Tavadi

Tavadi (Georgian: თავადი) was a noble title in Georgia, translated into English as prince. The word derives from Georgian: თავი (tavi, "head"). By the late Middle Ages, the tavadi formed a hereditary rank of the Georgian nobility, distinct from and above the lesser nobles, the aznauri. According to Ronald Grigor Suny, tavadi, mtavari, and eristavi were overlapping designations for the upper nobility between the 11th and 14th centuries. Around the 12th century, tavadi emphasized the dynastic aspect of noble status, while didebuli expressed its feudal aspect. Cyril Toumanoff writes that by the end of the Middle Ages, mtavari tended to designate independent princes, while tavadi designated princes under royal overlordship, a relationship he describes as co-sovereignty. Some princely lordships developed from territories previously administered by eristavi, royal governors. In the 15th century, the districts of Aragvi, Ksani, and Racha became satavado, or princely lordships. Some families retained eristavi as a title or family name although their position had become that of tavadi. Suny uses tavadoba to describe the growing independence of princes between the 16th and 18th centuries, as their control of their territories increased and their ties to the monarchy weakened.