Russian Australians comprise Australian citizens who have full or partial Russian heritage or people who emigrated from Russia and reside in Australia.
Early naval contact
In 1807 the
sloop
A sloop is a sailboat with a single mast typically having only one headsail in front of the mast and one mainsail aft of (behind) the mast. Such an arrangement is called a fore-and-aft rig, and can be rigged as a Bermuda rig with triangular ...
''Neva'' sailed to
Port Jackson
Port Jackson, consisting of the waters of Sydney Harbour, Middle Harbour, North Harbour and the Lane Cove and Parramatta Rivers, is the ria or natural harbour of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The harbour is an inlet of the Tasman ...
, under the command of
Captain lieutenant
Captain lieutenant or captain-lieutenant is a military rank, used in a number of navies worldwide and formerly in the British Army.
Northern Europe Denmark, Norway and Finland
The same rank is used in the navies of Denmark (), Norway () and Finl ...
Ludwig von Hagemeister
Ludwig Karl August von Hagemeister (russian: Лео́нтий Андриа́нович Гагеме́йстер; Leontij Andrianovic Gagemejster;Baltic, Alix. ''The Baltic Connection in Russian America.'' Jahrbücher für Geschichte Osteuropas ...
, where it loaded provisions on its way to
Russian America
Russian America (russian: Русская Америка, Russkaya Amerika) was the name for the Russian Empire's colonial possessions in North America from 1799 to 1867. It consisted mostly of present-day Alaska in the United States, but a ...
. As this was the first
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 ...
vessel to travel to the Australian mainland, this is occasionally considered the start of relations between Australian colonies and Russia.
[Mikhail Protopopov ''Russians in Australia'' Vestnik January/February 2007
]
Contacts continued in 1820 when the Russian ships ''Vostok'' (meaning 'East'), and the ''Mirny'' (Peaceful), under the command of captains
Mikhail Lazarev
Admiral Mikhail Petrovich Lazarev (russian: Михаил Петрович Лазарев, 3 November 1788 – 11 April 1851) was a Russian fleet commander and an explorer.
Education and early career
Lazarev was born in Vladimir, a scion of the ...
and
Fabian Gottlieb von Bellingshausen
Fabian Gottlieb Thaddeus von Bellingshausen (russian: Фадде́й Фадде́евич Беллинсга́узен, translit=Faddéy Faddéevich Bellinsgáuzen; – ) was a Russian naval officer, cartographer and explorer, who ultimatel ...
, visited Port Jackson. They sought provisions and repairs on several occasions during an expedition to explore
Antarctica
Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean, it contains the geographic South Pole. Antarctica is the fifth-largest co ...
that
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 te ...
Alexander I Alexander I may refer to:
* Alexander I of Macedon, king of Macedon 495–454 BC
* Alexander I of Epirus (370–331 BC), king of Epirus
* Pope Alexander I (died 115), early bishop of Rome
* Pope Alexander I of Alexandria (died 320s), patriarch of ...
had promoted. Until the middle of the 19th century, only a few dozen
Russians
, native_name_lang = ru
, image =
, caption =
, population =
, popplace =
118 million Russians in the Russian Federation (2002 ''Winkler Prins'' estimate)
, region1 =
, pop1 ...
,
Ukrainians
Ukrainians ( uk, Українці, Ukraintsi, ) are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Ukraine. They are the seventh-largest nation in Europe. The native language of the Ukrainians is Ukrainian. The majority of Ukrainians are Eastern Or ...
,
Lithuanians
Lithuanians ( lt, lietuviai) are a Balts, Baltic ethnic group. They are native to Lithuania, where they number around 2,378,118 people. Another million or two make up the Lithuanian diaspora, largely found in countries such as the Lithuanian Ame ...
,
Latvians
Latvians ( lv, latvieši) are a Baltic ethnic group and nation native to Latvia and the immediate geographical region, the Baltics. They are occasionally also referred to as Letts, especially in older bibliography. Latvians share a common La ...
,
Finns
Finns or Finnish people ( fi, suomalaiset, ) are a Baltic Finnic ethnic group native to Finland.
Finns are traditionally divided into smaller regional groups that span several countries adjacent to Finland, both those who are native to these ...
and other
émigré
An ''émigré'' () is a person who has emigrated, often with a connotation of political or social self- exile. The word is the past participle of the French ''émigrer'', "to emigrate".
French Huguenots
Many French Huguenots fled France follow ...
s from the
Russian empire
The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the List of Russian monarchs, 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 th ...
were resident in Australia, which was still a part of the
British Empire
The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading post ...
.
