Afro-Russians

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"Black Russians" redirects here. For the cocktail, see Black Russian.

Afro-Russians
Total population
50,000 (2009)
Regions with significant populations
Moscow, St. Petersburg, Rostov-on-Don, Oryol, Lipetsk, Astrakhan
Languages
Russian · Abkhaz · Niger–Congo languages · Nilo-Saharan languages · English · French
Religion
Christianity

Afro-Russians (Russian: Афророссияне, romanized: Afrorossiyane) or Black Russians are people of African descent that have migrated to and settled in Russia. The Metis Foundation estimates that there were about 50,000 Afro-Russians in 2009.[1]

Terminology[]

Representatives of African peoples in the Russian language are commonly called negry.[2] The word negr comes from Spanish: 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.[2][3]

Russian Empire[]

Bust of Abram Gannibal

There was never an observable number of people of African descent 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, a Russian of African descent, became a general and nobleman in the Russian Empire. After being kidnapped from Logone (in contemporary Cameroon) by Ottoman forces as a boy, he was sold to Russian diplomat Fedor Golovin[4] in 1704 and gifted to Tsar Peter the Great, who freed and adopted him.[4][5] As an adult, he rose to nobility, and served the Russian Empire in both civil and military capacities.[5] He is also a maternal great-grandfather to the famed Russian poet Alexander Pushkin.[4]

Early Soviet period[]

After the revolution several African-American families came to the Soviet Union 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 with his family; and many others. Some of them stayed in Russia and their descendants still live there.[citation needed]

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.[6] The first significant arrival of Africans was for the 6th World Festival of Youth and Students 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.

Notable Afro-Russians[]

Ivan Gannibal
Coretti Arle-Titz
  • Lyukman Adams (born 1988) – half-Nigerian triple jumper[7]
  • 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 (1696-1781) – statesman, military leader, and politician
  • Ivan Gannibal (1735–1801) – military leader, the son of Abram Gannibal[8]
  • Alexander Pushkin (1799–1837) – Russian poet, playwright and novelist, a descendant of Abram Gannibal
  • Alice Edun – half-Nigerian singer
  • Nkeirouka Ezekh (born 1983) – half-Nigerian Olympic curler[9]
  • Brian Idowu (born 1992) – three quarters-Nigerian Russian Premier League footballer
  • Victor Keyru (born 1984) – Sierra Leonian-Russian basketball player
  • Yelena Khanga (born 1962) – Russian journalist and TV anchor of Zanzibari-American descent[10]
  • Stanislav Lebamba (born 1988) – half-Congolese footballer[11]
  • Cyrille Makanda (born 1980) – half-Cameroonian basketball player
  • Avua-Siav Leo Nelson (born 1980) – half-Ghanaian footballer
  • Peter Odemwingie (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[12][13]
  • Jerry-Christian Tchuissé (born 1975) – Cameroonian-Russian footballer
  • Emiliya Turey (born 1984) – part-Sierra Leonean handball player
  • Grigory Siyatvinda (born 1970) – part-Zambian actor
  • Elladj Baldé (born 1990) – half-Guinean figure skater
  • Isabel dos Santos (born 1973) – half-Angolan businesswoman
  • Greta Onieogou (born 1991) - half Nigerian half Russian Canadian actress.

See also[]

  • Afro-Abkhazians

References[]

  1. ^ Gribanova, Lyubov "Дети-метисы в России: свои среди чужих" Archived 4 November 2008 at the Wayback Machine (in Russian). Nashi Deti Project. Retrieved 25 February 2010.
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b "Негры". Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary: In 86 Volumes (82 Volumes and 4 Additional Volumes). St. Petersburg. 1890–1907.;
    Negr Archived 24 May 2012 at the Wayback Machine // Dictionary of the Russian Language (Ozhegov): (first edition 1949, the reference to the edition of 1992 together with Natalia Shvedova).
  3. ^ This article includes content derived from the Great Soviet Encyclopedia, 1969–1978, which is partially in the public domain.
  4. ^ Jump up to: a b c Grinberg, Miriam (2009). "Pushkin and Gannibal: Ethnic Identity in Imperial Russia". The Gettysburg Historical Journal. 8: 61.
  5. ^ Jump up to: a b Catharine Theimer Nepomnyashchy; Nicole Svobodny; Ludmilla A. Trigos (2006). Under the Sky of My Africa: Alexander Pushkin and Blackness. Northwestern University Press. pp. 31, 47–49, 56, 63, 74. ISBN 0810119714.
  6. ^ Lily Golden & Lily Dixon "TV project «Black Russians»". Africana Project. Retrieved 25 February 2010.
  7. ^ Timur Ganeev (17 April 2012). "Russia's Olympic team becomes more diverse". Retrieved 16 August 2012.
  8. ^ "Ганнибал Иван Абрамович – Личности". www.korabel.ru (in Russian). Retrieved 16 June 2020.
  9. ^ I support Kenyans by the call of my blood
  10. ^ Eric Foner, "Three Very Rare Generations" (review of Soul to Soul), The New York Times, December 13, 1992.
  11. ^ Лебамбу ноги кормят
  12. ^ Narizhnaya, Kristina. "A Russian milestone: 1st black elected to office – World news – Europe – msnbc.com". MSNBC. Archived from the original on 27 July 2010. Retrieved 27 July 2010.
  13. ^ "Der erste schwarze Stadtrat Russlands – News Ausland: Europa". tagesanzeiger.ch. Retrieved 7 August 2010.

External links[]

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