Lithuania Changes Georgian Name

“Gruzia” may not be a common word for many English or Georgian speakers, however Lithuanians know exactly what it means: “Georgia”. People speaking Russian may understand where it comes from, as in Russian Georgia is called “Gruziya”, unmistakably sounding almost the same. 

The statement by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania has a strong symbolic meaning, as it announced the official change of “Gruzia” to “Sakartvelo”. Tweeting online, the ministry justified their decision, while pointing to the great friendship between the two countries.  

“An official decision was made at the event dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the declaration of Georgia as an independent republic - from now on your country will be called "Sakartvelo”! Congratulations on this historic decision! Long live the Lithuania-Georgia friendship," enthusiastically stated the ministry. 

Lithuanian media reported last year that Speaker of the Lithuanian Parliament Viktoras Pranckietis initiated the official change of the name for Georgia from the traditional Slavic "Gruzia" to "Sakartvelo", commonly used by Georgians. Back then, the change was promised to happen in 2018.

By Benjamin Music

Photo: Tabula.ge