Russian ships visited Australia throughout the 19th century and a number of Russian seamen absconded from their ships to settle permanently in Australia. Religious sects, including the
Mennonites
Mennonites are groups of Anabaptist Christian church communities of denominations. The name is derived from the founder of the movement, Menno Simons (1496–1561) of Friesland. Through his writings about Reformed Christianity during the Ra ...
and
Doukhobors
The Doukhobours or Dukhobors (russian: духоборы / духоборцы, dukhobory / dukhobortsy; ) are a Spiritual Christian ethnoreligious group of Russian origin. They are one of many non-Orthodox ethno-confessional faiths in Russia ...
, made plans to send up to 40,000 settlers to Australia and
New Guinea
New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; id, Papua, or , historically ) is the world's second-largest island with an area of . Located in Oceania in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is separated from Australia by the wide Torr ...
but after much debate in the Russian press, and 2,000 applications to emigrate, this mass emigration did not materialise.
The Russian Imperial Navy
corvette ''
Bogatyr
A bogatyr ( rus, богатырь, p=bəɡɐˈtɨrʲ, a=Ru-богатырь.ogg) or vityaz ( rus, витязь, p=ˈvʲitʲɪsʲ) is a stock character in medieval East Slavic legends, akin to a Western European knight-errant. Bogatyrs appear ma ...
'' made a friendly visit to
Melbourne
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/ Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a me ...
and Sydney in 1863. Information from
Polish deserters pointed to Russian plans to attack Australia in support of
the Union cause. (See
Australia and the American Civil War: Imperial Russian Navy)
[THE RUSSIAN CORVETTE "BOGATYR" IN MELBOURNE AND SYDNEY IN 1863](_blank)
In 1882 three
Russian Navy ships – the ''Africa'', ''Vestnik'' (Herald or Messenger) and ''Plastun'' – made port in Melbourne, sparking renewed fears in the press of a Russian invasion. A brief mobilisation of defence forces ensued before the lack of aggressive intent was made clear. In 1885 concerned British colonists thought a Russian invasion was again imminent and built
Bare Island Fort to protect "Sydney's back door" in
Botany Bay
Botany Bay ( Dharawal: ''Kamay''), an open ocean
The ocean (also the sea or the world ocean) is the body of salt water that covers approximately 70.8% of the surface of Earth and contains 97% of Earth's water. An ocean can also refe ...
Waves of emigration

Up to 250,000 people a year emigrated from the
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the List of Russian monarchs, 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 th ...
to countries such as the United States, Canada,
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, t ...
and
Brazil
Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
towards the end of the 19th century. Australia was a much less popular destination, with only 300 Russians leaving for Australia in 1890. According to the Census in 1891, the number of Russians living in Australia was 2881, comprising 2350 men and 531 women.
The first wave 1880–1905
The first major wave of Russian emigrants to Australia began in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, largely
Jew
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""T ...
s from the
Baltic
Baltic may refer to:
Peoples and languages
*Baltic languages, a subfamily of Indo-European languages, including Lithuanian, Latvian and extinct Old Prussian
*Balts (or Baltic peoples), ethnic groups speaking the Baltic languages and/or originatin ...
and south west of Russia escaping
anti-Semitism
Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism.
Ant ...
and a wave of
pogrom
A pogrom () is a violent riot incited with the aim of massacring or expelling an ethnic or religious group, particularly Jews. The term entered the English language from Russian to describe 19th- and 20th-century attacks on Jews in the Russian ...
s which raged in the wake of Tsar
Alexander II's assassination on 1 March (old calendar) 1881. The number of Russians according to the Australian census is shown in table below.
By the time of the formation of the Australian Commonwealth in 1901, a total of 3,358 Russians were resident in the newly created country, comprising 1,262 in
New South Wales
)
, nickname =
, image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates:
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, es ...
, 954 in
Victoria
Victoria most commonly refers to:
* Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia
* Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada
* Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory
* Victoria, Seychelle ...
, 454 in
Queensland
)
, nickname = Sunshine State
, image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, established_ ...
, 251 in
South Australia
South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...
, 400 in
Western Australia
Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to ...
and 37 in Tasmania. Most emigrants had come via England at this time, but in the future many travelled via the newly opened
Trans-Siberian railway
The Trans-Siberian Railway (TSR; , , ) connects European Russia to the Russian Far East. Spanning a length of over , it is the longest railway line in the world. It runs from the city of Moscow in the west to the city of Vladivostok in the eas ...
and ports in the far east, which provided a quicker and cheaper route. Letters from Antipodean emigrants were commonly published in the Russian press and had the effect of encouraging potential emigrants to consider this exotic new land as a possible destination.
