The October Revolution and the Spread of the Russian Language in China (1920–1930s)

Abstract

In this article, the authors, using the rich historical path traversed by China, analyze the influence of the October Revolution of 1917 on this country in terms of the spread of the Russian language on its territory. They note that the first attempts to spread Russian in China date back to the beginning of the 18th century. Two hundred years later, due to historical events that occurred in Russia and that shook the whole world, Russian received a new opportunity for active penetration into Chinese life. This was reflected in the increase in the number of people studying Russian language and culture. To a large extent, this was the case in Russia's neighboring areas. After the completion of the construction of the Chinese Eastern Railway and after the October Revolution, a large number of Russian emigrants found themselves in the territory of northeast China. According to linguists, there are about 1,200 words of Russian origin in modern Chinese. This was facilitated by the fact that, in addition to literary works, the enormous efforts of the Chinese intelligentsia were directed towards the translation of works related to the teachings of Marxism on literature and art. Finally, the approval of the new political system in Russia led to the fact that the Chinese language included terms reflecting the class character of the Soviet state, the struggle of the ruling party and its opponents, and opposition to the warring parties during the Russian Civil War.