Lazistan

Lazistan (Lazona in Laz, Lazeti in Georgian) was the Ottoman administrative name for the sanjak comprising the Laz or Lazuri speaking population on the southeastern shore of the Black Sea. It covered the land of the contemporary Rize Province. In ancient times the region was a part of Colchis. In Middle Ages, Before the 1578 this region was a part of Georgia. Since 1924, the territory has been divided between Turkey and Georgia.