The second wave 1905–1917
A second wave occurred between the defeat of Russia in the
Russian-Japanese War
The Russo-Japanese War ( ja, 日露戦争, Nichiro sensō, Japanese-Russian War; russian: Ру́сско-япóнская войнá, Rússko-yapónskaya voyná) was fought between the Empire of Japan and the Russian Empire during 1904 and 1 ...
in 1905, the
revolution
In political science, a revolution (Latin: ''revolutio'', "a turn around") is a fundamental and relatively sudden change in political power and political organization which occurs when the population revolts against the government, typically due ...
of that year and the
February Revolution in 1917. These migrants comprised political opponents of the Czarist regime and defectors from compulsory military service in the Russian armed forces. According to
Alexander Nikolayevich Abaza
Alexander Nikolayevich Abaza (russian: Алекса́ндр Никола́евич Абаза́; 4 August 1872 – 6 November 1925) was a Russian diplomat who served as the last Russian consul-general in Australia before the October Revolution o ...
, the Russian General Consul in Australia in 1914, there were 12,000 people from the Russian empire in Australia out of a total population of 4.5 million. The lure of Australia's democracy and social mobility outweighed the hardships which many of the emigres suffered in their first years, often in labouring jobs due to their lack of English.
During the
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
no less than one quarter of all the Russian males living in Australia served in the Australian Army.
[Elena Govor, Russian Anzacs in Australian History, Sydney, UNSW Press . Cited by ] By percentage it was more than for the general Australian population.
[ There were more Russian nationals serving in the Australian Army than nationals from any other non-Anglo-Saxon country. Many more applied but were rejected either because of poor command of English or because of their medical conditions.][ Many of the recruits were motivated by their gratitude to their new country. Another important factor was the policy of Consul-General Abaza, who lobbied for the forceful return of all Russian nationals who would not serve in Russian Army (unlike Australia, Russia had a mandatory military service policy).][
No less than 150 Russian nationals in the ]Australian and New Zealand Army Corps
The Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) was a First World War army corps of the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force. It was formed in Egypt in December 1914, and operated during the Gallipoli campaign. General William Birdwood comm ...
participated in the Battle of Gallipoli. No less than 400 Russians were among ANZAC
The Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) was a First World War army corps of the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force. It was formed in Egypt in December 1914, and operated during the Gallipoli campaign. General William Birdwood comm ...
s on the Western Front Western Front or West Front may refer to:
Military frontiers
*Western Front (World War I), a military frontier to the west of Germany
*Western Front (World War II), a military frontier to the west of Germany
*Western Front (Russian Empire), a majo ...
in 1916.[
]
The third wave 1917–1939
The Australian Government placed an embargo on immigration from Russia between 1917 and 1922 due to the Russian revolution and subsequent Russian Civil War
{{Infobox military conflict
, conflict = Russian Civil War
, partof = the Russian Revolution and the aftermath of World War I
, image =
, caption = Clockwise from top left:
{{flatlist,
*Soldiers ...
. After the lifting of this prohibition after the defeat of the white movement, a third wave of Russians migrated to Australia in the 1920s after the defeat of the White Army
The White Army (russian: Белая армия, Belaya armiya) or White Guard (russian: Бѣлая гвардія/Белая гвардия, Belaya gvardiya, label=none), also referred to as the Whites or White Guardsmen (russian: Бѣлогв� ...
by the Bolshevik
The Bolsheviks (russian: Большевики́, from большинство́ ''bol'shinstvó'', 'majority'),; derived from ''bol'shinstvó'' (большинство́), "majority", literally meaning "one of the majority". also known in English ...
forces. These were known as the White emigre
White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...
s. Many of these refugees embarked from Manchuria
Manchuria is an exonym (derived from the endo demonym "Manchu") for a historical and geographic region in Northeast Asia encompassing the entirety of present-day Northeast China (Inner Manchuria) and parts of the Russian Far East ( Outer ...
, having been driven to Siberia
Siberia ( ; rus, Сибирь, r=Sibir', p=sʲɪˈbʲirʲ, a=Ru-Сибирь.ogg) is an extensive geographical region, constituting all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has been a part o ...
by the rampant Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army (Russian language, Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist R ...
.
The fourth wave 1945–1960
A fourth wave of emigrants came to Australia after the Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
, comprising Russian prisoners of war and displaced Russian citizens. These people faced persecution in Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvili; – 5 March 1953) was a Georgian revolutionary and Soviet political leader who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until his death in 1953. He held power as General Secret ...
's 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, ...
, being seen as collaborators or contaminated with dangerous Western influences. Many Russians, fearing forced repatriation to the Soviet Union where they faced death in the Gulag
The Gulag, an acronym for , , "chief administration of the camps". The original name given to the system of camps controlled by the State Political Directorate, GPU was the Main Administration of Corrective Labor Camps (, )., name=, group= ...
, claimed to be Polish to escape Stalin's dictat that all Soviet citizens must return. There had been a large influx of Russian Orthodox
Russian Orthodoxy (russian: Русское православие) is the body of several churches within the larger communion of Eastern Orthodox Christianity, whose liturgy is or was traditionally conducted in Church Slavonic language. Most C ...
refugees from China following the Japanese invasion of Manchuria in 1931 and more fled Mao Zedong
Mao Zedong pronounced ; also Romanization of Chinese, romanised traditionally as Mao Tse-tung. (26 December 1893 – 9 September 1976), also known as Chairman Mao, was a Chinese communist revolutionary who was the List of national founde ...
