Georgia Everyday life

By | May 23, 2021

Society

According to tradition, Saint Nino came to Georgia with a cross made of grapevines and she not only stands for the tradition of Christianization, but wine shaped an entire society. Georgian architecture, art, literature and everyday life are inextricably linked to this tradition. The grapevine stands for the past and is a symbol of hope for a small people with a big heart and a proud soul! more

Everyday life

The landscape, culture and residents of Georgia can be described in a few words: Diversity – Beauty – Pride and contradiction. The people are as diverse as the country’s landscapes and ecosystems. They are proud of the “land given to them by God”, of their early Christian beliefs, folklore and polyphonic music, but also of the early traditions of European rapprochement. “A guest is sent from God!” – All Georgians agree on this!

Telecommunications and internet

According to militarynous, the cellular network in Georgia is well developed, a Georgian without a cell phone is unthinkable! Man / woman is always “well connected”! Hotels and hostels usually have WiFi, but the speed often leaves something to be desired. In almost all places you can find inexpensive internet cafés. Only the power supply can be problematic. Outside of Tbilisi you should always be prepared for power shortages (battery!). One has reception difficulties especially in mountainous areas. For longer stays, a local SIM card with a data flat rate is recommended. The Georgian provider MAGTI offers good tariffs, which should, however, be compared with other providers and adapted to personal needs.

Order and state security

The security organs of Georgia operate on the basis of the National Security Concept.

The armed forces of Georgia currently comprise around 39,000 men in the armed forces, air force, navy and national guard (including administration 45,000). The active reserve comprises around 120,000 men and can be increased to 250,000 men in an emergency. In cooperation with the Interior Ministry, Georgia maintains a further 20,000 men in various defense and security organs. Various formations include the border guard service, anti-terror units, as well as regular combat units of the Ministry of the Interior and security forces to protect the government apparatus. The National Guard today only has 554 men. She is deployed as the part of the Georgian army in Abkhazia. She is also available for disaster relief operations, mobilization support and for ceremonial purposes.

In 2003, Georgia spent 87 million lari ($ 24 million) on defense. In 2006 it was 139 million Lari (78 million US dollars) and in 2010 the military budget was given as 2.4 billion US dollars, which corresponds to 1.9% of GDP (military). The Ministry of Defense’s 2011-2014 development program almost doubled the budget, with the bulk of the funding going to improving training. Due to the high debt under Saakashvili’s leadership and the difficult economic situation in 2015, the new government had to cut military spending. The 2016 budget was just under $ 350 million, its lowest level in years.

Georgia has had its own military industry since 2009, which produces armored vehicles, armored personnel carriers, artillery systems, unmanned vehicles, various other weapons and uniforms, and equipment.

Georgia has been active in the Partnership for Peace since 1994 and is aiming for NATO membership. At the NATO summit in Bucharest in April 2008, the heads of state and government of NATO member states offered Georgia long-term membership. This decision was reaffirmed at the NATO summit in Lisbon in November 2010, but has been postponed for a long time since the Association Agreement with the EU was signed in 2014 and in the context of the Ukraine crisis. However, the 2014 NATO summit in Wales ensured full support for the modernization of the Georgian army.

Georgia took part in the NATO-led KFOR mission in Kosovo from 2003 to spring 2008 under the command of the Bundeswehr and was briefly deployed in 2004 during the elections with 50 soldiers under Bundeswehr command in Afghanistan. Around 1,500 Georgian soldiers are currently stationed in Afghanistan (Kabul and Helmant) as part of ISAF, and around 150 are serving in the Central African Republic.

The Interior Ministry has since the Rose Revolution and harsh international criticism due to extreme excesses of corruption and lawlessness reforms undertaken. Starting with fundamental personnel changes (around 16,000 police officers were dismissed) to improving the material equipment and training of all police departments to greater transparency of the police service and the penal system as well as the establishment of a department for the protection of civil rights, noticeable improvements have been initiated. As a success The increased reputation and in particular the growing trust on the part of the population in the police apply, but the fight against corruption, improvement of training and international networking are still necessary.

Religion

My home is my icon and the whole world is its icon shrine. We share gleaming mountain and lowlands with God. ” (First words of the Georgian NATIONAL HYMN)

Georgia is a Christian country, Christianity was declared the state religion of Iberia as early as the 4th century and the South Caucasus was Christianized. Since the early Middle Ages and in the struggle for national independence, against Russification, the Georgian Orthodox Church has developed into a national symbol within the Eastern Churches. With currently around 35 dioceses, around 700 active churches and monasteries and around 1700 priests, the church is not only an important identity factor, but also of political and economic importance. Patriarch Ilija II (born 1933) has presided over the church since 1977.

On September 14, 2002, Shevardnadze signed a state treaty with the Georgian Orthodox Church, which grants it a special role in the state. It was not until July 5, 2011 that the rights of the so-called “minority churches” were reorganized in order to better comply with the constitutional principle of freedom of belief and better protect minority rights. More than two thirds of the population profess to the Georgian Orthodox Church, approx. 10% to the Russian Orthodox Church. Church architecture in Georgia is of outstanding cultural and historical importance.

About 11-13 percent of the population of Georgia are Muslim. These include the mostly Shiite Azerbaijanis and residents of Ajaria, whose ancestors converted to Sunni Islam during the Ottoman rule between the 16th and 18th centuries, and the Meshes who were deported in 1944. Today there are still more than 260 mosques in the country; the first translation of the Koran into Georgian was done in 1906 by Georgij Lobschanidze. In 2011, an independent Muslim administration in Georgia broke away from the “Transcaucasian Muslim Administration” based in Baku.

The Armenian Gregorian Church about belongs to four percent of the population, while (Armenian, Chaldean and Roman Catholic) less than one percent to Catholic faith communities distributed. The Apostolic Nunciature for Georgia was established in 1992.

An even smaller proportion of the residents of Georgia profess Protestantism and Jehovah’s Witnesses. The Evangelical Lutheran Church was founded at the beginning of the 19th century and has around 400 parishioners in Tbilisi.

European and Caucasian Jews can be distinguished in the Jewish communities; both groups maintain synagogues in Tbilisi, Kutaisi and Batumi. After independence in 1991, however, many Jews emigrated to Israel without giving up close ties to their fellow believers in Georgia.

The State Department regularly publishes annual reports on religious freedom.

Language

The official language is Georgian, but you can also get ahead with Russian. In the larger cities, one can also relatively often find knowledge of German; English is common among the younger generation. Since menus are usually only printed in Georgian script, linguistic support and advice or an online offer to learn the script are helpful. It also makes it easier to read street names, as many signs are only in Georgian.

Georgian alphabet

Some Georgian phrases

Hi there! / Good day! – Gamardschoba!

Bye Bye! – nachvamdis! /

Sorry! – bodischi!

thanks! – gmadlob!

you are welcome! – araphers!

yes – diach (politeness);

ki, cho (with friends)

no – ara

what does it cost? – ra girs it?

The bill, please! – do Scheidsleba Angarischi!

At what time? – romel seeds?

I don’t speak Georgian! – me qartuli ar vitsi!

I am german! – me germaneli var!

Where is it?.. – sad mdebareobs

train station – sadguri

bus stop – avtobusis gachereba

airport – aeroporti

travel agency – turistuli saagento

taxi – taqsi

stop here! – aq gaacheret!

Numbers

one – erti

two – ori

three – sami

four – orchi

five – chuti

six – echvsi

seven – shvidi

eight – rva

new – chra

ten – ati