Which first president of Georgia declared Mother's Day on March 3?

Zviad Gamsakhurdia, Georgia’s first president, declared Mother’s Day for March 3. The date was established in 1991, when Georgia was emerging from the Soviet Union and building its own national calendar.

March 3 is unusual because Georgia also observes International Women’s Day on March 8. The two occasions therefore coexist: Mother’s Day focuses specifically on mothers and motherhood, while March 8 has a broader international focus on women’s rights and recognition.

Gamsakhurdia served as chairman of Georgia’s Supreme Council before becoming the country’s first president in 1991. His presidency was brief and politically turbulent, ending after a coup in 1992, but the March 3 observance remained part of Georgia’s public tradition.

This Georgian date should not be confused with the U.S. Mother’s Day, which falls on the second Sunday in May, or with Mothering Sunday in the United Kingdom, which is tied to the Christian calendar.