's rise to power after the defeat of the Chinese Nationalist
Chinese nationalism () is a form of nationalism in the People's Republic of China (Mainland China) and the Republic of China on Taiwan which asserts that the Chinese people are a nation and promotes the cultural and national unity of all Chi ...
Army. Refuge in Australia for the Russian colony in China was negotiated by archbishop John of Shanghai. His success in negotiations with the Labor
Labour or labor may refer to:
* Childbirth, the delivery of a baby
* Labour (human activity), or work
** Manual labour, physical work
** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer
** Organized labour and the labour ...
Government of Ben Chifley
Joseph Benedict Chifley (; 22 September 1885 – 13 June 1951) was an Australian politician who served as the 16th prime minister of Australia from 1945 to 1949. He held office as the leader of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) from 1945, follo ...
is sometimes seen as a miracle
A miracle is an event that is inexplicable by natural or scientific lawsOne dictionary define"Miracle"as: "A surprising and welcome event that is not explicable by natural or scientific laws and is therefore considered to be the work of a divi ...
proving John's sainthood
In religious belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and denomination. In Catholic, Eastern Orth ...
. Several Russian born emigrants to Australia have published accounts of their escapes from Soviet Russia and Communist China, including Alex Saranin's 'Child of the Kulaks' and 'The Tarasov Saga' by Igor Ivashkoff (Gary Nash).
Alexander Kerensky
Alexander Fyodorovich Kerensky, ; original spelling: ( – 11 June 1970) was a Russian lawyer and revolutionary who led the Russian Provisional Government and the short-lived Russian Republic for three months from late July to early Novembe ...
, the leader of the Russian Provisional Government overthrown by the Bolsheviks
The Bolsheviks (russian: Большевики́, from большинство́ ''bol'shinstvó'', 'majority'),; derived from ''bol'shinstvó'' (большинство́), "majority", literally meaning "one of the majority". also known in English ...
in 1917, lived in Brisbane in 1945-6 with the family of his terminally ill wife.
The fifth wave – Russians in Australia today
The 2006 Census revealed Australia had a Russian-born population of 15,354. Most Russian-born residents live in Melbourne
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/ Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a me ...
(5,407) or Sydney (5,367). A significant portion of Russian-born residents are women (62%), and most (69%) had arrived in Australia no earlier than 1990. Also at the 2006 Census 67,055 Australian residents declared that they had Russian ancestry, either alone or in combination with one other ancestry.
Whereas previously many Russian immigrants were Jewish
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
, in recent years Jewish emigration has been less evident. Notable Russian emigrates include boxer Boxer most commonly refers to:
*Boxer (boxing), a competitor in the sport of boxing
*Boxer (dog), a breed of dog
Boxer or boxers may also refer to:
Animal kingdom
*Boxer crab
* Boxer shrimp, a small group of decapod crustaceans
* Boxer snipe eel, ...
Kostya Tszyu
Konstantin Borisovich "Kostya" Tszyu (; rus, Константин Борисович «Костя» Цзю, , kənstɐnʲˈtʲin bɐˈrisəvʲɪtɕ ˈkosʲtʲə ˈdzːʲu; born 19 September 1969) is a Russian Australian former professional b ...
and pole vault
Pole vaulting, also known as pole jumping, is a track and field event in which an athlete uses a long and flexible pole, usually made from fiberglass or carbon fiber, as an aid to jump over a bar. Pole jumping competitions were known to the My ...
champion Tatiana Grigorieva
Tatiana Vladimirovna Grigorieva (; born 8 October 1975 in Saint Petersburg, Leningrad, Soviet Union) is a retired Australian pole vaulter. She retired from the sport in 2007 after a 10-year career that saw her win Olympic, Commonwealth and World ...
, who won a silver medal in the 2000 Sydney Olympics
The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and also known as Sydney 2000 (Dharug language, Dharug: ''Gadigal 2000''), the Millennium Olympic Games or the Games of the New Millennium, was an international multi-sport ...
and noted Constitutional jurist Liubov Poshevelya.
Sydney's Bondi Beach
Bondi Beach is a popular beach and the name of the surrounding suburb in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Bondi Beach is located east of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of Waverley Council, in the Eas ...
is a popular area for Russian and Russian-Jewish migrants, with several restaurants and specialist shops catering to their needs. However, Russians live throughout New South Wales and Australia with less concentration in certain areas as might have been in the early waves of immigration. The traditional centres such as Strathfield and Sydney's Bondi are ever-changing communities catering to new people and services such as language schools and churches have not been well distributed beyond these areas since the 1980s. There is no language school, church or related services (for example) available in the northern suburbs of Sydney, despite Russians and other Slavic Europeans taking to the area in the recent waves of migration. The Australian Russian community is served nationally by Russian language radio broadcasting team at SBS Special Broadcasting Service
The Special Broadcasting Service (SBS) is an Australian hybrid-funded public service broadcaster. About 80 percent of funding for the company is derived from the Australian Government. SBS operates six TV channels ( SBS, SBS Viceland, SBS Wor ...
