The Georgian alphabet

The Georgian alphabet is one of the oldest in the world. On November 30th, 2016, the Georgian alphabet was included in the list of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Mankind by UNESCO. There are three fonts in the Georgian alphabet: Asomtavruli, Nuskha-Khutsuri and Mkhedruli, with Asomtavruli being the oldest. Each of them has a characteristic graphic style.

Nuskha-Khutsuri was and is only used by monks in temples and monasteries, mostly to compile lists. The Nuskh script is still used in ecclesiastical life today. Mkhedruli is the modern Georgian alphabet, which is actively used by the Georgian nation today. One of the unique features of the Georgian alphabet is the fact that the words are spelled exactly as they are written.

Picture credits: picture taken by beyondarts GmbH with kind permission of Georgian National Museum

Project “Increased regional added value in the tourism sectors of Georgia by Digital Heritage Tourism Guides” was funded by the Austrian Development Agency (ADA) with funds of Austrian Development Cooperation.