The present paper discusses not only the problems of learning and teaching Georgian as
a second language, but also the issues necessary to achieve civil integration of Georgia’s
linguistic minorities. I will, therefore, occasionally have to dwell upon the establishment
of economic infrastructure and its on-going development; however, the principal issue
is the hierarchy of languages in Georgia.
According to Article 8 of the Georgian Constitution, the official state language is
Georgian in Georgia, and Abkhazian in Abkhazia, while other languages (such as
Azerbaijani, Armenian, Ossetian, Hebrew, Russian, Ukrainian, and Kurdish) are spoken
by minority groups. Additionally, several other languages are spoken by various smaller
minority groups which make up about 1% of the population. The regions where some of
the minority languages are spoken in Georgia are:
• Samtskhe-Javakheti (Armenian)
• Kvemo Kartli (Azerbaijani)
• South Ossetia (Ossetian)
Hebrew, Russian, Ukrainian and Kurdish can be considered “non-territorial” languages.