Government radio station which broadcasts in 58 community languages.
According to Russian Federal State Statistics Service there are about 1200 Russians who left Russia for Australia from 2000 to 2008. Roughly 170 Russians leave Russia for Australia every year.
The Russian Orthodox Church in Australia
The first Russian Orthodox parish in Australia was founded in Brisbane
Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...
in 1925. The parish church of St Nicholas there (now St Nicholas Russian Orthodox Cathedral
St Nicholas Russian Orthodox Cathedral is a heritage-listed cathedral at 330–334B Vulture Street, Kangaroo Point, Queensland, Australia. It was designed by Gregory Mechonoshin and Cavanagh and Cavanagh and built from 1935 to 1950s by B Rob ...
) was intended to be a monument to the Tsar-martyr Nicholas II
Nicholas II or Nikolai II Alexandrovich Romanov; spelled in pre-revolutionary script. ( 186817 July 1918), known in the Russian Orthodox Church as Saint Nicholas the Passion-Bearer,. was the last Emperor of Russia, King of Congress Polan ...
.[
The first Russian ]Saint Vladimir
Vladimir I Sviatoslavich or Volodymyr I Sviatoslavych ( orv, Володимѣръ Свѧтославичь, ''Volodiměrъ Svętoslavičь'';, ''Uladzimir'', russian: Владимир, ''Vladimir'', uk, Володимир, ''Volodymyr''. Se ...
Cathedral in Sydney was opened in 1938 in celebration of the 950th anniversary of the baptism of Russia
Baptism (from grc-x-koine, βάπτισμα, váptisma) is a form of ritual purification—a characteristic of many religions throughout time and geography. In Christianity, it is a Christian sacrament of initiation and adoption, almost ...
.[ Many more churches were opened after ]World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
. An Australian Diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia
The Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia (russian: Ру́сская Правосла́вная Це́рковь Заграни́цей, lit=Russian Orthodox Church Abroad, translit=Russkaya Pravoslavnaya Tserkov' Zagranitsey), also called Ru ...
(ROCOR, also known as the Russian Church Abroad (ROCA), or the Synod) was formed and now has about 42 centres in Australia and New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 List of islands of New Zealand, smaller islands. It is the ...
including St Peter and Paul Cathedral in Strathfield NSW, and area where many Russians had settled. There is also the Russian Orthodox convent
A convent is a community of monks, nuns, religious brothers or, sisters or priests. Alternatively, ''convent'' means the building used by the community. The word is particularly used in the Catholic Church, Lutheran churches, and the Anglic ...
in Kentlyn
Kentlyn is a suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia 58 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district, in the Local government in Australia, local government area of the City of Campbelltown (New South Wales) ...
, near Sydney, and the Holy Transfiguration Monastery in Bombala, NSW. Some Russian churches set up Russian schools to preserve Russian language and customs.
There are also parishes of the Russian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate) in Glen Iris, Victoria
Glen Iris is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, south-east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the Cities of Boroondara and Stonnington local government areas. Glen Iris recorded a population of 26,131 at the ...
(celebrating in English) and in Blacktown
Blacktown is a suburb in the City of Blacktown, in Greater Western Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Blacktown is located west of the Sydney central business district. It is one of the most multicultural places within Gr ...
, NSW, (celebrating in Slavonic). There is a small Belarusian
Belarusian may refer to:
* Something of, or related to Belarus
* Belarusians, people from Belarus, or of Belarusian descent
* A citizen of Belarus, see Demographics of Belarus
* Belarusian language
* Belarusian culture
* Belarusian cuisine
* Byelor ...
Orthodox community in Bankstown
Bankstown is a suburb south west of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is 16 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district and is located in the local government area of the City of Canterbury-Bankstown, ...
, NSW, that is administered by the Moscow Patriarchate
, native_name_lang = ru
, image = Moscow July 2011-7a.jpg
, imagewidth =
, alt =
, caption = Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow, Russia
, abbreviation = ROC
, type ...
. The Russian Orthodox congregation in South Yarra
South Yarra is an inner-city suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 4 km south-east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the Cities of Melbourne and Stonnington local government areas. South Yarra recorded a popu ...
, Melbourne, is under the jurisdiction of the Greek Orthodox
The term Greek Orthodox Church (Greek: Ἑλληνορθόδοξη Ἐκκλησία, ''Ellinorthódoxi Ekklisía'', ) has two meanings. The broader meaning designates "the entire body of Orthodox (Chalcedonian) Christianity, sometimes also call ...
