100 Notable alumni of
St. Petersburg State University
Updated:
St. Petersburg State University is 30th in the world, 11th in Europe, and 2nd in Russia by aggregated alumni prominence. Below is the list of 100 notable alumni from St. Petersburg State University sorted by their wiki pages popularity. The directory includes famous graduates and former students along with research and academic staff.
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Vladimir Putin
- Enrolled in St. Petersburg State University
- 1970-1975 graduated with Candidate of Economic Sciences in international law
- Occupations
- politician
- Biography
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Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who has served as President of Russia since 2012, having previously served from 2000 to 2008. Putin also served as Prime Minister of Russia from 1999 to 2000 and again from 2008 to 2012. He is the longest-serving Russian president since the independence of Russia from the Soviet Union.
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Vladimir Lenin
- Enrolled in St. Petersburg State University
- In 1890 graduated with law degree in jurisprudence
- Occupations
- revolutionarypolitician
- Biography
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Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov, better known as Vladimir Lenin, was a Russian revolutionary, politician and political theorist who was the founder and first head of government of Soviet Russia from 1917 until his death in 1924, and of the Soviet Union from 1922 until his death. As the founder and leader of the Bolsheviks, Lenin led the October Revolution which established the world's first socialist state. His government won the Russian Civil War and created a one-party state under the Communist Party. Ideologically a Marxist, his developments to the ideology are called Leninism.
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Dmitry Medvedev
- Enrolled in St. Petersburg State University
- Studied in 1982-1987
- Occupations
- businesspersonpoliticianjurist
- Biography
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Dmitry Anatolyevich Medvedev is a Russian politician who has been serving as deputy chairman of the Security Council of Russia since 2020. Medvedev was also the president of Russia from 2008 to 2012 and prime minister of Russia from 2012 to 2020.
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Ayn Rand
- Occupations
- screenwriterjournalistnovelistscience fiction writerwriter
- Biography
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Alice O'Connor, better known by her pen name Ayn Rand, was a Russian-born American writer and philosopher. She is known for her fiction and for developing a philosophical system which she named Objectivism. Born and educated in Russia, she moved to the United States in 1926. After two early novels that were initially unsuccessful and two Broadway plays, Rand achieved fame with her 1943 novel The Fountainhead. In 1957, she published her best-selling work, the novel Atlas Shrugged. Afterward, until her death in 1982, she turned to non-fiction to promote her philosophy, publishing her own periodicals and releasing several collections of essays.
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Dmitri Mendeleev
- Occupations
- university teachereconomistphysicistchemist
- Biography
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Dmitri Ivanovich Mendeleev was a Russian chemist known for formulating the periodic law and creating a version of the periodic table of elements. He used the periodic law not only to correct the then-accepted properties of some known elements, such as the valence and atomic weight of uranium, but also to predict the properties of three elements that were yet to be discovered (germanium, gallium and scandium).
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Lyudmila Ocheretnaya
- Enrolled in St. Petersburg State University
- In 1986 studied Romance studies
- Occupations
- politicianuniversity teacherflight attendant
- Biography
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Lyudmila Aleksandrovna Ocheretnaya is a Russian linguist who served as the First Lady of Russia from 2000 to 2008 and from 2012 to 2014 while married to her then-husband, Vladimir Putin, the current president and former prime minister of Russia.
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Pavel Durov
- Occupations
- computer scientistentrepreneur
- Biography
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Pavel Valeryevich Durov is a Russian technology entrepreneur best known as the founder and chief executive officer (CEO) of Telegram, a messaging platform launched in 2013.
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Ivan Pavlov
- Enrolled in St. Petersburg State University
- Studied in 1870
- Occupations
- physiologistchemistphysicianneurologistresearcher
- Biography
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Ivan Petrovich Pavlov was a Russian and Soviet experimental neurologist and physiologist known for his discovery of classical conditioning through his experiments with dogs.
