We live in beautiful valley, which is in a beautiful country. It is one piece of Georgia. It is Pankisi. Pankisi is in the north-east of Georgia, a part of Kakheti.
In Pankisi valley there is a most particular ethnic group, called Kist. The major population lives in the village Duisi. They are famous for their generosity and hospitality.
Who are Kists? Where did they come from? What do they have general with Georgians?
Many Kists came from Chechnia in the villages Puga and Maist. The climate in this places was very hard, so they decided to move in Georgia, in 1944.
At first they settled in other places, but today they live in Duisi, Omalo, Birkiani. After a while they got other religion, the become Muslims.
The closest Georgian village to Kists is Matani. Today all Pankisi is full of people and communication is very easy.
In the middle of Pankisi, there is a river called the Alazani. It comes from mount Borbalo and divides Pankisi in two parts.
This was famous from old days with its nature, sightseengs, faithful heroes such as Djokola Natsishvili, Ibraam Margoshvili, Kaney Bagakashvili, Usuf Margoshvili and others. All of them always tried to defend their motherland. Usuf Margoshvili set up the first school in the village.
Pankisi includes lots of villages and places: Khadory, Birkiani, Omalo, Duisi, kvareltskali, Sakobiano and more. Before this villages, Pankisi included: Kistneli, Kortskali, Baltagora, Marilis and others.
Because of Kists lived seperate from outside world, they managed to save their language. They go to Georgian schools, but anyway Kist language remains the communicative language. There is still a traditional law system and other interesting things they have kept for years.
If you want to know more about Pankisi, it`s culture, it’s religion, it`s rules, you should visit this place and see with your eyes all nature.