Etymology

First attested in the 16th century.
Scholars have variously derived the toponym from Persian, Turkish, Mingrelian and Georgian. According to the most widespread hypothesis, the term goes back to earlier *ორზურგეთი ‎(*orzurgeti), meaning "two backs" (compound of ორი ‎(ori, “two”) +‎ ზურგი ‎(zurgi, “back”) suffixed with -ეთი ‎(-eti, “georgaphical suffix”)), referring to double-slope mountains which are characteristic to this region. Other inner-Georgian hypotheses have also been put forward, such as derivation from საზურგეთი ‎(sazurgeti) meaning "a strong sanctuary" and derivation from Georgian-Zan root *ზუგი ‎(“hill”).
According to the Persian etymology, the term should be a compound of خان ‎(“fire”) + آذر ‎(“house”), meaning "house of fire". This theory has not been universally accepted and was heavily criticized by scholars.
A modern folk etymology derives the term from Turkish and explains the literal meaning of the toponym as "kidnapped girl", claiming that this area was subjected to kidnapping and thieving during the Ottoman rule. Most of scholars deem this theory false.^[1]

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ɔzurɡɛtʰi/
• Hyphenation: ო‧ზურ‧გე‧თი