 Distribution of the Imerkhevian dialect | |
| Languages | |
|---|---|
| Imerkhevian dialect of Georgian language | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Adjarians and other groups of Kartvelians |
Imerkhevians (Georgian: იმერხეველები), are an ethnographic subgroup of Georgians who speak the Imerkhevian dialect (imerkheuli) of the Georgian language, which shares many common features with the neighboring Adjarian dialect.[1] Imerkhevians are the indigenous population of Artvin Province, an historical region located in northeastern Turkey. The Imerkhevians are Sunni Muslims, closely integrated with the Turkish society. Almost all are bilingual in Georgian and Turkish.
Reflecting some internal differentiation persisting in Turkey's Georgian community, the Imerkhevians claim a different origin from the Georgians in the Borçka area, who have adopted an inclusive Adjar identity. The first who brought the local culture to a scholarly attention was Nicholas Marr, who, while on an expedition in Shavsheti in 1910, collected folk literature and ethnographic information from several villages along the Imerkhevi river.[1]
- ^ a b Tuite, Kevin (1998), Kartvelian morphosyntax: number agreement and morphosyntactic oritntation in the South Caucasian languages, p. 178. Lincom Europa.