Soviet Period

The annexion of Georgia to the Soviet Union in 1921 first led to a forced organization of all Georgian writers in the "Union of New Literature" (ახალი მწერლობის კავშირი) and later the massacres among the intelligentsia by Ordzhonikidze in 1923 and Beria 1936-38, which killed a quarter of Georgia's writers. Also, the Second World War took its toll among the young Georgian writers. The survivors of the purges and writing collaborators mostly published under what became known as the Soviet Realism and real talents were few.

Exceptions came from the niches in Soviet Georgia, e.g. from high-quality Georgian translations from foreign literatures and from new Georgian dictionaries and grammars.

Works of higher quality were published by Mikheil Javakhishvili (მიხეილ ჯავახიშვილი), even with subtle critizism of the Soviet society. e.g. "Arsena Marbdeli" (არსენა მარაბდელი), "Kvachi Kvachantiradze and his Adventures" (კვაჭი კვაჭანტირაძე და მისი თავგადასავალი) and "Jaqo's Disposessed" (ჯაყოს ხიზნები).

Even in the early 20th century, Georgia had almost no well-known women writers. This was due to Stalinistic politics and Georgian customs. Some exceptions were Ekaterine Gabashvili (ეკატერინე გაბაშვილი), Anastasia Eristavi-Khoshtaria (ანასტასია ერისთავი-ხოშტარია) and Nino Nakashidze (ნინო ნაკაშიძე), the publisher of the children's litrature journal Nakaduli (ნაკადული).

Some writers profited from the Soviet Realism because it fit their own style of writing, for example Vasil Barnovi (ვასილ ბარნოვი).

In Kutaisi a group of symbolist writers formed the "Blue Horns" (ცისფერყანწელები) in 1916, among them Grigol Robakidze (გრიგოლ რობაკიძე), Tidzain Tabidze (ტიციან ტაბიძე), Paolo Iashvili (პაოლო იაშვილი), Valerian Gaprindashvili (ვალერიან გაფრინდაშვილი) and Galaktion Tabidze (გალაქტიონ ტაბიძე). Robakidze's better known works include "The Snake Skin" (გველის პერანგი) and "Lamara" (ლამარა).

The best-known prose writer of this period was Konstantine Gamsakhurdia (კონსტანტინე გამსახურდია). He is known for pieces like "Khogay's Mindia" (ხოგაის მინდია) and "The Right Hand of the Master" (დიდოსტატის მარჯვენა).

Other notable writers of this period include Nodar Dumbadze (ნოდარ დუმბაძე), Otar Chiladze (ოთარ ჭილაძე), Revaz Mishveladze (რევაზ მიშველაძე) ...

After Georgia's new independence in 1989, its literature entered the Contemporary Period.