Names of Georgia

History of Georgia
show Prehistoric Georgia Shulaveri-Shomu culture Kura–Araxes culture Legend of Kartlos Trialeti culture Colchian culture Diauehi
show Ancient history Colchis Kingdom of Iberia Pharnavazid dynasty Georgia in the Roman era Campaign of Pompey Iberian–Armenian War Lazica & Sasanian Iberia Chosroid dynasty Christianization of Iberia
show Middle Ages Iberian & Lazic Wars Principality of Iberia Arab rule in Georgia & Emirate of Tbilisi Bagrationi dynasty Kingdom of the Iberians Kingdom of Abkhazia First Kingdom of Kakheti & Hereti Theme of Iberia Duchy of Kldekari Kingdom of Georgia Georgian Golden Age Armenia within the Kingdom of Georgia Byzantine & Seljuk Wars Mongol / Timur & Turkmen invasions Triarchy and collapse of the Kingdom of Georgia
show Early modern history Samtskhe-Saatabago Kingdom of Kartli Kingdom of Kakheti Kingdom of Imereti Principalities of Guria / Svaneti / Mingrelia & Abkhazia Safavid Georgia Childir Eyalet Kingdom of Kartli-Kakheti
show Modern history Georgia within the Russian Empire Transcaucasian Democratic Federative Republic Democratic Republic of Georgia Red Army invasion of Georgia & Soviet Georgia Georgia since 1991 & Russo-Georgian War
show History by topic Etymology Monarchs States Tbilisi Military history Wars & Battles Chronology
History of Georgia
v t

Georgia (/dʒɔːdʒə/ in BrE or /ˈdʒɔːrdʒə/ (listen) in AmE) is the Western exonym for the country in the Caucasus natively known as Sakartvelo (/sʌkʌrtvɛlɔː/ Georgian: საქართველო, [sakʰartʰvɛlɔ] (listen)). The Russian exonym is Gruziya (/ɡrʊziːjʌ/ Russian: Грузия, IPA: [grʊzija] (listen)), while in Armenian it is Vrastan (/vrʌstʌn/ Armenian: Վրաստան).

Both endonym and exonym for the country are derived from the same state-forming core and central Georgian region of Kartli (known as Iberia to the Classical and Byzantine sources) around which the early medieval cultural and political unity of the Georgians was formed.

All external exonyms are likely derived from gorğān (گرگان), the Persian designation of the Georgians, evolving from Parthian and Middle Persian wurğān/wirucān/gurğān (