Baghdati
# Baghdati

Baghdati (Georgian: ბაღდათი, romanized: baghdati) is a town of 3,700 people in the Imereti region of western Georgia, at the edge of the Ajameti forest on the river Khanistsqali, a tributary of the Rioni.

## Geography

The town is located at the edge of the Ajameti forest on the left bank of the river Khanistsqali, about 170 kilometres (110 mi) west-northwest of Tbilisi and 25 kilometres (16 mi) south-southeast of Kutaisi.

The climate of Baghdati can be classified as moderately humid subtropical (Köppen climate classification Cfa).

## History

Baghdati is one of the oldest villages in the historical Imereti region. Its name shares the same origins as the name of the capital of Iraq, Baghdād: Bagh 'god' and dāti 'given', which can be translated as "God-given" or "God's gift" in the Pahlavi language. When Georgia was part of the Russian Empire and during the Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic, its name was changed to Baghdadi (Russian: Багдади). In 1940, it was renamed Mayakovsky (Georgian: მაიაკოვსკი; Russian: Маяковский), after the poet Vladimir Mayakovsky who was born here in 1893. In 1981, Mayakovsky was granted town status. In 1991, slightly modified original name was restored.

## Demographics

| Year | Population |
| - | - |
| 1959 | 4586 |
| 1970 | 4609 |
| 1979 | 4831 |
| 1989 | 5465 |
| 2002 | 4714 |
| 2009 | 4800 |
| 2014 | 3707 |

    Note: Census data 1959–2014

## Economy

In Baghdati there is a furniture factory and companies in the food industry (canned food, wine). The nearest railway stations are located in Rioni and Kutaisi.

## Culture

Baghdati has the Vladimir Mayakovsky Museum and a National Theatre.

## Notable people

* Vladimir Mayakovsky (1893–1930), poet
