Mtavari

Mtawari (Georgian: მთავარი, loosely translated as " ruler " ) was a title reign in Georgia and corresponds to a prince. From the 11th to the 14th century, the title as well as correlated Tawadi entitled eristavis and is a synonym for one of the upper aristocracy, a prince. During the heyday of the Kingdom of Georgia in the 12th - 13th Century the title turned into a hereditary title of nobility. In the 15th century, only the five reigning royal houses of Western Georgia ( Samtskhe, Samegrelo, Guria, Svaneti and Abkhazia ) were allowed to wear it until its autonomy was replaced by the rule of Russia.