The Abkhazians: A Handbook (Peoples of the Caucasus Handbooks) [Hardcover]

George Hewitt (Editor)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 031221975X | ISBN-13: 978-0312219758 | Publication Date: January 15, 1999

The Abkhazians are an ancient Caucasian people living mainly on the eastern shores of the Black Sea in the shadow of the Great Caucasus Mountains. Aside from their Caucasian homeland of Abkhazia, there are significant numbers of Abkhazians and their descendants settled throughout Russia and the Middle East, particularly Turkey. Their history, like other peoples and nations of the region, has been closely linked with the expansion of the Russians; the collapse of the Soviet Union, however, resulted in further domination, this time by the Georgian Republic, leading to the catastrophe of the War of 1992-3 and the scattering of the people that followed. With the publication of this book, which includes an entirely new interpretation of Abkhazia's union with Russia over the period from the 18th century to 1917, the relevant facts about Abkhazia have finally become accessible to the English-speaking world.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"...the Abkhazian cause could not have a better introduction than these essays." --Library Journal

About the Author

George Hewitt is currently at the University of London.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan (January 15, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 031221975X
• ISBN-13: 978-0312219758
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (47 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,677,670 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #85 in Books > History > Asia > Georgia

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent and scholarly study on the Abkhazians, May 28, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Abkhazians: A Handbook (Peoples of the Caucasus Handbooks) (Hardcover)

This volume is the first book in English language on the Abkhazians, one of the peoples of the Caucasus.

This is a great introduction to the region's past and present. The authors, which include both Western and indigenous scholars, should be congratulated for maintaining an objective and well-balanced approach to the recent conflict with the Georgians, even if they don't hide their sympathy for the Abkhazians.

A must for anyone who wants to understand the fascinating yet complex world of the Caucasus

19 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Voltaire must be spinning in his grave, May 11, 2001

By 

Mrs S.DORKEN (London,UK) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Abkhazians: A Handbook (Peoples of the Caucasus Handbooks) (Hardcover)

It is of course OK to take the strongest objection to any text and on many grounds but it is surely quite another matter to want to completely silence an author and even call for his living to be suspended. Some of those who go that far should reflect on the wisdom of what they preach. In the post-glasnost era one of the best lessons to take on board is surely the value democratic societies place on freedom of speech. It is obvious that this is proving very hard for many Georgian scholars. When they adopt an offensive and venomous tone they display a fear of rational argument and not a healthy disagreement with someone like Professor Hewitt whose academic credentials and distinction in his field are hard to match.

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Lots of information, but not entirely trustable, May 14, 2005

By 

David Schaich "David Schaich" (Boulder, Colorado) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Abkhazians: A Handbook (Peoples of the Caucasus Handbooks) (Hardcover)

In case you are not already familiar with Abkhazia, let me give a very brief summary of its current situation. Abkhazia (or Abkhazeti to Georgians, or Apsny to its current government) is a small region in northwest Georgia, which was an autonomous republic (meaning only that the titular nationality had its culture promoted and benefited from a Soviet form of affirmative action) within Georgia during Soviet times. After Georgia broke away from the Soviet Union, Abkhazia managed (with some Russian help) to break away from Georgia following a war in 1992-1993 that was accompanied by ethnic cleansing and the flight of most of the ethnic Georgians in the region (200,000-250,000, or almost half of Abkhazia's 1989 population). Abkhazia has managed to maintain de facto independence ever since, though it has not been recognized by any other nation.

In this volume, Hewitt, a professor of Caucasian languages at the University of London, presents 16 essays on Abkhazia (in English), mostly written by Abkhazians themselves. These essays cover the geography, history, economy, language, culture, religion and demography of Abkhazia and thus form a very valuable source of information on Abkhazia for English speakers.

Unfortunately, because all of the material comes from Abkhazians or supporters of the Abkhazian side in the current conflict, I can't consider the information they present (especially that relating to twentieth-century history) entirely trustworthy. I recently wrote a long research paper on this conflict and found myself pulling my hair out trying to deal with the conflicting claims made by the two sides on a large number of issues. The allegations of ethnic cleansing and genocide made by both sides, as well as the issue of Russia's involvement in Abkhazia and the continuing refugee crisis, all serve to create and perpetuate a great deal of tension and conflict between the two sides (as can be seen by glancing through the reviews below). By (openly and unapologetically) backing one side in such a divisive and complicated conflict, Hewitt has done his readers a disservice. He has made it hard to fully trust the information the book contains and has made it more difficult for readers to really understand the Georgia-Abkhazia conflict.

That said, if you're interested in learning about the former (and possibly future) "Georgian Riviera", you will find a lot of information in this volume. It's up to you to decide how much to trust it. If you are seriously interested in the Georgian-Abkhazian conflict, you will definitely need to check out additional sources. I would suggest starting with some volumes edited by Bruno Coppieters (et al.) of the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB): "Georgians and Abkhazians: the search for a Peace Settlement" and "Federal practice: exploring alternatives for Georgia and Abkhazia", both of which are available online on the VUB Web site. Both of these volumes are in English and include both Georgian and Abkhazian (as well as third-party) contributors.