Simon Ivanovich Chikovani

Born Dec. 27, 1902 (Jan. 9,1903), in the village of Naesakovo, in what is now Gegechkori Raion, Georgian SSR; died Apr. 24, 1966, in Tbilisi. Soviet Georgian poet. Member of the CPSU from 1941.

The descendant of a noble family, Chikovani was a student in the department of philology of the University of Tiflis. He was first published in 1924. After a period of experimentation, Chikovani turned to vivid and expressive forms of realistic writing in the 1930’s. He became recognized as a master of gracefully constructed and picturesque images in such works as his cycles and verse collections The Gates of Nature, Let Me Pass, Mountain, and Colchis Evenings (1933.)

Chikovani’s collection Victory (1942) comprises his poems from the war years. His lyrical epic poem Song About David Guramishvili (1942–46; State Prize of the USSR, 1947) is devoted to the age-old ties and historical sources of friendship and brotherhood between the Georgian, Russian, and Ukrainian peoples. In such works as the cycle Giandzha Notebook, which deals with the fate of N. Baratashvili, and the cycle Autumn in Adzharia, the poet expressed his philosophical and social optimism and his love of life in psychologically profound meditations and controlled yet passionately lyrical dramatic monologues. Chikovani also wrote critical works dealing with Georgian, Russian, Ukrainian, and Armenian literatures.

Chikovani was head of the Writers’ Union of Georgia from 1944 to 1951, and he was a deputy to the third convocation of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR. Chikovani was awarded the Order of Lenin and three other orders as well as various medals.