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Grigori Perelman
- Enrolled in St. Petersburg State University
- Studied in 1982-1987
- Occupations
- mathematician
- Biography
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Grigori Yakovlevich Perelman is a Russian mathematician and geometer who is known for his contributions to the fields of geometric analysis, Riemannian geometry, and geometric topology. In 2005, Perelman resigned from his research post in Steklov Institute of Mathematics and in 2006 stated that he had quit professional mathematics, owing to feeling disappointed over the ethical standards in the field. He lives in seclusion in Saint Petersburg and has declined requests for interviews since 2006.
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Igor Stravinsky
- Enrolled in St. Petersburg State University
- In 1901 studied law
- Occupations
- composerpianistconductorlibrettist
- Biography
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Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky was a Russian composer and conductor with French citizenship (from 1934) and American citizenship (from 1945). He is widely considered one of the most important and influential composers of the 20th century and a pivotal figure in modernist music.
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Ivan Turgenev
- Occupations
- translatornovelistpoetshort story writerwriter
- Biography
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Ivan Sergeyevich Turgenev was a Russian novelist, short story writer, poet, playwright, translator and popularizer of Russian literature in the West.
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Katerina Tikhonova
- Enrolled in St. Petersburg State University
- In 2005 studied Asian studies
- Occupations
- managerathletesocial activist
- Biography
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Katerina Vladimirovna Tikhonova is a Russian scientist, manager, and former acrobatic dancer. She is the second daughter of Russian president Vladimir Putin.
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Kseniya Sobchak
- Occupations
- politicianjournalisttelevision presentersocialitemodel
- Biography
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Ksenia Anatolyevna Sobchak is a Russian-Israeli public figure, TV anchor, journalist, socialite and actress. She is the younger daughter of the first democratically elected mayor of Saint Petersburg, Anatoly Sobchak, who was one of Vladimir Putin's mentors, and the Russian senator Lyudmila Narusova. Sobchak became known to the wider public as the host of the reality show Dom-2, which aired on the Russian channel TNT. Later she became an anchor at independent television channel TV Rain. As of January 2023, she hosts the television show Dok-Tok with Alexander Gordon.
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Felix Dzerzhinsky
- Occupations
- revolutionarypolitician
- Biography
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Felix Edmundovich Dzerzhinsky, nicknamed "Iron Felix", was a Soviet revolutionary and politician of Polish origin. From 1917 until his death in 1926, he led the first two Soviet secret police organizations, the Cheka and the OGPU, establishing state security organs for the Bolshevik government. He was a key architect of the Red Terror and de-Cossackization.
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Alexander Kerensky
- Occupations
- politicianrevolutionarylawyer
- Biography
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Alexander Fyodorovich Kerensky 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 November 1917 (N.S.).
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Anatoly Karpov
- Occupations
- member of the State Dumachess playerpoliticianwriterjournalist
- Biography
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Anatoly Yevgenyevich Karpov is a Russian and former Soviet chess grandmaster, former World Chess Champion, and politician. He was the 12th World Chess Champion from 1975 to 1985, a three-time FIDE World Champion (1993, 1996, 1998), twice World Chess champion as a member of the USSR team (1985, 1989), and a six-time winner of Chess Olympiads as a member of the USSR team (1972, 1974, 1980, 1982, 1986, 1988). The International Association of Chess Press awarded him nine Chess Oscars (1973–77, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1984).
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Olga Buzova
- Occupations
- writereditor-in-chiefInstagram bloggeractorpresenter
- Biography
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Olga Igorevna Buzova is a Russian media personality and singer. She is regarded as one of the most successful Russian contemporary entertainers.
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Maria Vorontsova
- Enrolled in St. Petersburg State University
- Studied biology
- Occupations
- biologistendocrinologistgeneticist
- Biography
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Maria Vladimirovna Vorontsova, also referred to as Maria Faassen, is a Russian pediatric endocrinologist. She is the eldest child of Russian president Vladimir Putin.
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Alexander Blok
- Occupations
- translatorphilosopherwriterplaywrightopinion journalist
- Biography
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Alexander Alexandrovich Blok was a Russian lyrical poet, writer, publicist, playwright, translator and literary critic.
