Ivane Javakhishvili Institute of History and Ethnology of Tbilisi State University
Researcher
Source Studies
Master of Antiquities Studies, PhD Candidate
Tbilisi, Georgia
Abstract
In 1943, the textbook “History of Georgia from Ancient Times to the Beginning of the 19th Century” was published, authored by Ivane Javakhishvili, Simon Janashia, and Nikoloz Berdzenishvili. The group of authors began working on the textbook in 1936, and the process continued for almost six years. Shortly after its publication, the book was translated into Russian, after which the authors of the textbook were awarded the Stalin Prize.
It should be noted that the process of creating the textbook developed in a particularly interesting manner. Written by three distinguished representatives of Georgian historiography, the textbook became a kind of synthesis of the scholarly research conducted up to that point. Although the book came under severe criticism beginning in 1953, the historical narratives presented in the textbook have remained influential to this day, both within academic circles and in broader collective memory.
The main objective of this presentation is to clearly demonstrate how the process of creating the textbook unfolded: how the authors formulated the initial text and what major changes the text underwent before reaching its final version. In preparing the presentation, particular attention was given to the historical discourse within which the textbook was created.
It is especially noteworthy that, alongside Simon Janashia, the role of editor of the textbook was also assumed by Kandid Charkviani, the First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Georgian SSR. Following a meeting between Simon Janashia, Nikoloz Berdzenishvili, and Joseph Stalin, during which Stalin expressed his opinions and wishes regarding certain aspects of the textbook, the work underwent further, though limited yet significant, revisions. In effect, Joseph Stalin became another editor of the textbook.
The presentation also provides a detailed analysis and discussion of the historiographical views of Ivane Javakhishvili, Simon Janashia, and Nikoloz Berdzenishvili, which were reflected in the textbook. The primary historical source for this research is the textbook “History of Georgia” itself; accordingly, the study is based on research methods characteristic of historiographical analysis. From a methodological perspective, the work relies on the historical cognition method, which allows the essence of the problem to be revealed in its development and dynamics.
The presentation examines various aspects of the textbook in detail, with particular emphasis on the history of its creation and the context of its publication. Hermeneutic and discourse analysis methods were also applied, along with comparative research methods.
In the course of preparing the presentation, in addition to scholarly literature, the personal archives of Ivane Javakhishvili, Simon Janashia, and Nikoloz Berdzenishvili were studied. The archival materials made it possible to reconstruct in detail the process of preparing the textbook and to identify the historiographical perspectives and ideological frameworks that influenced its creation.
The research demonstrates that the preparation of the textbook took place under strict ideological supervision. Nevertheless, the authors managed to resist certain ideological pressures, disregarding some politically motivated recommendations and preserving several of their original scholarly positions in the final version of the textbook.