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'[[File:Georgian States Colchis and Iberia (600-150BC)-en.svg|thumb|250px|right|Ancient Georgian kingdoms of [[Colchis]] and [[Caucasian Iberia|Iberia]].]] '''Caucasian Iberians''' ({{lang-ka|იბერები}}) was a Greco-Roman designation for ancient [[Georgians]] or Kartvelians who inhabited the east and southeast of the [[Transcaucasus]] region in [[prehistoric]] and historic times.<ref>''The Cambridge Ancient History'', John Anthony Crook, [[Elizabeth Rawson]], p. 255</ref> Ancient Iberians are identified as modern eastern [[Georgians]] who have originated from the early Georgian state of [[Caucasian Iberia]].<ref>''The Making of the Georgian Nation'', Ronald Grigor Suny, p. 13</ref><ref>''Readings in the History of the Ancient World'', William Coffman McDermott, Wallace Everett Caldwell, p. 404</ref> Caucasian Iberians should not be confused with the ancient inhabitants of the [[Ancient Rome|Roman]] [[Hispania]], the [[Iberians]] of the [[Iberian Peninsula]], or today's [[Spanish people|Spanish]] and [[Portuguese people|Portuguese]] who are also referred to as Iberians. ==History== {{History of Georgia}} The area was inhabited in [[Ancient history|earliest times]] by several relative tribes of [[Tibareni]], [[Mushki]], [[Saspers]], [[Gugars]], [[Diaokhi]], etc., collectively called Iberians (the Eastern Iberians) by ancient [[Ancient Greece|Greek]] ([[Herodotus]], [[Strabo]], etc.) and [[Ancient Rome|Roman]] authors. Iberians called their country [[Kartli]] after a mythic chief, [[Kartlos]]. One of the Iberian tribes of [[Mtskheta]] (the future capital of the Iberian kingdom) dominated the early Kingdom. The Mtskheta tribe was later ruled by a prince locally known as ''mamasakhlisi'' (“the father of the household” in [[Georgian language|Georgian]]). [[Image:RomanEmpire 117.svg|300px|left|thumb|Iberia during the Roman Empire]] The Georgian chronicle ''Kartlis Tskhovreba'' (“History of Kartli”) claims that a Persian general Azo of [[Alexander the Great|Alexander]]’s army massacred a local ruling family and conquered the area, until being defeated at the end of the 4th century BC by Prince [[Pharnavaz I of Iberia|Pharnavaz]], who was at that time a local chief. Pharnavaz, victorious in the power struggle, became the first [[List of Kings of Iberia|king of Iberia]] (ca. [[302 BC|302]]-ca. [[237 BC]]). Driving back an invasion, he subjugated the neighbouring areas, including a significant part of the western Georgian state of [[Colchis]] (locally known as [[Egrisi]]). Pharnavaz then focused on social projects, including the citadel of the capitol, the [[Armaztsikhe]], and the idol of the god [[Armazi]] (derived from the Iranian god Ahura-Mazda). He also reformed the [[Georgian alphabet|Georgian written language]], and created a new system of administration, subdividing the country in several counties called ''[[Eristavi|saeristavo]]s''. His successors managed to gain control over the mountainous passes of the [[Caucasus Mountains|Caucasus]], with the [[Daryal]] (also known as the Iberian Gates) being the most important of them. [[Roman Empire|Roman]] general [[Pompey]] [[Pompey's Georgian campaign|invaded Iberia]] in [[65 BC]], during his war with [[Mithradates VI of Pontus]], and Armenia; but Rome did not establish her power permanently over Iberia. Nineteen years later, the Romans again marched ([[36 BC]]) on Iberia, forcing King [[Pharnavaz II of Iberia|Pharnavaz II]] to join their campaign against [[Caucasian Albania|Albania]] as their ally. While another Georgian kingdom of [[Colchis]] was administered as a Roman province, Iberia freely accepted the Roman Imperial protection and became her ally. The Iberian king [[Mirian III of Iberia|Mirian III]] adopted Christianity as a [[state religion]] in AD 327 (this event is attributed to the mission of a [[Cappadocia]]n woman, [[Saint Nino]], who since 303 had preached Christianity in Iberia), and Iberia allied itself with the Roman Emperor [[Constantine the Great]]. The religion would become a strong tie between Georgia and Rome (later the [[Byzantine Empire]]), and would have a large scale impact on the state's culture and society. However, after the [[Julian the Apostate|emperor Julian]] was slain during his failed campaign in Persia in [[363]], Rome ceded control of Iberia to Persia, and King Varaz-Bakur I (Asphagur) ([[363]]-[[365]]) became a Persian vassal &mdash; an outcome confirmed by the Peace of [[Hachdeanq|Acilisene]] in [[387]]. The early reign of the Iberian king [[Vakhtang I of Iberia|Vakhtang I dubbed ''Gorgasali'']] ([[447]]-[[502]]) was marked by relative revival of the kingdom. Formally a vassal of the Persians, he secured the northern borders by subjugating the Caucasian mountaineers, and brought the adjacent western and southern Georgian lands under his control. He established an [[autocephaly|autocephalic]] patriarchate at [[Mtskheta]], and made [[Tbilisi]] his capital. In [[482]], he led a general uprising against Persia. A desperate war for independence lasted for twenty years, but he could not get Byzantine support, and was defeated, dying in battle in [[502]]. ==Origins== It may be possible to trace the presence of Caucasian Iberians in the region for several millennia. The Iberian tribes were an [[indigenous people]] of the [[Caucasus]] region, united by a common language, the ancestor of the Ibero-Caucasian language group. There are multiple theories regarding the origin of the name ''Iberian''; one of the most commonplace is that it is derived from the tribe of [[Tibareni]] in the classical period, and possibly also from the even earlier state of [[Tabal]], known from the annals of the [[Assyrian Empire|Assyrian Kings]]). The name ''Iberian'' in its own right appears in ancient Greek authors who identified early Georgian (Kartvelian) tribes as ''Iberoi'', as well as in the annals of the Roman [[Plutarch]]. The Iberians called their kingdom ''Kartli'', and their nation ''Kartlians''. Some theories have proposed common ethnic and linguistic origins of Caucasian Iberians with the ancient [[Iberians]] of the [[Iberian Peninsula]], or the modern [[Basques]] in [[Spain]] <ref>''Gods of Love and Ecstasy: The Traditions of Shiva and Dionysus'', Alain Danielou, p. 21</ref><ref>''Chambers's Encyclopaedia'', M. D. Law, p. 356</ref> ==See also== * [[Colchians]], western Georgians. ==References== {{reflist}} {{Ancient Georgians}} {{Ancient Georgian Tribes}} [[Category:Ancient peoples of Georgia (country)]] [[Category:Ancient peoples]] [[ka:იბერები (საქართველო)]] [[hu:Ibérek (Grúzia)]]'