Archdiocese and celebrates services in Russian. There are some parishes of Lipovan Orthodox Old-Rite Church
The Lipovan Orthodox Old-Rite Church (or Orthodox Old-ritualist Church, Orthodox Old-Rite Church, ro, Biserica Ortodoxă de Rit Vechi din România) is the Romanian Old Believer jurisdiction of the Belokrinitskaya Hierarchy.
The head of the Churc ...
which represent the tradition of Russian Old Believers
Old Believers or Old Ritualists, ''starovery'' or ''staroobryadtsy'' are Eastern Orthodox Christians who maintain the liturgical and ritual practices of the Russian Orthodox Church as they were before the reforms of Patriarch Nikon of Moscow ...
.
Russian Australians
The Myer
Myer (stylised MYER, sometimes known as Myers) is an Australian mid-range to upscale department store chain. It trades in all Australian states and one of Australia's two self-governing territories. Myer retails a broad range of products a ...
shopping chain, still a dominant power in the Australian retail sector, was founded by early Russian speaking Jewish immigrant Sidney Myer
Sidney Myer (born Simcha Myer Baevski (); 8 February 18785 September 1934) was a Russian-born Australian Jews, Jewish-Australian businessman and philanthropist, best known for founding Myer, Australia's largest chain of department stores.
Earl ...
in Melbourne, his first store set up as the 'Myer Emporium'. He supported new Russian emigres to Melbourne for as long as he lived.
Online retail entrepreneur Ruslan Kogan
Ruslan Kogan (born November 1982) is a serial entrepreneur, and founder and CEO of Kogan.com as well as several other eCommerce-related companies in Australia. He was Australia's richest person under the age of 30 from 2011 to his 30th birthda ...
was born in Belarus and migrated to Australia in 1989 at the age of 5. In 2006 he started one of the biggest online retailers in the country, Kogan
Kogan (russian: Ко́ган) is a Russian spelling variant of the Jewish surname Cohen.
* Aleksandr Kogan — several people
* Artur Kogan (born 1974), Israeli chess master
* Belle Kogan (1902–2000), American industrial designer
* Boris Koga ...
, which makes and sells affordable technology. He is also co-founder of furniture retailer Milan Direct. In 2012 he was named the richest person under 30 in Australia by BRW magazine.
The mine engineer Ilya Repin (1888–1949), after settling in Sydney in 1925, helped create a Russian Orthodox Church in Sydney on Robertson Road in the 1930s. First holding services in his own cottage, he founded the Church of Saint Vladimir
Vladimir I Sviatoslavich or Volodymyr I Sviatoslavych ( orv, Володимѣръ Свѧтославичь, ''Volodiměrъ Svętoslavičь'';, ''Uladzimir'', russian: Владимир, ''Vladimir'', uk, Володимир, ''Volodymyr''. Se ...
on this site, a 'khram' which exists to this day. There is a long history of Russian cultural and artistic visits to Australia. In 1913, the Russian Imperial Ballet toured Australia, the first and only performances of Russian actors before the First World War
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fig ...
. In 1926 the famous Russian ballerina Anna Pavlova
Anna Pavlovna Pavlova ( , rus, Анна Павловна Павлова ), born Anna Matveyevna Pavlova ( rus, Анна Матвеевна Павлова; – 23 January 1931), was a Russian prima ballerina of the late 19th and the early 20t ...
danced in Melbourne and Sydney, giving a great boost to the embryonic Australian ballet of its day and in the same year, famed opera singer Feodor Chaliapin
Feodor Ivanovich Chaliapin ( rus, Фёдор Ива́нович Шаля́пин, Fyodor Ivanovich Shalyapin, ˈfʲɵdər ɪˈvanəvʲɪtɕ ʂɐˈlʲapʲɪn}; April 12, 1938) was a Russian opera singer. Possessing a deep and expressive bass v ...
made an Australian concert tour. Renowned ballerina Irina Baronova
Irina Mikhailovna Baronova FRAD (; 13 March 1919 – 28 June 2008) was a Russian ballerina and actress who was one of the Baby Ballerinas of the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo, discovered by George Balanchine in Paris in the 1930s. She created r ...
toured Australia before the Second World War and lived in Byron Bay, New South Wales
Byron Bay (Minjungbal: ''Cavvanbah)'' is a beachside town located in the far-northeastern corner of the state of New South Wales, Australia on Bundjalung Country. It is located north of Sydney and south of Brisbane. Cape Byron, a hea ...
from 2000 until her death in 2008. She was a vice-president of the Royal Academy of Dance
"Health and happiness"
, predecessor =
, successor =
, formation = 1920
, extinction =
, type = NGO
, status = Registered charity
, purpose = Examination board – dance education and training
, headquarters = 36 Battersea SquareSW11 ...
and a patron of The Australian Ballet
The Australian Ballet is the largest classical ballet company in Australia. It was founded by J. C. Williamson Theatres Ltd and the Australian Elizabethan Theatre Trust in 1962, with the English-born dancer, teacher, repetiteur and direct ...
