---
title: "Hereti: History, Geography, Culture, and Contemporary Status"
description: საიტის დამზადება, ციფრული მარკეტინგი  და ვიდეო რეკლამა საუკეთესო ფასად! საიტების დამზადება, მარკეტინგი და რეკლამა - ეს არის საქმე რომელსაც 5+ წელია ვაკეთებთ.
url: https://view.ge/en/hereti-history-geography-culture
---

# Hereti: History, Geography, Culture, and Contemporary Status

## Hereti: History, Geography, Culture, and Contemporary Status



**Hereti** **strategic importance** **Georgia** **Azerbaijan**



## 2. Geographical Location



**Greater Caucasus mountain range** **Mtkvari (Kura) and Alazani rivers** **Mtkvari River** **Alazani River** **Balakan, Zagatala, and Gakh** **Shaki** **Khoranta** **Balakan, Zagatala, and Gakh** **snow-capped peaks of the Caucasus** **viticulture, winemaking, and sericulture** **trade and caravan routes** **Heres**



## 3. Origin of the Name



**Heros**



## 4. Historical Overview



### 4.1. Early History



**Stone Age** **Caucasian Albania** **Kingdom of Kartli (Iberia)** **saeristavos** **Georgianization**



### 4.2. Independent Principality and Kingdom



**Arab invasions** **independent principality** **Grigol Hamam (Adarnase Patrik)** **independent kingdom** **King Ioane Senekerim (951–959)** **Queen Dinara** **Eastern (Dyophysite) Orthodoxy**



### 4.3. Kingdom of Kakheti-Hereti



**Bagrat III (978-1014)** **Kvirike III the Great (1010–1037)** **Kingdom of Kakheti-Hereti**



### 4.4. Part of Unified Georgia



**1104** **David IV the Builder (1089–1125)** **saeristavo** **1466** **Kingdom of Kakheti**



### 4.5. Foreign Influence and Islamization



**Iranian** **Ottoman** **17th century** **Abbas I** **Sultanate of Eliseni (Ilisu)** **Islamization** **Saingilo**



## 5. Separation from Georgia



**Tiflis Governorate** **Russian Empire's annexation of the Kartli-Kakheti Kingdom in 1801** **July 5, 1921** **Zakatala Okrug** **Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic** **treaty on border demarcation** **painful and controversial issue**



## 6. Contemporary Status



**Georgia and Azerbaijan** **Saingilo**



### 6.1. Georgians in Azerbaijan (Ingilos)



**Ingilos** **Christian Ingilos** **Muslim Ingilos**



### Contemporary Challenges (for Georgians living in Azerbaijan):



**Education in Georgian** **Religious Rights and Protection of Cultural Heritage** **Preservation of Cultural Identity** **Socio-Economic Conditions** **Information Vacuum**



## 7. Historical and Cultural Monuments in Hereti (Saingilo)



### Kurmukhi St. George Church (Gakh District, Kurmukhi Village)



**Location** **History and Description** **13th-14th centuries** **hall-type** **Current Status** **Giorgoba (St. George's Day)**



### Alibeglo (Historical Elisen) St. Nino Church (Gakh District, Alibeglo/Elisen Village)



**Location** **History and Description** **1871** **cross-dome plan** **Saint Nino** **Current Status**



### Leketi (Lekarti) Monastery Complex (Gakh District, Leketi/Lekiti Village)



**Location** **History and Description** **round temple – a rotunda** **7th-9th centuries** **basilica-type church** **Current Status**



### Gakh "Little Alaverdi" / Seven Churches Monastery (Gakh District, near Gakh Town)



**Location** **History and Description** **seven-church monastery complex** **domed church** **10th-11th centuries** **Current Status**



### Meshabashi St. George Church (Gakh District, Meshabashi Village)



**History and Description** **19th or early 20th century** **Current Status**



### Kotoklo Holy Trinity Church (Gakh District, Kotoklo/Qotoqlo Village)



**History and Description** **19th century** **hall-type structure** **Current Status**



### Bodbishevi (Qum) Church of the Mother of God (Gakh District, Qum/Qumbazari Village)



**History and Description** **8th-9th century basilica-type church** **Current Status**



### Zarna (Zaarni) Church (Gakh District, Zarna Village)



**History and Description** **medieval Georgian church** **Current Status**



### Pateriani (Fateriani) Church (Zaqatala District)



**History and Description** **episcopal sees of Hereti** **Current Status**



### Khoranta / Khornabuji (Historical City)



**History and Description** **Current Status**



### Shaki (Historical City)



**History and Description** **Current Status**



### "Great Wall of Caucasus" / Defensive Structures:



**Derbent Wall, Ghilghilchay Wall, and Beshbarmaq Wall** **fortresses and defensive lines**



### "Tamar's Bridges":



**medieval stone bridges**



### Other Important Monuments Requiring Research:



**Leliani Churches (Gakh District, Leliani/Ilisu Village)** **Zarapkhana Church (Balakan District)** **church and fortress ruins**



## 8. Contemporary Challenges (Expanded)



**Attempts to Distort Historical Memory** **Difficulties in Movement to Georgia** **Involvement in Local Self-Government Bodies** **Access to Healthcare and Social Services** **Information Vacuum**

[others](https://view.ge/en/other)

21 May 2025

21 May 2025

Last Updated: 02 November 2025

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