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Anastasiya Ivleyeva
- Enrolled in St. Petersburg State University
- Studied in 2008
- Occupations
- businesspersontelevision presentervloggerInstagram bloggerYouTuber
- Biography
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Anastasia Vyacheslavovna Ivleeva, better known as Nastya Ivleeva (Настя Ивлеева), is a Russian television presenter, actress and blogger. She also hosted the Ukrainian TV show Oryol i Reshka on the channels Inter and Friday!.
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Peter Kropotkin
- Occupations
- philosopherpoliticianeconomistautobiographerexplorer
- Biography
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Pyotr Alexeyevich Kropotkin was a Russian anarchist and geographer known as a proponent of anarchist communism.
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Anatoly Sobchak
- Occupations
- politicianstatespersonjurist
- Biography
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Anatoly Aleksandrovich Sobchak was a Russian politician, a co-author of the Constitution of the Russian Federation, and the first democratically elected mayor of Saint Petersburg.
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Pyotr Stolypin
- Enrolled in St. Petersburg State University
- Studied in 1881-1885
- Occupations
- statespersonpolitician
- Biography
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Pyotr Arkadyevich Stolypin was a Russian statesman who served as the third prime minister and the interior minister of the Russian Empire from 1906 until his assassination in 1911. Known as the greatest reformer of Russian society and economy, his reforms caused unprecedented growth of the Russian state, which was halted by his assassination.
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Lev Landau
- Enrolled in St. Petersburg State University
- Studied in 1924-1927
- Occupations
- inventorphysicisttheoretical physicistnon-fiction writeruniversity teacher
- Biography
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Lev Davidovich Landau was a Soviet physicist who made fundamental contributions to many areas of theoretical physics. He was considered as one of the last scientists who were universally well-versed and made seminal contributions to all branches of physics. He is credited with laying the foundations of twentieth century condensed matter physics, and is also considered arguably the greatest Soviet theoretical physicist.
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Marina Leonidovna Kravets
- Occupations
- television presenterradio personalityKVN actorcomedianpresenter
- Biography
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Marina Leonidovna Kravets is a Russian actress radio moderator and singer. She is the only permanent female participant of the Russian television show Comedy Club.
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Nikolay Nekrasov
- Occupations
- opinion journalistjournalistautobiographerpoetliterary critic
- Biography
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Nikolay Alexeyevich Nekrasov was a Russian poet, writer, critic and publisher, whose deeply compassionate poems about the Russian peasantry made him a hero of liberal and radical circles in the Russian intelligentsia of the mid-nineteenth century, particularly as represented by Vissarion Belinsky and Nikolay Chernyshevsky. He is credited with introducing into Russian poetry ternary meters and the technique of dramatic monologue (On the Road, 1845). As the editor of several literary journals, notably Sovremennik, Nekrasov was also singularly successful and influential.
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Olga Skabeyeva
- Enrolled in St. Petersburg State University
- Studied in 2008
- Occupations
- television journalisttelevision presenterpropagandistpolitical punditjournalist
- Biography
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Olga Vladimirovna Skabeyeva is a Russian television presenter and political commentator, commonly described as a governmental propagandist. Skabeyeva received the nickname "Iron Doll of Putin TV" due to her criticism of the Russian opposition.
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Osip Mandelstam
- Occupations
- literary criticauthorpoetwritertranslator
- Biography
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Osip Emilyevich Mandelstam was a Russian and Soviet poet. He was one of the foremost members of the Acmeist school.
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Alexander Borodin
- Occupations
- physicianpianistflautistchemistopera composer
- Biography
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Alexander Porfiryevich Borodin was a Romantic composer and chemist of Georgian-Russian extraction. He was one of the prominent 19th-century composers known as "The Five", a group dedicated to producing a "uniquely Russian" kind of classical music. Borodin is known best for his symphonies, his two string quartets, the symphonic poem In the Steppes of Central Asia and his opera Prince Igor.
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Edita Piekha
- Enrolled in St. Petersburg State University
- Studied in 1964
- Occupations
- singeractor
- Biography
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Edita Stanislavovna Piekha is a Soviet and Russian singer and actress of Polish descent. The peak of her popularity in the countries of the former USSR was in the 1960s. Her most famous song is “Our Neighbor”. (Наш сосед) She was given the title Honorary Citizen of St. Petersburg.
