Givi Shahnazar, renowned poet and translator, has died. The information was confirmed by the House of Writers.

Born on August 23, 1933, in Tbilisi, Shahnazar graduated from the Faculty of Oriental Studies at Tbilisi State University in 1951.

From 1984 to 1987, he served as the artistic director of the Tbilisi Armenian Drama Theater. He was a member of the State Council in 1992 and, since 1997, he held a position at the State Chancellery of Georgia focused on inter-ethnic relations. In 2015, he became the honorary citizen of Tbilisi.

Shahnazar published his first translations into Georgian in 1952. Among his notable works are “Sayatnova’s Poems” (1972), P. Sevak’s “Ikmenin Yatsav” (1978), and K. Wojtyła’s drama “In Front of the Goldsmith’s Workshop” (2000). He also translated works by Armenian poets such as G. Narekatsi, A. Isaakiani, and E. Charentsi, as well as Abkhazian and Ossetian poetry, and plays by A. Papayan and P. Zutunciniani.

He received several accolades, including the Eghishe Charentsi Award, the Ivane Machabeli Award, and the international Fritjof Nansen Prize. He was also honoured with the Order of Honor, the Order of Tbilisi Loyalty, the Saguramo Prize, and the Jemal Ajiashvili Prize.