The Aragvi (Georgian: არაგვი) and its basin are in Georgia on the southern slopes of the Caucasus Mountains.

The Zhinvali Dam and its 130 MW hydro-electric power station generate much of Georgia's power, and its construction in 1986 formed the Zhinvali Reservoir, upon whose north-western shores rises Ananuri castle with its 17th-century Church of the Assumption.

According to Iranologist Anahit Perikhanian, the name of the river derives from Old Iranian *Aragv(ī), from Proto-Iranian *Ragvī-, the feminine form of *ragu- 'swift' (compare Sanskrit raghvī́, feminine of raghú 'rapid', and Armenian arag/erag 'rapid', an Iranian borrowing).

[8] The 102 m (335 ft) high dam by Zhinvali is one of the largest in Georgia.

Besides generating up to 130 MW of electricity, the waters of the Aragvi travel down a 36.7 km (22.8 mi) pipe to provide drinking water in Tbilisi and to irrigate fields.