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Igor Sechin
- Occupations
- entrepreneurpoliticianRussian oligarch
- Biography
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Igor Ivanovich Sechin is a Russian oligarch and a government official, considered a close ally and "de facto deputy" of Vladimir Putin.
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Sergei Ivanov
- Occupations
- diplomatpolitician
- Biography
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Sergei Borisovich Ivanov is a Russian senior official and politician who has been serving as the Special Presidential Envoy on the Issues of Environmental Activities, Ecology and Transport since 12 August 2016. He has the federal state civilian service rank of 1st class Active State Councillor of the Russian Federation.
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Konstantin Ernst
- Occupations
- film producertelevision producerscreenwritertelevision presentertelevision director
- Biography
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Konstantin Lvovich Ernst is a Russian media manager, producer and TV host. He is currently the CEO of Channel One Russia.
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Korney Chukovsky
- Occupations
- translatorprose writerpoetjournalistopinion journalist
- Biography
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Korney Ivanovich Chukovsky was one of the most popular children's poets in the Russian language. His catchy rhythms, inventive rhymes and absurd characters have invited comparisons with the American children's author Dr. Seuss. Chukovsky's poems Tarakanische ("The Monster Cockroach"), Krokodil ("Crocodile"), Telefon ("The Telephone"), Chukokkala, and Moydodyr ("Wash-'em-Clean") have been favorites with many generations of Russophone children. Lines from his poems, in particular Telefon, have become universal catch-phrases in the Russian media and everyday conversation. He adapted the Doctor Dolittle stories into a book-length Russian poem as Doctor Aybolit ("Dr. Ow-It-Hurts"), and translated a substantial portion of the Mother Goose canon into Russian as Angliyskiye Narodnyye Pesenki ("English Folk Rhymes"). He also wrote very popular translations of Walt Whitman, Mark Twain, Oscar Wilde, Rudyard Kipling, O. Henry, and other authors, and was an influential literary critic and essayist.
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Diana Arbenina
- Enrolled in St. Petersburg State University
- Studied in 1998
- Occupations
- writersongwriterpoetsinger
- Biography
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Diana Sergeyevna Arbenina is a Russian singer, musician, poet, and leader of the rock group Nochnye Snaipery.
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Menachem Mendel Schneerson
- Occupations
- Rebbe
- Biography
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Menachem Mendel Schneerson, known to adherents of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement as the Lubavitcher Rebbe or simply the Rebbe, was a Russian-American Orthodox rabbi and the most recent Rebbe of the Lubavitch Hasidic dynasty. He is considered one of the most influential Jewish leaders of the 20th century.
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Vladimir Ivanovich Vernadsky
- Enrolled in St. Petersburg State University
- Studied in 1885
- Occupations
- university teachermineralogistgeologistphilosophergeochemist
- Biography
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Vladimir Ivanovich Vernadsky, also spelt Volodymyr Ivanovych Vernadsky, was a Russian, Ukrainian, and Soviet mineralogist and geochemist who is considered one of the founders of geochemistry, biogeochemistry, and radiogeology. He was one of the founders and the first president of the Ukrainian Academy of Sciences (now National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine). Vladimir Vernadsky is most noted for his 1926 book The Biosphere in which he inadvertently worked to popularize Eduard Suess's 1875 term biosphere, by hypothesizing that life is the geological force that shapes the earth. In 1943 he was awarded the Stalin Prize. Vernadsky's portrait is depicted on the Ukrainian ₴1,000 hryvnia banknote.
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Herman Gref
- Occupations
- politicianbankereconomist
- Biography
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German Oskarovich Gref is a Russian politician and businessman. He was the Minister of Economics and Trade of Russia from May 2000 to September 2007. He has the federal state civilian service rank of 1st class Active State Councillor of the Russian Federation.
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Anatoly Serdyukov
- Occupations
- politicianeconomistmanagerbusinessperson
- Biography
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Anatoly Eduardovich Serdyukov is a Russian politician and businessman. He was Russia's Minister of Defense from 15 February 2007 to 6 November 2012, and made several major reforms in the Russian military. He has worked as an Industrial Director for Rostec, a state corporation, since October 2015.
