Introduction Persians in Georgia

If you’re living in Iran and planning to move, your options are honestly limited.  Traveling to most countries as an Iranian means you must apply for Visas and go through a series of long and potentially unsuccessful processes.  Only a handful of countries allow Visa-free and relatively simple travel.  One of these countries is Georgia.  If you want to leave Iran, you’ve likely got Georgia on your mind.  

Geographically speaking, Georgia is close to Iran.  Historically speaking, Georgia was once part of the Persian Empire.  And monetarily speaking, the Georgian economy is growing while the Iranian economy is suffering.  Georgia is a tempting, comfortable, and simple choice of which many Persians are taking advantage.  

I had heard of the growing number of Persians in Georgia before I arrived, but until I came, I didn’t realize how legitimate this fact actually was.  Cut to the afternoon after I’d landed in Tbilisi.  I was walking from my hotel to get a SIM card and managed to get lost.  Traipsing through some residential street, I found myself bumping into only one group of people and they happened to be Iranians.  I was lucky.  I didn’t know Georgian, but I knew Farsi and managed to get directions from them.  I realized Persians are everywhere here.

Georgia has become one of their most popular travel destinations as well as a haven and source of hope.  Whether they’re searching for fun, freedom, money, or simply a different life than they are offered in Iran, Georgia has become somewhere they can find something more.  “I love Iran, but here, I feel like I can be me and do what I want. Less hiding,” my neighbor who recently moved here from Iran told me.  I think we’re about to see a lot more from Iranians in Georgia—they are driven and ready to go forth as who they are.

By Shirin Mahdavi