
It has been in wide use among Caucasians from the 9th century until 1920s. Nowadays, chokha is no longer in use but continues to still be worn for ceremonial and festive occasions.
Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili made high-ranking Georgian officials working abroad to wear the national costume at official meetings. So, in the very center of Europe, in the 21st century, among the elegant ladies and gentlemen classic suits, you will find men in their Chokhas, and daggers around the waist.
There are Four types of Chokha worn among the Georgians:
In Georgia, the Black chokha was reserved to the "Order of Chokhosani". They represent the elite society of the citizens. These were people with special dedications such as: Great generals, heroes or some of the famous poets and the people who had done some big service to the country. Not even all of Lords were allowed in "Chokhosani Orden" and those who did proudly represented this rank in their clothing.
Chokha is sewn of thick fabric and is tight on the waist and wide on the bottom. In some parts of the Caucasus there are also female chokhas.
Generally, the chokha outfit includes a khanjali (the sword), the akhalukhi also know as the arkhalig (a shirt worn underneath the chokha), the gazyrs (the bullets), and the bashlyk (a hood, separate from the robe) or papakha (a tall fur hat).