Director of the
Institute of Caucasiology of Faculty of
Humanities at the Iv. Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University, PhD, Professor
Tsira Baramidze has been heading the
educational research Institute since
2006. In the last century Tbilisi justly became renowned center of Caucasiology
of international importance. One of the
first departments of the University - Department of the Caucasian Languages has
trained a scientific staff for
international centers of Caucasiology. There functioned the Russian sector, as
well, which trained scientific staff for
the North Caucasian countries. International contacts with relevant educational and scientific
institutions of the European and Asian countries were traditionally large,
despite the fact that the Soviet Union
restricted such contacts. As it
is well-known, the politicization of
scientific branches was typical for the
Soviet science. Caucasiology was of particular interest in this regard. Thanks
to Academician Arnold Chikobava -
founder of the Caucasiology – the institute
gained back the international
recognition due to a successful discussion on the stadial
development of language and released linguistics from political ideology. Prof.
Ts.Baramidze is a representative of Georgian Caucasiology School and
the head of this School. The collapse of the Soviet Union made possible
to study the complex history of the Caucasian peoples, to free it from the Soviet ideology. For this purpose, in 1993 History Department of the Caucasian Peoples
was founded at the Iv.Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University. In 2006 the Institute of Caucasiology (http://caucasiology.tsu.ge) was initiated by Mrs Baramidze on the basis of two Chairs - Chair of the Caucasian Languages and Chair of the
History of the Caucasian People. It was not a mechanical union of branches, but
it was an innovative vision of
comprehensive studying and teaching the Caucasus region. Prof. Baramidze laid the foundation for
interdisciplinary and cross-disciplinary
approach to Caucasiology and founded the trilingual (Georgian, Russian,
English) Educational Research
Institute. Considering the teaching as well as European market
requirements, Mrs Baramidze retained
the achieved successes in Caucasiology, contributed to the development
of what were valuables in science, introduced these values, rejected those,
which were scientifically unacceptable
and organized the scientific disputes on arguable issues in
order to make them clear scientifically. Mrs Baramidze is a
high-skilled professional, scholar and, most importantly, a good organizer of
science. She has been heading the
Institute of Caucasiology over decades.
To head properly a particular branch of science, means to take
into account all foregoing, to introduce innovation and progressive
ideas along with established traditions, in spite of the difficulties,
which still exist in the post-Soviet
space.
Prof. Ts.
Baramidze’s contribution to founding Caucasiology as the field of international
importance is great. In 2006 Mrs
Baramidze founded the Institute of Caucasiology
at Iv.Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University, created undergraduate,
master and doctoral programs, including completely new directions: Ossetian and Azerbaijanian
Studies, restored (2010) Russian sector,
where the North Caucasian students as well as students from different
countries have been acquiring knowledge under the supporting the government and the
Caucasian funds, created (2015) English
sector for foreign students.
In 2007 Prof. Ts. Baramidze founded International
Congress of Caucasiologists, (http://caucasiology.tsu.ge; www.press.tsu.ge;) which
combines all humanitarian branches on Caucasus as well as the scientific centers of
Caucasiology of all Caucasus region and the international centers of Caucasiology, created an
international editorial board for Congress, held three international congresses, published
Congress materials and special publications in three languages. In 2012 on Mrs
Baramidze’s initiative and
scientific guidance Georgia,
Azerbaijan and Turkey jointly organized
an international symposium on "Folklore of the Caucasian peoples and
Linguoculturology ", published the symposium materials in five
languages. Many scientific forums have been held under the initiative and guidance of Prof. Ts. Baramidze.
She has extensive international contacts with foreign colleagues, as well as with civil
societies and state institutions, for which the Caucasus region and
Caucasiology is principal. Mrs Baramidze
does not leave beyond the
attention the Caucasian compact and dispersed diasporas outside the
Caucasus and encourages the representatives of diasporas
to acquire knowledge in Georgia. Prof. Baramidze participates
in international scientific forums in different countries (Italy,
Poland, Russia, the US, Spain, Azerbaijan, Armenia ...) intensively. Mrs
Baramidze is an innovator and a leading
figure in the field.
In
2009, Mrs Baramidze founded the International Scientific Committee and
Scientific Council for tri-lingual
international annual scientific journal "Caucasiologic Papers"(www.press.tsu.ge; http://caucasiology.tsu.ge; dspace.nplg.gov.ge) and published the first issue of the journal.
