HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Afro-Russians (russian: Афророссияне, Afrorossiyane) are people of African descent that have migrated to and settled in
Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...
. The Metis Foundation estimates that there were about 30,000 Afro-Russians in 2013.


Terminology

Representatives of African peoples in the Russian language have been commonly called .;
Negr
// Dictionary of the Russian Language (Ozhegov): (first edition 1949, the reference to the edition of 1992 together with Natalia Shvedova).
The word comes from es, negro (the color black in Spanish) through other European languages (german: Neger, french: nègre). In the Russian language the word does not carry a negative connotation, but that does not mean it is not offensive to others from other cultures.


Russian Empire

There was never an observable number of
people of African descent The African diaspora is the worldwide collection of communities descended from native Africans or people from Africa, predominantly in the Americas. The term most commonly refers to the descendants of the West and Central Africans who were e ...
in Russia, even after Western European colonization of the continent. For centuries Russia was too isolated to interact with Africa. Russia's non-involvement in the colonization of Africa or the Atlantic slave trade prevented it from developing significant relationships with African tribes or colonies. Despite this,
Abram Petrovich Gannibal Abram Petrovich Gannibal, also Hannibal or Ganibal, or Abram Hannibal or Abram Petrov ( ru , Абра́м Петро́вич Ганниба́л; c. 1696 – 14 May 1781), was a Russian military engineer, general-in-chief, and nobleman of Africa ...
, a Russian of princely African descent, became a general and nobleman in the
Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...
. After being kidnapped from Logone (in contemporary
Cameroon Cameroon (; french: Cameroun, ff, Kamerun), officially the Republic of Cameroon (french: République du Cameroun, links=no), is a country in west-central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west and north; Chad to the northeast; the C ...
) by Ottoman forces as a boy, he was sold to Russian diplomat
Fedor Golovin Fyodor Golovin may refer to: *Fyodor Alexeyevich Golovin Count Fyodor Alexeyevich Golovin (russian: Фёдор Алексеевич Головин; 1650 – ) was the last Russian boyar and the first Chancellor of the Russian Empire, he was ...
in 1704 and gifted to
Tsar Tsar ( or ), also spelled ''czar'', ''tzar'', or ''csar'', is a title used by East and South Slavic monarchs. The term is derived from the Latin word ''caesar'', which was intended to mean "emperor" in the European medieval sense of the ter ...
Peter the Great, who freed and adopted him. As an adult, he rose to nobility, and served the Russian Empire in both civil and military capacities. He is also a maternal great-grandfather to the famed Russian poet
Alexander Pushkin Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin (; rus, links=no, Александр Сергеевич ПушкинIn pre-Revolutionary script, his name was written ., r=Aleksandr Sergeyevich Pushkin, p=ɐlʲɪkˈsandr sʲɪrˈɡʲe(j)ɪvʲɪtɕ ˈpuʂkʲɪn, ...
.


Early Soviet period

After the revolution several African-American families came to the
Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...
under the auspices of the Comintern. Among them were Oliver John Golden and his wife Bertha Bialek, bringing with them a group of 16 Afro-American experts in the cultivation of cotton; well-known African-American poet Langston Hughes with a group of 22 filmmakers;
Paul Robeson Paul Leroy Robeson ( ; April 9, 1898 – January 23, 1976) was an American bass-baritone concert artist, stage and film actor, professional American football, football player, and activist who became famous both for his cultural accomplish ...
with his family; and many others. Some of them stayed in Russia and their descendants still live there.


Post-War, the Festival Children

When African nations gained independence from colonialism, the Soviet Union offered scholarships to young people from these nations. About 400,000 Africans studied in the former Soviet Union between the late 1950s and 1990. The first significant arrival of Africans was for the
6th World Festival of Youth and Students The 6th World Festival of Youth and Students was held from 28 July to 5 August 1957 in Moscow, capital city of the then Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. The festival attracted 34,000 people from 130 countries. This became possible after the po ...
held in Moscow in 1957. The mixed race African descended children were called festival children because of their appearance, timing of their birth, and lack of a father figure. Many Africans also attended the
Peoples' Friendship University of Russia The Peoples' Friendship University of Russia (russian: Российский университет дружбы народов), also known as RUDN University and, until 1992, Patrice Lumumba University in honor of the hero Patrice Lumumba, is a ...
.


