Tskhinvali

Tskhinvali (also spelled Cchinvali) (ge.: ცხინვალი), is the capital of separatist regionSouth Ossetia, a breakaway region of Georgia. From 1934 to 1961, the city was named Staliniri, after Joseph Stalin. Ossetians call the city Tskhinval, choosing to leave off the 'i', which is Nominative case ending in Georgean.

It is located on the Great Liakhvi river approximately 100 km (62 miles) northwest of the Georgian capital Tbilisi. The city had a population of 42,934 in 1989. It is essentially an industrial center, with lumber mills and manufacturing plants.

During the 1991-1992 conflict with Georgia, the city was damaged by fighting between Ossetian separatists and Georgian government forces. It is now generally peaceful, although significantly impoverished in the absence of a permanent political settlement between the two sides.