Caucasus

The isthmus has been fought over by every neighbouring empire: Rome and Persia, Byzantium and the Arab caliphates, Mongols, Ottomans, Safavid Iran and finally Russia. Local kingdoms rose between these tides: the kingdom of Urartu around Lake Van, the Armenian kingdoms, the Georgian kingdom that reached a golden age under Queen Tamar around 1200, and Caucasian Albania in what is now Azerbaijan.

Georgia's legends link it with Colchis, the land of the Golden Fleece in the Jason myth; archaeologists at Dmanisi found some of the oldest human remains outside Africa, around 1.8 million years old. Armenia's Areni cave holds the oldest known winery, about 6,100 years old.

Russia absorbed the region in the early 19th century. After a brief independence in 1918–1921, all three were Soviet republics until 1991.

Armenia adopted Christianity as a state religion in 301 AD, traditionally the first country to do so; Georgia followed in the 330s. Both churches are among the oldest in the world and are independent of Rome and Constantinople. Stone churches with conical domes, and Armenia's carved stone crosses (khachkars), fill the landscape.

Each has its own alphabet: Armenian, created by Mesrop Mashtots around 405, and Georgian, with its rounded letters. Azerbaijan, majority Shia Muslim but strongly secular, writes Azerbaijani in a Latin alphabet adopted after 1991, close to Turkish.

Dress for churches: women cover their heads (scarves are usually lent at the door) and wear skirts in stricter Georgian monasteries; men remove hats. In mosques, remove shoes and cover arms and legs.

Nagorno-Karabakh, a mountainous region with an ethnic Armenian majority inside Soviet Azerbaijan, became the centre of a war as the USSR collapsed. Armenian forces won in 1994 and held the region and surrounding districts; about a million people were displaced on both sides. Turkey closed its border with Armenia in 1993 in solidarity with Azerbaijan.

Azerbaijan retook most of the territory in a 44-day war in 2020 and the rest in September 2023, after which nearly the entire Armenian population of Karabakh left for Armenia. In 2025 the two governments initialled a peace framework, but their shared border remains closed to travellers.

For visitors this means Yerevan and Baku are connected only by air via third countries, and evidence of past visits to Karabakh via Armenia can lead to refusal at Azerbaijan's border. Georgia, which borders both, is the practical hub for anyone visiting all three.

Georgia's two breakaway regions, Abkhazia on the Black Sea and South Ossetia in the north, split away in wars in the early 1990s. After a short war with Russia in August 2008, Russia recognised both as independent and stationed troops there; Georgia and most countries regard them as occupied.

Entering either region from Russia breaks Georgian law. The Upper Lars crossing on the Georgian Military Highway links Georgia with Russia, but most Western governments advise against all travel to Russia.

Since late 2024 Georgia has seen large protests over its government's direction and its stalled path to the EU. Life for visitors continues normally in most places, but avoid rallies.

Georgia claims about 8,000 years of winemaking. The traditional method ferments grapes with their skins in large clay jars called qvevri, buried in the ground — listed by UNESCO as intangible heritage. Amber 'orange' wines from Kakheti come from this method. A Georgian feast, the supra, is led by a toastmaster (tamada) who proposes long toasts; drink when the toast is made, not before.

Armenian cuisine centres on lavash flatbread baked in a clay tonir, grilled meat (khorovats), dolma and apricots; Yerevan's brandy has been famous since the 19th century. Azerbaijani cooking shares plov, kebabs and saffron with Iran and Central Asia, and tea is served from pear-shaped glasses with jam.

Georgian khachapuri (cheese bread) and khinkali (dumplings held by the knot and eaten by hand) are the dishes most visitors remember. Hospitality everywhere is generous: a guesthouse host may insist on refilling your glass; it is fine to say you have had enough.