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Alexander Alekhine
- Occupations
- translatorchess playerchess theoreticianwriterjurist
- Biography
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Alexander Aleksandrovich Alekhine was a Russian and French chess player and the fourth World Chess Champion, a title he held for two reigns.
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Boris Grebenshchikov
- Occupations
- publisherradio personalitylyricistguitaristpoet
- Biography
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Boris Borisovich Grebenshchikov is a prominent member of the generation which is widely considered to be the "founding fathers" of Russian rock music. He is the founder and lead singer of the band Aquarium which has been active since 1972. Grebenshchikov is frequently referred to as BG (Russian: БГ; pronounced "Beh-Geh"), after his initials.
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Sergei Yursky
- Enrolled in St. Petersburg State University
- Studied in 1955
- Occupations
- theatrical directorfilm directorwriterlecturerplaywright
- Biography
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Sergei Yurievich Yursky was a Soviet and Russian stage and film actor, theatre director and screenwriter. His best known film role is Ostap Bender in The Golden Calf (1968)
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Lev Gumilev
- Enrolled in St. Petersburg State University
- Studied in 1934-1935
- Studied in 1987
- Occupations
- geographeranthropologistphilosopherwriterethnologist
- Biography
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Lev Nikolayevich Gumilev was a Soviet and Russian historian, ethnologist, anthropologist and translator. He had a reputation for his highly unorthodox theories of ethnogenesis and historiosophy. He was an exponent of Eurasianism.
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Viktor Korchnoi
- Occupations
- chess playerwriter
- Biography
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Viktor Lvovich Korchnoi was a Soviet (before 1976) and Swiss (after 1980) chess grandmaster (GM) and chess writer. He is considered one of the strongest players never to have become World Chess Champion.
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Mikhail Bakhtin
- Occupations
- art theoristphilosopherwriterlinguistliterary scholar
- Biography
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Mikhail Mikhailovich Bakhtin was a Russian philosopher and literary critic who worked on the philosophy of language, ethics, and literary theory. His writings, on a variety of subjects, inspired scholars working in a number of different traditions (Marxism, semiotics, structuralism, religious criticism) and in disciplines as diverse as literary criticism, history, philosophy, sociology, anthropology and psychology. Although Bakhtin was active in the debates on aesthetics and literature that took place in the Soviet Union in the 1920s, his distinctive position did not become well known until he was rediscovered by Russian scholars in the 1960s.
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Mukhtar Auezov
- Years
- 1897-1961 (aged 64)
- Occupations
- poetwriter
- Biography
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Mukhtar Omarkhanuli Auezov was a Kazakh writer, a social activist, a Doctor of Philology, and an honored academician of the Soviet Union (1946).
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Alexandra Elbakyan
- Enrolled in St. Petersburg State University
- 2017-2019 graduated with master's degree in linguistics
- Occupations
- activistcomputer scientistprogrammerneuroscientist
- Biography
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Alexandra Asanovna Elbakyan is a Kazakhstani computer programmer and creator of the website Sci-Hub, which provides free access to research papers without regard for copyright. According to a study published in 2018, Sci-Hub provides access to nearly all scholarly literature.
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Leonid Parfyonov
- Enrolled in St. Petersburg State University
- Studied in 1982
- Occupations
- directorscreenwriteractorYouTubertelevision journalist
- Biography
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Leonid Gennadyevich Parfyonov is a Russian journalist, news presenter, TV producer and author of many documentary TV shows. Parfyonov is known for his studio work and productions for the NTV (of which he was Producer General between 1997 and 1999). From December 3, 2004, until December 20, 2007, he was an editor-in-chief of Russky Newsweek, Russian edition of Newsweek. From 2012 until 2018, Parfyonov was a member of Presidential Council for Civil Society and Human Rights.
