Which language family does Georgian belong to?
The Kartvelian languages and Georgian's relatives.
Short answer
Georgian belongs to the Kartvelian, or South Caucasian, language family, which also includes Megrelian, Laz and Svan. It is unrelated to Slavic, Turkic or other Indo-European languages. About 4 million people speak Georgian, the state language of Georgia.
Why
- Its status as the state language is set in the Constitution; in Abkhazia, Abkhaz is also recognised as a state language.
- Georgian has its own 33-letter script, Mkhedruli.
- Georgian has no grammatical gender, and a verb can agree with several participants at once.
Details
Megrelian and Svan have no written standard and are spoken at home in Samegrelo and Svaneti. Laz is spoken mainly in Turkey.
Tip
If learning Georgian, don't look for similarities with Russian; memorising words from scratch is easier.
Common misconception
Georgian is related to Armenian or Turkish.
What actually happens
Georgian belongs to the Kartvelian family and is unrelated to Armenian or Turkic languages.
People also ask
- What language family is Georgian?
Sources
- Constitution of GeorgiaChecked at:
Information checked on October 3, 2026.
The Georgian alphabetRelated questions
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What language is spoken in Svaneti and Mingrelia?
The official language of Georgia, including Svaneti and Mingrelia, is Georgian, and the Svans have their own language and folklore.
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