgian-Jewish emigration was communal. Due to Georgian-Jewish traditions of strong, extended families and the strict, patriarchal nature of Georgian families, Georgians immigrated as whole communities, with emigration of individuals causing a chain reaction leading to more emigration, and brought their community structures with them. For example, nearly the entire population of at least two Georgian towns made aliyah. At the time the emigration started, Israel had a policy of scattering the population around the country, and was experiencing a housing shortage, with the result that Georgians were assigned housing in different parts of the country. The Georgians began demanding that they be concentrated together, and the crisis reached a fever pitch when several families threatened to return to Georgia, and new immigrants, forewarned by predecessors, began demanding to be placed in specific areas upon arrival. Although Prime Minister
Golda Meir criticized the Georgians' desire to "isolate themselves into ghettos", the Israeli Immigrant Absorption Ministry eventually bowed to their demands, and began to create concentrations of around 200 families in twelve areas of the country. Many Georgian Jews now live in
Israel, estimated at 75,000 people. In Israel, most Georgian Jews settled near the coast in cities such as
Lod,
Bat Yam,
Ashdod, and
Holon. There are Georgian Jews in
Jerusalem as well, with several prominent synagogues.
21 century As a result of the
2008 South Ossetia War, some 200 Georgian Jews immigrated to
Israel with assistance from the
Jewish Agency. ==Demographics==