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Dmitry Kiselyov
- Enrolled in St. Petersburg State University
- In 1978 studied Scandinavian studies
- Occupations
- television presenterpropagandistnews presenter
- Biography
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Dmitry Konstantinovich Kiselyov is a Russian TV presenter and propagandist. In 2013, Kiselyov was appointed by Russian President Vladimir Putin to head Rossiya Segodnya, a Russian state-controlled media group. He also serves as deputy director of the All-Russia State Television and Radio Broadcasting Company.
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Dalia Grybauskaitė
- Occupations
- university teacherpoliticianeconomistdiplomat
- Biography
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Dalia Grybauskaitė is a Lithuanian politician who served as the 8th president of Lithuania from 2009 to 2019. She is the first and so far only woman to hold the position and in 2014 she became the first President of Lithuania to be reelected for a second consecutive term.
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Tatyana Tolstaya
- Enrolled in St. Petersburg State University
- In 1974 studied classical philology
- Occupations
- pedagogueopinion journalistwriterphilologistpresenter
- Biography
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Tatyana Nikitichna Tolstaya is a Russian writer, TV host, publicist, novelist, and essayist from the Tolstoy family.
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Nikolay Chernyshevsky
- Occupations
- philosopherwriternovelistopinion journalisteconomist
- Biography
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Nikolay Gavrilovich Chernyshevsky was a Russian literary and social critic, journalist, novelist, democrat, and socialist philosopher, often identified as a utopian socialist and leading theoretician of Russian nihilism and the Narodniks. He was the dominant intellectual figure of the 1860s revolutionary democratic movement in Russia, despite spending much of his later life in exile to Siberia, and was later highly praised by Karl Marx, Georgi Plekhanov, and Vladimir Lenin.
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Ljudmila Narusova
- Occupations
- member of the State Dumapoliticianstatespersonhistorianjournalist
- Biography
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Lyudmila Borisovna Narusova is a Russian politician, a member of the Federation Council of Russia, representing Tuva. From 2010 to 2012, she represented Bryansk Oblast in the Federation Council of Russia.
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Alexander Ulyanov
- Occupations
- university studentrevolutionarystudent
- Biography
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Aleksandr Ilyich Ulyanov was a Russian revolutionary and political activist who was executed for planning an assassination against Alexander III of Russia. He was the elder brother of Vladimir Lenin, the founder of the Soviet Union.
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Nicholas Miklouho-Maclay
- Enrolled in St. Petersburg State University
- Studied in 1863-1864
- Occupations
- botanistexplorerzoologistmarine biologistbiologist
- Biography
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Nicholai Nikolaevich Miklouho-Maclay was a Russian explorer of Ukrainian origin. He worked as an ethnologist, anthropologist and biologist who became famous as one of the earliest scientists to settle among and study indigenous people of New Guinea "who had never seen a European".
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Tatyana Chernigovskaya
- Occupations
- university teacherresearcherscientistpsychologist
- Biography
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Tatyana Vladimirovna Chernigovskaya is a Soviet and Russian scientist in the field of neuroscience, psycholinguistics and theory of mind, a Honored Worker of Science (2010). On her initiative in 2000 was first open training specialization "Psycholinguistics" (in General Linguistics Department of St. Petersburg State University Faculty of Philology), Member of the Council on Science and Education under President of the Russian Federation.
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Alexander Stepanovich Popov
- Occupations
- pedagogueengineerinventorphysicist
- Biography
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Alexander Stepanovich Popov was a Russian physicist who was one of the first people to invent a radio receiving device.
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Alexander Bastrykin
- Occupations
- politician
- Biography
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Alexander Ivanovich Bastrykin is a Russian lawyer and official who has served as the Chairman of the Investigative Committee of Russia since 15 January 2011. He served as the First Deputy Prosecutor General of Russia and Chairman of the Investigative Committee of the Prosecutor General's Office from 2007 to 2011.
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Gabriel Narutowicz
- Enrolled in St. Petersburg State University
- Studied in 1886
- Occupations
- civil engineeruniversity teacherpoliticiandiplomatforeign minister
- Biography
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Gabriel Józef Narutowicz was a Polish professor of hydroelectric engineering and politician who served as the first president of Poland from 11 December 1922 until his assassination, five days after assuming office. He previously served as the minister of public works from 1920 to 1922 and briefly as the minister of foreign affairs in 1922. A renowned engineer and politically independent, Narutowicz was the first elected head of state following Poland's regained sovereignty from partitioning powers.