, and published her memoirs in 2005.
Kira Bousloff
Kira Abricossova Bousloff (1914–2001)
was a dancer with Ballets Russes who toured Australia in 1938 and stayed, divorcing first husband Serge Bousloff then marrying (and divorcing) James Penberthy while having a significant influence on the ev ...
(Abricossova) (1914–2001) is best known as the founder of the oldest ballet company in Australia – the WA State Ballet Co. Born in Monte Carlo
Monte Carlo (; ; french: Monte-Carlo , or colloquially ''Monte-Carl'' ; lij, Munte Carlu ; ) is officially an administrative area of the Principality of Monaco, specifically the ward of Monte Carlo/Spélugues, where the Monte Carlo Casino i ...
to Russian parents, she came to Australia as a member of the Covent Garden Russian Ballet company in 1938 and remained in Australia after the tour ended in 1939. She moved to Perth with her husband composer James Penberthy
James Penberthy AM (3 May 191729 March 1999) was an Australian composer and journalist.
Biography
He was born Albert James Penberthy in Melbourne in 1917. He served with the Royal Australian Navy during World War II. He then studied at the Uni ...
and established the Western Australian State Ballet Company in 1952.
Pianists Alexander Sverjensky
Alexander Borisovich Sverjensky (Александр Борисович Сверженский) (26 March 1901 – 3 October 1971) was a Russian-born Australian pianist and teacher.
Sverjensky was born in Riga, Latvia, then part of the Russian Emp ...
and Phillip Shovk
Philip, also Phillip, is a male given name, derived from the Greek (''Philippos'', lit. "horse-loving" or "fond of horses"), from a compound of (''philos'', "dear", "loved", "loving") and (''hippos'', "horse"). Prominent Philips who populariz ...
and painter Danila Vassilieff
Danila Vassilieff (22 March 1958) was a Russian-born Australian painter and sculptor. He has been called the "father of Australian modernism".
Life
Danila Ivanovich Vassilieff (Данила Иванович Васильев) was born in 1897 ...
worked in Australia and boosted the local development of their arts, while art historian Nina Kristesen established the Department of Russian Language and Literature at Melbourne University
The University of Melbourne is a public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in Victoria. Its main campus is located in Parkville, an inner suburb no ...
in 1946.
Russian arts festivals and events are popular in Australia. The 150th anniversary of 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, ...
's death was commemorated with poetry festivals in 1987 and a range of Russian cultural and social organisations are active in the major cities of Melbourne and Sydney. The ''Russian Connection'' provides an independent and comprehensive guide to cultural events and occasions with a Russian flavour in Australia. The organisation promotes Russian cultural activities such as art exhibitions, ballet, classical music, concerts, festivals, children's events, movies, musicals, lectures, opera, and theatre. The Russian Connection is continually expanding with the recent addition of a catalogue of new Russian literature
Russian literature refers to the literature of Russia and its émigrés and to Russian-language literature. The roots of Russian literature can be traced to the Middle Ages, when epics and chronicles in Old East Slavic were composed. By the Ag ...
and Russian language movies available from various public libraries.
* Prince Michael Andreevich of Russia
Prince Michael Andreevich of Russia (15 July 1920 – 22 September 2008) was a descendant of the House of Romanov, which ruled Russia from 1613 to 1917. He was a great-nephew of Nicholas II, the last Emperor of Russia.
Early life
Prince Michae ...
.
* Adam Byrnes: Immigration lawyer and former Rugby Union
Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a Contact sport#Terminology, close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the Comparison of rugby league and rugby union, two codes of ru ...
player.
* Daria Gavrilova
Daria Saville (née Gavrilova, born 5 March 1994) is an Australian professional tennis player. She represented Russia until 2015, before emigrating to Australia. She competed under her maiden name until her marriage to Luke Saville in 20 ...
: Tennis player.
* Greg Jeloudev
Greg Jeloudev (born 24 March 1990) is a professional Rugby Union player. He represents Australia in Sevens Rugby. Born in Sydney, NSW and playing for Sydney University at a club level, he debuted for Australia in November 2010. As of December ...
: Rugby Union player.
* Peter Mengede
Peter Mengede (born 1962) is an Australian musician best known as a former guitarist for alternative metal band Helmet. He formed his own group, Handsome, in 1995 with former members of Quicksand, Cro-Mags and Murphy's Law. They released one ...
