Tbilisoba

Tbilisoba (Georgian: თბილისობა) is an annual October festival which celebrates the diversity and history of Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia.

The festival features open-air concerts of traditional music and dancing and various cultural events, centered on Old Tbilisi, the historical part of the city.

Beyond celebrating the city's past and present, people from all over Georgia represent their region at the fair of the harvest and Rtveli.

[1][2] Awarding honorary citizenship of Tbilisi by the city government also occurs in the framework of Tbilisoba.

[3] The festival was created at the initiative of Eduard Shevardnadze, then the First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic, to honor the capital and counter attendance at religious events as part of his program to overcome "manifestations of nationalism" through introducing new "socialist traditions".