Jubilee
Varlam Topuria was born in Jenuary 8, on 1901, in the village Ontopho of the Abasha region. He got his elementary education in the school of the village Dzveli Senaki. Then he continued the education in the Georgian Gymnasium of Kutaisi, which ended in 1918. In the same year he entered in Tbilisi State University.
All his life V. Topuria devoted to university. During his student life Topuria worked as a corrector of the journal “Messenger of Tbilisi University”. From 1923 he was reading the course of lection on common linguistics in Tbilisi Pedagogical Institute. From 1926 by the recomendation of prof. A. Shanidze and prof. G. Akhvlediani he was invited as a lector in Tbilisi University. Just in Tbilisi University the talent of Topuria was opened. V. Topuria is the founder of the course of Georgian language.
Prof. V. Topuria made a solid contribution in history of Georgian linguistics. He was a great scientist and perfect researcher. His scientifical field was large and included the most problems of structure and history of Georgian and Caucasian linguistics. He has a fundamental researches on Georgian language, comparative phonetics, morphology, syntax of Kartvelian languages, also on the general questions of lexicology.
The first work of V. Topuria “Case of syntaxical analogy in Georgian language on the base of dialectical dates” was published in 1923, in journal “Chveni Metsniereba” (“Our Science”).
In 1923-24 V. Topuria was studied the Kartli and Javakheti dialects and in 1958 the Racha-Lechkhumi one. As a result of this work the first volume (700 pages) of the monography “Georgian Dialectology” with co-authors of I. Gigineishvili and I. Kavtaradze was published in 1961. This fundamental work is a reference book for interesting of Georgian dialects. V. Topuria’s works about common and Kartvelian dialectology are still important. By this way we have to mention his generalize work “The condition and problems of studying of Georgian dialectology” (1963). By the inisiative of A. Shanidze in 1939 V. Topuria began to publish the series of the “Svan Textes”.
In 1935 V. Topuria supported the doctor's thesis. After the year he was elected professor of the chair of Georgian language. From 1945 till his death – 21 August, 1966 – V. Topuria was the head of the chair of Georgian language. Besides the Kartvelian languages he studied also the Luck language. V. Topuria was a supporter of the theory of relationship of Kartvelian and Caucasian languages.
One of the most important problem of his scientifical field was the normalization of orthography of the Georgian literary language. In 1941 was published the "Orthographical dictionary of Georgian language for pupils" with co-author of I. Gigineishvili. And in 1968 was published the "Orthographical dictionary of Georgian language". In 1998 the Arn. Chikobava prize was awarded to this dictionary.
We have to mention separately his work as a lexikographer. In 1936-46 he was a head of the department of lexicography in Institute of Language, History and Material Culture. He was a member of the general editorial board of the “Explanatory dictionary of Georgian language” and was an editor of the III vol. V. Topuria with other editors were awarded the State Prize of GSSR. In 2000 was published the “Svan dictionary” (900 pages) selected by V. Topuria with M. Kaldani. V. Topuria is one of the editors of the “Russian-Georgian dictionary” published by Institute of Linguistics of the Georgian Academy of Sciences.
We also have to mention the pedagogical work of V. Topuria. Under his guidance many kartvelologists and caucasiologists have supported their scientifical thesis, among them are I. Abdulaev and A. Amaev.
In 1944 V. Topuria was elected academician of the Georgian Academy of Sciences.
In 1946 he was deserved the title of Honoured Worker of Science.
V. Topuria was very sympathetik and kind man and each student and coleague felt this. V. Topuria left the life early, but he made so much and his work is so important and we belive that future researchers will anderstand how advanced was his scientifical ideas.
G. Burchuladze
Arn. Chikobava Tbilisi Institute of Linguistics