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Olga Ladyzhenskaya
- Enrolled in St. Petersburg State University
- Studied in 1947-1949
- Occupations
- mathematicianuniversity teacher
- Biography
-
Olga Aleksandrovna Ladyzhenskaya was a Russian mathematician who worked on partial differential equations, fluid dynamics, and the finite-difference method for the Navier–Stokes equations. She received the Lomonosov Gold Medal in 2002. She authored more than two hundred scientific publications, including six monographs.
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Alexei Kudrin
- Enrolled in St. Petersburg State University
- Studied in 1983
- Occupations
- politicianfinance ministereconomist
- Biography
-
Alexei Leonidovich Kudrin is a Russian liberal politician and economist. Previously he served as the Chairman of the Accounts Chamber from 2018 to 2022 and as Minister of Finance from 2000 to 2011. Since 9.December 2022, he is a corporate development advisor at Yandex.
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Garegin Nzhdeh
- Occupations
- military personnelpoliticianfedayeenwriterphilosopher
- Biography
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Garegin Ter-Harutyunyan, better known by his nom de guerre Garegin Nzhdeh, was an Armenian statesman, military commander and nationalist revolutionary. As a member of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation, he was involved in the national liberation struggle and revolutionary activities during the First Balkan War and World War I and became one of the key political and military leaders of the First Republic of Armenia (1918–1921). He is widely admired as a charismatic national hero by Armenians.
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Vitaly Mutko
- Occupations
- ministerpoliticianeconomiststatesperson
- Biography
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Vitaly Leontiyevich Mutko is a Russian politician who served as the Deputy Prime Minister of Russia from 2016 to 2020.
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Yuly Martov
- Occupations
- politicianopinion journalist
- Biography
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Yuliy Osipovich Tsederbaum, better known as Julius Martov, was a Russian revolutionary, politician, and a leader of the Mensheviks, a faction of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party (RSDLP). A close associate of Vladimir Lenin prior to 1903, Martov broke with him following the RSDLP's ideological schism, after which Lenin led the opposing faction, the Bolsheviks. Martov opposed Lenin's plan for a party restricted to professional revolutionaries, and called for a mass party modelled after Western European social democratic parties.
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Mikhail Veller
- Enrolled in St. Petersburg State University
- Studied in 1972
- Occupations
- short story writerjournalistscience fiction writerwriterprose writer
- Biography
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Mikhail Iosifovich Veller is a Russian writer of Ukrainian Jewish extraction. He holds a dual citizenship of Russia and Estonia.
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Vladimir Propp
- Occupations
- anthropologistliterary historianliterary criticphilologistlinguist
- Biography
-
Vladimir Yakovlevich Propp was a Soviet folklorist and scholar who analysed the basic structural elements of Russian folk tales to identify their simplest irreducible structural units.
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Sergei Mironov
- Occupations
- politicianmember of the State Dumastatesperson
- Biography
-
Sergey Mikhailovich Mironov is a Russian politician. He was chairman of the Federation Council, the upper house of the Russian parliament, from 2001 to 2011. He leads the faction A Just Russia in the Parliament of Russia.
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Dmitry Likhachov
- Enrolled in St. Petersburg State University
- Studied in 1928
- Occupations
- literary historianhistorianlinguistwritertranslator
- Biography
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Dmitry Sergeyevich Likhachev was a Russian medievalist, linguist, and a former inmate of Gulag. During his lifetime, Likhachev was considered the world's foremost scholar of the Old Russian language and its literature.
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George Gamow
- Occupations
- astronomernuclear physicistcosmologistuniversity teacherphysicist
- Biography
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George Gamow was a Soviet and American polymath, theoretical physicist and cosmologist. He was an early advocate and developer of Georges Lemaître's Big Bang theory. Gamow discovered a theoretical explanation of alpha decay by quantum tunneling, invented the liquid drop model - the first mathematical model of the atomic nucleus, worked on radioactive decay, star formation, stellar nucleosynthesis, Big Bang nucleosynthesis (which he collectively called nucleocosmogenesis), predicted the existence of the cosmic microwave background radiation and molecular genetics. Gamow was a key figure in the development and understanding of quantum tunneling.
