Mehmet KILDIROĞLU
Although the information, related to the Turkish history, especially provided by the Chinese, Byzantine, Arabic, Persian and Armenian sources have been brought to light by the researchers, the Georgian sources, with which we have been in relation for about a thousand years, have not been sufficiently researched. Information, regarding the Georgian history and the Turks, has not been presented to the Turkish researchers at a satisfactory level, except for a few studies translated into Turkish in recent years. However, highly valuable information, dating back to the Scythian period about the Turks, is available in the Georgian sources. Furthermore, the Georgian sources provide us with invaluable information unavailable in any other sources related to the Turks and the Kipchaks, dating back to the B.C. The name of Ardahan appears as Kaçta-Kalak, Hura, Artan, Artani, Artaan in Kartlis Çovreba, the Georgian Source. In addition, infinitely precious information on the history of Ardahan and the region is presented in the aforementioned source. Kartlis Çovreba, the Georgian source, was translated into French by M. Klaproth (1834) and M. F. Brosset (1849) in the mid 1800s, but no study has been done on that source in Turkey so far. Kartlis Çevroba, including the information dating back to 1212 and translated into French by M. F. Brosset, was not published until 2003, although it had been translated into Turkish years ago by Hrant Andreasyan. The mentioned study was prepared by historian Erdoğan Merçil with his own notes and published by the Turkish History Foundation in 2003. This study deals with the historical journey of the name of Ardahan cited in the Georgian sources.
Key words: Kaçta-Kalak, Artan, Artani, Artaan, Ardahan, Hura, Georgian, Kartlis Çhovreba.