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Irakliy AbashidzeGeorgian poet.
Country:
 Georgia |
Content:
Biography of Irakli Abashidze
Irakli Abashidze was a Georgian poet who was born in the village of Khoni in the Kutaisi Governorate. He began publishing his works in 1928 and completed his degree in philology from Tbilisi University in 1931. Just three years later, he participated in the First Congress of the Union of Soviet Writers. Abashidze was briefly imprisoned for a poem that excessively praised Lavrentiy Beria. During the Great Patriotic War, he joined the front lines. He later became the chief editor of the journal "Mnatobi." From 1953 to 1967, Abashidze served as the chairman of the Union of Writers of Georgia. In 1960, he also became the vice-president of the Georgian Academy of Sciences. In the same year, he organized an expedition to the Georgian monastery of the Holy Cross in Jerusalem, where the fresco of Shota Rustaveli was discovered. Abashidze was awarded the title of academician of the Georgian Academy of Sciences in 1960. He served as the chief editor of the Georgian Soviet Encyclopedia (volumes 1-12, 1975-1987). In 1979, he was honored with the title of Hero of Socialist Labor. From 1978 to 1986, Abashidze was the chairman of the Supreme Council of Georgia.
Political Views and Legacy
Although Abashidze's poetry was relatively loyal to the Soviet regime, he supported Zviad Gamsakhurdia in Georgia's path towards independence. He passed away on January 14, 1992, in Tbilisi and received a state funeral. Abashidze was the author of poetic cycles such as "Palestine, Palestine" (1963, State Prize of Georgia, 1966) and "In the Footsteps of Rustaveli" (Giorgi Neri Prize, 1972). He also published a collection of lyrical poems titled "Approach" (1966). Abashidze translated the works of Russian poets into Georgian, while his poems were translated into Russian by Boris Pasternak, Andrei Tarkovsky, Bella Akhmadulina, and Alexander Mezhirov.
Works
- "Seeking the Coveted Trace" (Moscow, Detgiz, 1979) translated by Yevgeny Yevtushenko, Nikolai Grebnev, Marina Maksimova, Alexander Mezhirov, Natalya Tikhonova, and Boris Akhmadulina.
- "Selected Works: Poems" (Moscow, 1989)
