Tinatini Street

Overview

Tinatini Street (Georgian: თინათინის ქუჩა) is a residential street in Didi Dighomi, in the Saburtalo district of Tbilisi, in the north-west of the city. According to OpenStreetMap (OSM), it runs from north to south, from Mirian Mepe Street to Ilia Sheqlashvili Street, and is about 1.1 km long.

The street is named after Tinatin, a heroine of Shota Rustaveli’s poem The Knight in the Panther’s Skin (Vepkhistkaosani): the daughter of King Rostevan of Arabia and the beloved of the commander Avtandil. It belongs to a group of streets in Didi Dighomi named after the poem’s characters. Rostevani, Davari, Asmati, Ramazi, Fatmani, Khataeti, Shermadini and Vepkhistkaosani Streets are all nearby.

Location

According to OSM, the street consists of two sections with a total length of 1,143 m. The northern end is at Mirian Mepe Street (about 41.7875° N, 44.7593° E). The southern end is at Ilia Sheqlashvili Street (about 41.7772° N, 44.7592° E). The street is straight and runs almost exactly north–south. The midpoint is at about 41.7823° N, 44.7593° E.

From north to south, the street crosses or meets:

• Mirian Mepe Street (northern end)

• Vepkhistkaosani Street

• Davari Street

• Asmati Street

• Nino Abashidze-Orbeliani Street

• Ramazi Street

• Fatmani Street

• Eredvi Street

• Vakhtang Chelidze Street

• Khataeti Street

• Shermadini Street

• Paata Janiashvili Street

• Tsameti Asureli Mama (Thirteen Assyrian Fathers) Street

• Ilia Sheqlashvili Street (southern end)

In OSM, the whole street is mapped as an asphalt residential street without lane markings. Rostevani Street runs parallel to it about 0.4 km to the east.

Transport

There is no metro station near the street. Based on OSM coordinates, the nearest station, Ghrmaghele, is about 2.9 km in a straight line from the southern end of the street. From the middle of the street, Guramishvili station is about 3.1 km away in a straight line.

The name: Tinatin

In an article published on 27 February 2020, Tbilisi Post wrote that naming the unnamed streets of the new Didi Dighomi settlement after characters from The Knight in the Panther’s Skin caused much discussion at the time. Tinatini Street is on the article’s list, together with Rostevani, Avtandili, Tarieli, Asmati, Davari, Shermadini and other streets. We could not find the official naming decision or its date in public sources.

According to Georgian Wikipedia, the poem opens with the Arabian story of King Rostevan, Tinatin and Avtandil. Because of his old age, Rostevan wants his only daughter, Tinatin, to take the throne. Tinatin and the commander (spaspeti) Avtandil love each other. When Rostevan and Avtandil meet a weeping stranger in a panther’s skin while hunting and the stranger disappears, the king grows sad. Tinatin then gives Avtandil the task of finding the stranger, the knight Tariel. Wikipedia’s list of main characters describes Tinatin as Avtandil’s beloved, Rostevan’s daughter and his co-ruler.

The same article notes that most Rustaveli scholars see parallels between the enthronement of Tinatin in the poem and the historical crowning of Tamar by her father, King Giorgi III of Georgia.

Nearby places

• Church of the Thirteen Assyrian Fathers on Mirian Mepe Street, about 0.3 km from the northern end of the street.

• Public School No. 186, about 0.35 km north of the northern end of the street.

• Anbani (Alphabet) Park, about 0.5 km from the northern part of the street.

Distances are calculated from OSM coordinates, in a straight line.

FAQ

1) Where is Tinatini Street?
In Didi Dighomi, in the Saburtalo district of Tbilisi. It runs from Mirian Mepe Street in the north to Ilia Sheqlashvili Street in the south.

2) How long is the street?
About 1.1 km according to OpenStreetMap (two sections, 1,143 m in total).

3) Who is the street named after?
After Tinatin, a heroine of The Knight in the Panther’s Skin. According to a 2020 Tbilisi Post article, unnamed streets in the new Didi Dighomi settlement were given the names of characters from the poem, and Tinatini Street is on that list.

4) Who is Tinatin in the poem?
According to Georgian Wikipedia, she is the only daughter of King Rostevan of Arabia, who puts her on the throne because of his old age. She is the beloved of Avtandil and sends him to find the stranger knight Tariel.

5) When was the street given this name?
We could not find the official naming decision, so the date is not known.

6) Which streets does it cross?
From north to south: Mirian Mepe, Vepkhistkaosani, Davari, Asmati, Nino Abashidze-Orbeliani, Ramazi, Fatmani, Eredvi, Vakhtang Chelidze, Khataeti, Shermadini, Paata Janiashvili and Tsameti Asureli Mama Streets; it ends at Ilia Sheqlashvili Street.

7) What kind of street is it?
OpenStreetMap maps it as an asphalt residential street without lane markings.

8) Which street runs parallel to it?
Rostevani Street, about 0.4 km to the east.

9) What is the nearest metro station?
Ghrmaghele, about 2.9 km in a straight line from the southern end. From the middle of the street, Guramishvili station is about 3.1 km away.

10) What is nearby?
The Church of the Thirteen Assyrian Fathers (about 0.3 km), Public School No. 186 (about 0.35 km) and Anbani Park (about 0.5 km), all measured in a straight line from the northern part of the street.

Sources

• Tinatini Street (main section) — OpenStreetMap

• Tinatini Street (southern section) — OpenStreetMap

• Stories of Tbilisi streets (27 Feb 2020, in Georgian) — Tbilisi Post

• The Knight in the Panther’s Skin (Vepkhistkaosani) — Georgian Wikipedia

• Church of the Thirteen Assyrian Fathers — OpenStreetMap

• Public School No. 186 — OpenStreetMap