Notable Afro-Russians

* Lyukman Adams (born 1988) – half-Nigerian triple jumper * Aleksandr Alumona (born 1983) – half-Nigerian footballer * Coretti Arle-Titz (1881–1951) – black American born actress and singer * Allan Dugblei (born 1985) – half-Ghanaian footballer *
Abram Gannibal Abram Petrovich Gannibal, also Hannibal or Ganibal, or Abram Hannibal or Abram Petrov ( ru , Абра́м Петро́вич Ганниба́л; c. 1696 – 14 May 1781), was a Russian military engineer, general-in-chief, and nobleman of Afric ...
(1696–1781) – statesman, military leader, and politician * Ivan Gannibal (1735–1801) – military leader, the son of Abram Gannibal *
Alexander Pushkin Alexander Sergeyevich Pushkin (; rus, links=no, Александр Сергеевич ПушкинIn pre-Revolutionary script, his name was written ., r=Aleksandr Sergeyevich Pushkin, p=ɐlʲɪkˈsandr sʲɪrˈɡʲe(j)ɪvʲɪtɕ ˈpuʂkʲɪn, ...
(1799–1837) – Russian poet, playwright and novelist, a descendant of Abram Gannibal * Alice Edun – half-Nigerian singer *
Nkeirouka Ezekh Nkeirouka Khilarievna "Kira" Ezekh (russian: Нкеирука (Кира) Хилариевна Езех; born October 17, 1983) is a Russian curler. She currently skips her own team out of Saint Petersburg. The team won the 2022 Russian Curli ...
(born 1983) – half-Nigerian Olympic curler * Brian Idowu (born 1992) – three quarters-Nigerian
Russian Premier League The Russian Premier League (RPL; russian: Российская премьер-лига; РПЛ), also written as Russian Premier Liga, is the top division professional association football league in Russia. It was established at the end of 2001 ...
footballer *
Victor Keyru Victor Johnovich Keyru (alternate spelling: Viktor Keirou) (russian: Виктор Джонович Кейру; born January 31, 1984) is a Russian former professional basketball player. Standing at , he played both the small forward and the shoot ...
(born 1984) – Sierra Leonian-Russian basketball player *
Yelena Khanga Yelena Abdulaevna Khanga (russian: Еле́на Абдула́евна Ха́нга), also transliterated as Elena Hanga (born May 1, 1962), is a Russian journalist who was raised in Moscow, USSR, and came to the United States in 1990 to write (w ...
(born 1962) – Russian journalist and TV anchor of Zanzibari-American descent * Stanislav Lebamba (born 1988) – half-Congolese footballerЛебамбу ноги кормят
/ref> *
Cyrille Makanda Cirill Makanda-Etogo (born 5 May 1980) is a Cameroonian-Russian former professional basketball player. Throughout his ten-year professional career, he has played for four teams in Russia, plus teams in Germany and France before joining APOEL B.C ...
(born 1980) – half-Cameroonian basketball player * Avua-Siav Leo Nelson (born 1980) – half-Ghanaian footballer *
Peter Odemwingie Peter Osaze Odemwingie (born 15 July 1981) is a retired Nigerian professional footballer who played as a forward and winger. Odemwingie grew up in Uzbekistan and Russia and began his career with Bendel Insurance in the Nigeria Premier League. ...
(born 1981) – half-Nigerian footballer * Adessoye Oyewole (born 1982) – half-Nigerian footballer * James Lloydovich Patterson (born 1933) – Russian child actor, naval officer, and poet of African-American and Ukrainian descent * Jean Sagbo (born 1959) – Beninese-Russian politician. Elected councilman of the town of Novozavidovo * Jerry-Christian Tchuissé (born 1975) – Cameroonian-Russian footballer *
Emiliya Turey Emiliya Khalsberiyevna Turey (russian: Эмилия Халсбериевна Турей; born 6 October 1984 in Astrakhan) is a Russian handballer who plays as a left wing. She is a three-time World Champion (2005, 2007 & 2009), silver medalist ...
(born 1984) – part-Sierra Leonean handball player *
Grigory Siyatvinda Grigory Davidovich Siyatvinda (russian: Григорий Дэвидович Сиятвинда; born 26 April 1970) is a Russian stage and film actor, Merited Artist of the Russian Federation (2006), State Prize of the Russian Federation laurea ...
(born 1970) – part-Zambian actor *
Elladj Baldé Elladj Baldé (born November 9, 1990) is a Canadian former competitive figure skater. He won the 2015 Nebelhorn Trophy, an ISU Challenger Series event. He is the 2008 Canadian Junior champion. Personal life Elladj Baldé was born November 9 ...
(born 1990) – half-Guinean figure skater *
Isabel dos Santos Isabel dos Santos (; born 20 April 1973) is an Angolan businesswoman, the eldest child of Angola's former President José Eduardo dos Santos, who ruled the country as a dictator from 1979 to 2017. Once considered Africa's richest woman accordi ...
(born 1973) – half-Angolan businesswoman * Greta Onieogou (born 1991) – half Nigerian half Russian Canadian actress


See also

* Afro-Abkhazians


References


External links


Funmetis a Foundation for Afro-Russian Children
*
Article "Afro-Russians"
from '' Rossiyskaya Gazeta'' *
Article "Black Man"
from ''Online Vremya''
Василий из "Чернобыля". История реального ликвидатора [ENG SUBS]
{{Authority control African diaspora in Europe Ethnic groups in Russia
Russian Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including: *Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...