Svans

This article is about a people in the Caucasus. For other uses, see Svans (disambiguation).
Svans
Svan: შვანარ shvanar
Georgian: სვანი svani
Distribution of the Svan language in relation to other Kartvelian (South Caucasian) languages.
Total population
c. 14,000[1]–80,000[2]
Regions with significant populations
Georgia14,000[1]–30,000[2]
Languages
Svan, Georgian
Religion
Predominantly † Eastern Orthodox Christianity
(Georgian Orthodox Church)
Related ethnic groups
Georgians, the Laz and Mingrelians

The Svans (Svan: შვანარ, Shvanar; Georgian: სვანი, Svani) are an ethnic subgroup of the Georgians (Kartvelians)[3][4][5][6][7] living mostly in Svaneti, a region in northwest Georgia. They speak the Svan language and are mostly bilingual also in Georgian. Both these languages belong to the Kartvelian (South Caucasian) language family. In the pre-1930 Soviet census, the Svans were categorized as a separate ethnic group (natsionalnost).[8] The self-designation of the Svan is Mushüan, which is probably reflected in the ethnonym Misimian of the Classical authors.[9]

  1. ^ a b Project, Joshua. "Svanetian, Mushwan in Georgia". Retrieved 18 August 2017.
  2. ^ a b "Svan/Udi/Tsova-Tush - DOBES". Retrieved 18 August 2017.
  3. ^ Stephen F. Jones. Svans. World Culture Encyclopedia. Retrieved on March 13, 2011: «The Svans are one of the dozen or so traditionally recognized ethnic subgroups within the Georgian (Kartvelian) nation.»
  4. ^ The Svans Kevin Tuite Université de Montréal 1992: «The Svans are one of the dozen or so traditionally recognized ethnic subgroups within the Georgian (Kartvelian) nation.»
  5. ^ Britannica. Caucasian peoples: «The Caucasian peoples ... The southerners, comprising the Georgians, the closely related Mingrelians and Laz, and the Svan, make up the Republic of Georgia and live in western Transcaucasia (the Laz live in Turkish territory).»
  6. ^ R. Wixman. The Peoples of the USSR: An Ethnographic Handbook (p.181): «Svan ... The Svanetians are one of the Kartvelian peoples of the Georgian SSR»
  7. ^ Levinson, David. Ethnic Groups Worldwide: A Ready Reference Handbook. Phoenix: Oryx Press, 1998. p 35
  8. ^ "Демоскоп Weekly - Приложение. Справочник статистических показателей". demoscope.ru. Retrieved 18 August 2017.
  9. ^ History of Georgian Mountein Regions / R. Topchishvili. Available at The National Parliamentary Library of Georgia