ექვთიმე თაყაიშვილი და "ქართველთა შორის წერა-კითხვის გამავრცელებელი საზოგადოება" (სამეცნიერო მოღვაწეობა)

Abstract

During “the Epoch of the Great Transformations” in the central provinces of the Russian Empire the founding of “Literacy Committees” had begun. The Georgian leading figures followed this idea and had tried to establish primary village schools. However it was realized only in 1878-1879. On May 15, 1879, the first meeting of the members of “Society for the Spread of Literacy Among the Georgians” took place in the building of “Bank of the Nobility” of the Tbilisi Gubernya. According to its aims “Society for the Spread of Literacy Among the Georgians” opened schools, archives, museums, libraries, collected and preserved Georgian monuments of spiritual and material culture: manuscripts, charters, historical and fictional writings, old Georgian coins etc. They also published and delivered books and helped the younger generation. In May, 1888 Ekvtime Takaishvili was elected as a member of the committee of “Society for the Spread of Literacy Among the Georgians”. He simultaneously took honourable position among the leading figures of that society. He patronized old and discovered many unknown manuscripts. On his initiative the Society bought “Archiliani” and another 6 manuscripts. At the same time he composed and published the descriptions of manuscripts. He published three historical chronicles, “New Version of Life of St. Nino or the Second Part of Conversion of Kartli”, “The Wisdom of Balavar”, initiated the publication of queen Mariam’s MS of “Life of Kartli”, and published the collated texts of “the Knight in the Panther’s Skin”. Ekvtime Takaishvili’s scientific activity was honoured with Gold Medal by the Russian Imperial Academy of Sciences.