The landscape created a huge number of sub-cultures in Georgia, but the people remained
united due to their many similarities as well as outside influences they avoided.
With the outside influences though, the culture became more focused on the mountains
as people fled to more inaccessible areas to maintain their historic culture, language,
and foods. This changed with the arrival of the Soviets in the 1900s.
Although the Russians arrived earlier, it wasn't until Soviet rule that life
in Georgia truly changed as a whole. The Soviets fought rural culture, urbanizing
many of the people and shifting their lifestyle to one based on the lands to one
based on industrialization and factories. Education changed and forced the Russian
language on the people, transportation changed, and technology changed. Nearly every
aspect of life changed, even the destruction of religion. Georgian culture suffered
greatly under Soviet rule, in part since Josef Stalin was an ethnic Georgian and
did his best to "revolutionize" the people, which meant changes were undertaken
with no mercy.
Since Soviet rule, much of the historic Georgian culture has returned, but some
aspects are still struggling or are lost. Today most of the people remain urbanized
and for many people jobs are focused on industry. The country has also grown more
diverse and also more divided. Many ethnic minorities in the mountains are now connected
to the country, but they have few similarities with the ethnic Georgians, creating
division. Many of these people are Muslim, while others cling more closely to Russia,
including in some areas with large ethnic Russian populations. Despite the differences,
Georgia is a country returning to its cultural roots, which nearly always seems
to be focused on good food, local wines, and incredible scenery.