: Guitarist and founding member of the American bands Helmet
A helmet is a form of protective gear worn to protect the head. More specifically, a helmet complements the skull in protecting the human brain. Ceremonial or symbolic helmets (e.g., a policeman's helmet in the United Kingdom) without prote ...
and Handsome
Handsome may refer to:
*Physical attractiveness
*Human physical appearance
Music
*Handsome (band), an American rock band
Albums
* ''Handsome'' (EP), 1989 EP by American band Tar
* ''Handsome'' (Handsome album), 1997
* ''Handsome'' (Kilburn and t ...
.
* Vladimir Mikhaylovich Petrov: Diplomat.
* Simeon Boikov
Simeon () is a given name, from the Hebrew (Biblical ''Šimʿon'', Tiberian ''Šimʿôn''), usually transliterated as Shimon. In Greek it is written Συμεών, hence the Latinized spelling Symeon.
Meaning
The name is derived from Simeon, son ...
: Russian spy in Australia.
* Costa Ronin
Konstantin "Costa" Ronin (born 3 February 1979) is an Australian actor and cinematographer, best known for appearances in '' Red Dog'', as Gregorovich on the SBS drama '' East West 101'', as Oleg Igorevich Burov in the FX drama '' The Americans ...
: Actor.
Australians in Russia
The Russian connections in Australia are mostly composed by Russian-borns moving to or visiting Australia. The most notable representative of the Australians moving to Russia is the famous physicist Aleksandr Mikhailovich Prokhorov
Alexander Mikhailovich Prokhorov (born Alexander Michael Prochoroff, russian: Алекса́ндр Миха́йлович Про́хоров; 11 July 1916 – 8 January 2002) was an Australian-born Soviet-Russian physicist known ...
. He was born in Atherton, Queensland
Atherton is a rural town and locality in the Tablelands Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , Atherton had a population of 7,331 people.
Geography
Atherton is on the Atherton Tableland in Far North Queensland.
Atherton is joined by the G ...
, Australia, to a family of Russian immigrants in 1916. He and his parents relocated to the Soviet Union in 1923. In 1964 he received the Nobel Prize in Physics
)
, image = Nobel Prize.png
, alt = A golden medallion with an embossed image of a bearded man facing left in profile. To the left of the man is the text "ALFR•" then "NOBEL", and on the right, the text (smaller) "NAT•" then " ...
for his work on lasers
A laser is a device that emits light through a process of optical amplification based on the stimulated emission of electromagnetic radiation. The word "laser" is an acronym for "light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation". The firs ...
and masers
A maser (, an acronym for microwave amplification by stimulated emission of radiation) is a device that produces coherent electromagnetic waves through amplification by stimulated emission. The first maser was built by Charles H. Townes, James ...
. He was also the chief editor of the Great Soviet Encyclopedia
The ''Great Soviet Encyclopedia'' (GSE; ) is one of the largest Russian-language encyclopedias, published in the Soviet Union from 1926 to 1990. After 2002, the encyclopedia's data was partially included into the later ''Bolshaya rossiyskaya e ...
from 1969.
See also
* Asian Australians
Asian Australians refers to Australians of Asian ancestry, whether full or partial, including naturalised Australians who are immigrants from specific regions in Asia and descendants of such immigrants. At the 2021 census, the number of ancest ...
* Diocese of Sydney, Australia and New Zealand The Diocese of Sydney, Australia and New Zealand (russian: Сиднейская и Австралийско-Новозеландская епархия, also Australian and New Zealand Diocese) is the diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside R ...
* European Australians
European Australians are citizens or residents of Australia whose ancestry originates from the peoples of Europe. They form the largest panethnic group in the country. At the 2021 census, the number of ancestry responses categorised within Eu ...
* Europeans in Oceania
European exploration and settlement of Oceania began in the 16th century, starting with the Spanish ( Castilian) landings and shipwrecks in the Mariana Islands, east of the Philippines. This was followed by the Portuguese landing and settling ...
* Immigration to Australia
The Australian continent was first settled when ancestors of Indigenous Australians arrived via the islands of Maritime Southeast Asia and New Guinea over 50,000 years ago.
European colonisation began in 1788 with the establishment of a B ...
* Russian Jack
Ivan Fredericks (1864–1904), known as Russian Jack (''Русский Джек''), was a goldminer of the Western Australian gold rush in the 1880s. In 1885, while working in the Halls Creek goldmines, he pushed his sick friend in a wheelba ...
* Russian diaspora
The Russian diaspora is the global community of ethnic Russians. The Russian-speaking (''Russophone'') diaspora are the people for whom Russian language is the native language, regardless of whether they are ethnic Russians or not.
History
...
References
External links
Australian and New Zealand Eparchy of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia
Russian Orthodox Church in Australia
*
{{Ethnic groups in Australia
European Australian
Social history of Australia
Immigration to Australia
Australia–Russia relations
Russian-Australian culture