Growing up Russian in China

Overview

The central motif of this unique historical memoir is the life of the author's family in Dairen (now Dalian) during the Japanese occupation, then the Soviet occupation, and, finally, under the Chinese Communist Government. Ms. Erohina gave the background of the historical events which affected the lives of the Russians, the Chinese, and the Japanese during the Second World War and the postwar years.

She explains why the Russians lived in China, and how they not only preserved their culture and language but contributed greatly to the fields of science, music, and literature. Some lived there at the turn of the 20th Century as businessmen, and many came to Manchuria (now Northeast of the People's Republic of China) during the railway construction, which was a branch of the Trans-Siberian Railroad. The majority, however, came as refugees fleeing from the Bolsheviks during the Civil War that immediately followed the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917.

The Civil War split the people into the Reds, or the Bolsheviks, and the Whites, who opposed them. The authors' grandparents were among the refugees.

Family Movements and Experiences

Ms. Erohina described her family's move to Shanghai in 1954 as a transit point for the departure from China, and gave a detailed account of its early and postwar years, and its impact on the lives of Russian migrants. Then, followed the family's journey as refugees by sea from China via Hong Kong and many ports from Singapore to South Africa, and then to Brazil. She touched upon their life in São Paulo, Brazil in the 1950s, and then their trip to the United States in 1958 where the family finally settled.

About the Author

Author: Tatiana Erohina is a retired college language instructor. She was born and raised in NE China, lived in Brazil, and came to this country in 1958. She has an M.A. in literature from Ohio State University. When she retired, she wrote her unique historical memoir Growing Up Russian in China. She lives in Southern California.