The format is an international and, at the same time, interdisciplinary. It
combines all humanitarian branches of
Caucasiology, important and innovative rubrics are published, as well. The
journal is being improved and becoming
more and more popular, thanks to the contribution of its founder, creator of
its conception, a chief editor
Professor Baramidze. 6 volumes
have already been issued. A
scientific journal “Caucasiologic Papers”
is based on the conceptual grounds
of the Caucasian idea. The principles of the Caucasian regionalization are formed by the traditional and modern culture
of co-inhabitance in common geographic areal, linguistic, ethnogenetic,
cultural relations of the Caucasian peoples and common historical past. Along
with the gained achievements and the modern researches, the journal combines
the humanitarian branches studying the
Caucasiologic problems and defines the role and place of the socio-cultural
unity of the Caucasian peoples in the dialogue context of the world cultures.
Under
the Prof. Ts. Baramidze’s leadership the grant work on compiling the practical
guidelines of the Caucasian languages
and electronic translating dictionaries are being carried out. Mrs Baramidze is a
project author of tri-lingual electronic etymological dictionary of the
Caucasian languages, which implementation will start in
jiun 2015 under financial support of the
Georgian state.
Prof.
Ts. Baramidze is an author of three monographs (four books) and one-hundred and
twenty scientific publications. Mrs Baramidze conducts the scientific
publications of the Institute of Caucasiology. There are dozens of specialty
books under her editorship. Mr Baramidze
delivers the lectures on basic subjects of
all three levels of Institute of Caucasiology and is an distinguishable
orator. She delivers the courses of public lectures at "Caucasian House". Mrs Baramidze
often visits the research centers in the Caucasus region, enjoys high prestige.
In 2006-2014 she was a member of the Iv.Javakhishvili Tbilisi University Senate,
in 2013 she was a candidate for Rector of the University.
Prof.
Ts. Baramidze has developed the concept "Multiculturalism and tolerance in the Caucasus"; III
International Congress of
Caucasiologists was dedicated to
this issue (the themes of the previous congresses: I Congress – “Caucasian civilization in the linguistic and cultural context of the Near East”, II Congress – “Caucasian civilization - the history and the
present”). Through such approach,
the founder and Chairman of the Congress, Prof. Baramidze prospectively
outlined the current urgent, but sometimes controversial issues on the
Caucasus region and the Caucasiology. She courageously collapsed
the Soviet inherited stereotypes and distorted consciousness and brought
to light the most important and
internationally arguable, but hitherto hidden problems. More than two hundred
scholars from around the world participated at the Congress to discuss each of these problems and, most importantly,
each of them still is having intensive scientific contacts with Mrs
Baramidze.
Prof.
Ts. Baramidze’s view, as a scholar and
citizen, is based to outline the
scientific foundations to solve the
historical and contemporary problems of the Caucasian linguistic and cultural
space. Today the geopolitical, geo-economic and cultural-civilization vectors of the Caucasus are broken due to the
inspiration and direct involvement of
alien force (often aggressive). Today multiculturalism based on Caucasian historically tolerance is
facing risks and threats. Thanks to her
scientific and civic activities, Prof. Baramidze is
contributing greatly to avoid these risks and dangers. She has a
scientific vision on perspective of the future and united
Caucasian multicultural space in the form of dialogue. Historical and
contemporary reasons for the crisis of local civilization must be appropriate
for the world’s developments. A
primary goal of her life and work is to
make scientific and public contribution in order to solve the
pseudo-ethno-conflicts peacefully, in a
humane way. The complicated geopolitical sphere
conditions the arising the
questions on merging the globalization and universalism, traditional and innovative, universal and individual: how can
the Caucasian identity and the modern transformation be saved when the fate of the Caucasian
peoples is partly determined by
alien force? Can a democratic, civil society be formed
in the Caucasus? What is the integration (geopolitical, geo-economic and
cultural-civilization) chances of the Caucasus? Can the Caucasian peoples maintain their identity? In order to solve these key issues, Prof.
Ts. Baramidze carries out innovative
studies and implements the scientific
activities to find a way out. The main issues of Prof. Baramidze’s life and work are: to maintain Caucasian
identity, diversity and pluralism within the dialogue of cultures, interaction of cultural diversity
and the human rights, cultural diversity and creativity of the Caucasus, Caucasian multiculturalism and international
solidarity. Prof. Tsira Baramidze
is a prominent scholar
in the scientific circle in the
whole Caucasus, a public figure, leader of the Georgian Caucasiology School.
