Baghdati

Baghdati ბაღდათი
City
Country	Georgia
Region	Imereti
District	Baghdati
Elevation	250 m (820 ft)
Population  (2009)
• Total	4,800
Time zone	Georgian Time (UTC+4)

Baghdati (Georgian: ბაღდათი) is a town of 4,800 people in the Imereti region of western Georgia, at the edge of the Ajameti forest on the river Khanistsqali, a tributary of the Rioni. From 1940 to 1990, it was called Mayakovsky after the Russian poet who was born there.

History

Baghdati is one of the oldest village in the Imereti historical region. Its name shares the same origins of the name of the capital of Iraq, Baghdad: هدیه Bag "god" + خدا dāti "given", which can be translated as "God-given" or "God's gift" in old Persian. When Georgia was part of the Russian Empire and during the Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic, its name was changed in Baghdadi (Russian: Багдади). In 1940 it was renamed in Mayakovsky (Georgian: მაიაკოვსკი), after its most famous "son", Vladimir Mayakovsky, who was born there in 1893. In 1981, Baghdati was promoted to the status of city. In 1990, its original name, "Baghdati", was restored.

Geography

Location

Baghdati is located at the edge of the Ajameti forest on the left of the Khanistsqali River, about 170 kilometres (110 mi) west-northwest of Tbilisi and 25 kilometres (16 mi) south-southeast of Kutaisi.

Climate

The climate of Baghdati can be classified as moderately humid subtropical (Köppen climate classification Cfa).

People and culture

Demography

Year	Population
1959	4586
1970	4609
1979	4831
1989	5465
2002	4714
2009	4800

Note: Census data 1959–2002, 2009.

Main sights

Baghdati has the Vladimir Mayakovsky Museum and a National Theatre.

Notable native sons and daughters

• Vladimir Mayakovsky (1893–1930), poet

Transport

The nearest railway station is located in Kutaisi.

Economy

In Baghdati there is a furniture factory and companies in the food industry (canned food, wine).