TELAV  , a

town of Russian Transcaucasia, in the government of Tiflis, 63 m . N.E. of the town of Tiflis, on the river Alazan and at an altitude of 2420 ft . Pop . (1897) 11,81o, chiefly Armenians (9000) and Georgians (2000) . Telav is a very old town, founded in 893, and until 1797 it was the capital of Kakhetia, and has ruins of old forts . In the neighbourhood are the Ikaltoi monastery (6th century), the Shuanty monastery (16th century), and the originally loth century Alaverdi church, visited by many pilgrims . Wine is exported .