Abashidze – Surname of Georgian princes and nobles from Imeretia.
In ancient times Abashidze’s ancestors, natives of India, held the highest honorable positions in Imeretia. In XVII and XVIII centuries they often reigned in Imeretia and ruled it as regents.
The word “Abash” is quite wrongly derived from the word “Abeshi” – Abyssinia. The word is Turkish and means commander-in-chief.
According to legend, in the battle on the bank of the river Abash (in Mingrelia), named so in memory of this event, two brothers – ancestors of the Abashidze family, were defeated by opponents; one of them fell on the battlefield, and the other survived, settled in Imeretia, and from him went the family of Abashidze, i.e. descendants of Abash.
Princes Abashidze owned fortress Shorapan (near Kvirila station), monasteries Dzhruch and Katskhi; monastery Dzhruch was forcibly seized by princes Tsereteli, monastery Katskhi still belongs to the family of prince Abashidze.
The successive list of generations goes back to Prince Paata Abashidze, who lived in the first half of the 17th century.