Anna Mitrofanovna Anichkova (1868/1869 – 1935) was a Russian writer and translator who published under the pseudonym Ivan Strannik. She wrote fiction in both French and
Russian
Russian(s) may refer to:
*Russians (), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries
*A citizen of Russia
*Russian language, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages
*''The Russians'', a b ...
.
Life
Anna Mitrofanovna Avinova was born in the
Caucasus
The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region spanning Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is situated between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, comprising parts of Southern Russia, Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan. The Caucasus Mountains, i ...
. Some sources give 1868 as her year of birth, and others 1869. She married the literary critic
Evgeny Anichkov
Evgeny Vasilyevich Anichkov (, 14 January 1866, Borovichi, Novgorod Governorate, Russian Empire — 22 October 1937, Belgrade, Yugoslavia) was a Russian Literature, Russian literary critic and historian who specialised in the Slavic folklore and my ...
and moved to
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
in the late 1890s, establishing a
literary salon
A salon is a gathering of people held by a host. These gatherings often consciously followed Horace's definition of the aims of poetry, "either to please or to educate" (Latin: ''aut delectare aut prodesse''). Salons in the tradition of the Fren ...
there which attracted writers like
Anatole France
(; born ; 16 April 1844 – 12 October 1924) was a French poet, journalist, and novelist with several best-sellers. Ironic and skeptical, he was considered in his day the ideal French man of letters.Vlacheslav Ivanov. She wrote novels in French, and contributed to ''Revue de Paris'', ''Revue Bleu'' and ''Figaro''.
In 1909 the couple returned to Russia, and she began writing short fiction for the 'thick periodicals' there. After the
Russian Revolution
The Russian Revolution was a period of Political revolution (Trotskyism), political and social revolution, social change in Russian Empire, Russia, starting in 1917. This period saw Russia Dissolution of the Russian Empire, abolish its mona ...
in 1917 she concentrated on translation rather than fiction.