The linguistic struggle for a land called the 'country of mortals'
In the Caucasus, a single territory has been known by many names. From the ancient Greek trade colonies to the Russian-led Cyrillic reforms, the very language spoken in Abkhazia has been a battlefield for imperial control and national identity.
The region's native name, Apsny, carries a profound duality: while often etymologized as 'a land of the soul,' its literal meaning is 'a country of mortals' [S1:p6]. This linguistic complexity mirrors the region's turbulent history. Historically, the territory was part of the Kingdom of Colchis and later Lazica, with Greek traders establishing colonies at sites like Pitiunt and Dioscurias [S1:p11, S1:p12]. Over centuries, the linguistic landscape shifted from Greek to Georgian, which became the language of literacy and culture around 778 AD [S1:p19].
During the 19th century, the Russian Empire implemented aggressive 'Russification' policies to undermine local identities [S1:p29]. In 1862, Peter von Uslar created an Abkhaz alphabet using Cyrillic script [S1:p29]. While Uslar acknowledged that the Georgian alphabetic system was linguistically superior for Caucasian sounds, he advocated for Cyrillic to strengthen the region's cultural orientation toward Russia [S1:p29]. By the late 1800s, Russian authorities even attempted to prohibit religious services and education in Georgian [S1:p31].
The demographic and linguistic makeup of the region was further transformed by mass migrations [S1:p27]. Following the 1864 annexation, the 'Muhajirism' process saw up to 40% of the Muslim Abkhaz population emigrate to Ottoman territories [S1:p27]. This vacuum was filled by spontaneous migrations of Greeks, Armenians, and Mingrelians—groups more resilient to the local malaria that had hindered Russian colonial efforts [S1:p28]. Today, the political status of Abkhazia remains a central point of contention in Georgia-Russia relations, with the region's independence recognized by only four UN member states [S1:p3].
Source: Abkhazia
