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Adjara

Autonomous Republic of Ajara
აჭარის ავტონომიური რესპუბლიკა
Flag of Adjara
Coat of arms of Adjara
Flag Coat of arms
Adjara in Georgia (Georgian view).svg
A more detailed map of Adjara.
A more detailed map of Adjara.
Capital Batumi
41°39′N 42°0′E / 41.650°N 42.000°E / 41.650; 42.000
Official languages Georgian
Ethnic groups (2002)
Government

Zurab Pataradze
Legislature Supreme Council
Administrative republic
• Part of unified
Georgian Kingdom

9th century
• Conquered by
Ottoman Empire

1614
• Ceded to Russian Empire
1878
1921
• Administrative republic
of Georgia

1991
Area
• Total
2,880 km2 (1,110 sq mi)
• Water (%)
negligible
Population
• 2012 estimate
393,700
• 2014 census
336,077
• Density
135.32/km2 (350.5/sq mi)
Currency Georgian lari (GEL)
Time zone UTC (UTC+4)
• Summer (DST)
not observed (UTC+4)

Adjara (Georgian: აჭარა [at͡ʃʼara]), officially known as the Autonomous Republic of Adjara (აჭარის ავტონომიური რესპუბლიკა [at͡ʃʼaris avtʼɔnɔmiuri rɛspʼublikʼa]), is a historical, geographic and political-administrative region of Georgia. Located in the country's southwestern corner, Adjara lies on the coast of the Black Sea near the foot of the Lesser Caucasus Mountains, north of Turkey. It is an important tourism destination and includes Georgia's second-largest city of Batumi as its capital. About 350,000 people live on its 2,880 km2.

Adjara is home to the Adjarians, a regional subgroup of Georgians. Adjara's name can be spelled in a number of ways, including Ajara, Ajaria, Adjaria, Adzharia, and Achara, among others. Under the Soviet Union, Adjara was part of the Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic as the Adjarian ASSR.

Adjara has been part of Colchis and Caucasian Iberia since ancient times. Colonized by Greeks in the 5th century BC, the region fell under Rome in the 2nd century BC. It became part of the region of Egrisi before being incorporated into the unified Georgian Kingdom in the 9th century AD.

The Ottomans conquered the area in 1614. The people of Adjara converted to Islam in this period. The Ottomans were forced to cede Adjara to the expanding Russian Empire in 1878.


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Wikipedia

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