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Pitirim Sorokin
- Occupations
- sociologistuniversity teacherpoliticianwriterphilosopher
- Biography
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Pitirim Alexandrovich Sorokin was a Russian American sociologist and political activist, who contributed to the social cycle theory.
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Ivan Yefremov
- Enrolled in St. Petersburg State University
- Studied in 1924
- Occupations
- short story writerprose writerwriterscience fiction writerphilosopher
- Biography
-
Ivan Antonovich Yefremov, sometimes Efremov (Russian: Ива́н Анто́нович (Анти́пович) Ефре́мов; 23 April 1908 – 5 October 1972) was a Soviet paleontologist, science-fiction author and social thinker. He founded taphonomy, the study of fossilization patterns.
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Ivan Bilibin
- Occupations
- graphic artistpainterillustrator
- Biography
-
Ivan Yakovlevich Bilibin was a Russian illustrator and stage designer who took part in the Mir iskusstva ("World of Art"), contributed to the Ballets Russes, co-founded the Union of Russian Artists, and from 1937 was a member of the Artists' Union of the USSR. Ivan Bilibin gained popularity with his illustrations of Russian folk tales and Slavic folklore. Throughout his career he was inspired by the art and culture of medieval Russia.
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Andrea Pezzi
- Occupations
- entrepreneurtelevision presenter
- Biography
-
Andrea Pezzi is an Italian TV presenter and entrepreneur. He made his debut as a DJ for Radio Deejay and later became a video jockey for MTV Europe and MTV Italia from 1996 to 2003. Pezzi later moved to RAI and Mediaset to work as a television host.
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Pafnuty Chebyshev
- Occupations
- statisticianuniversity teachermathematician
- Biography
-
Pafnuty Lvovich Chebyshev was a Russian mathematician and considered to be the founding father of Russian mathematics.
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Vladimir Dzhanibekov
- Occupations
- astronautpostage stamp designerpoliticianpainteraircraft pilot
- Biography
-
Vladimir Aleksandrovich Dzhanibekov is a retired Soviet Air Force Major General and a cosmonaut veteran of five orbital missions.
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Galina Starovoytova
- Occupations
- sociologistmember of the State Dumapoliticiananthropologisthuman rights activist
- Biography
-
Galina Vasilyevna Starovoitova was a Soviet dissident, Russian politician and ethnographer known for her work to protect ethnic minorities and promote democratic reforms in Russia. She was shot to death in her apartment building in 1998.
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Andrey Illarionov
- Enrolled in St. Petersburg State University
- Studied in 1983
- Occupations
- politicianpublic figureeconomist
- Biography
-
Andrey Nikolayevich Illarionov is a Russian economist and former senior policy advisor to Vladimir Putin, the President of Russia, from April 2000 to December 2005. Since April 2021, he is a senior fellow at the non-governmental organization Center for Security Policy, which is based out of Washington, D.C. in the United States.
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Georgy Chicherin
- Occupations
- revolutionarypoliticianmusicologistdiplomat
- Biography
-
Georgy Vasilyevich Chicherin was a Russian Marxist revolutionary and a Soviet politician who served as the first People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs in the Soviet government from March 1918 to July 1930.
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Mustafa Shokay
- Occupations
- politicianopinion journalist
- Biography
-
Mustafa bek Shokay was a Kazakh social and political activist and ideologue of the Turkestan Autonomy. From 1921, he lived in exile in France.
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Klim Zhukov
- Occupations
- writermedievalisthistorical reenactmentvloggerscience fiction writer
- Biography
-
Klim Zhukov is a Russian author, vlogger, and historical reenactor. He is a medievalist historian and science fiction author. He is also involved in historical reenactment. He is a bestselling author. In a survey conducted in 2019, he entered the top 10 trust rating in the Russian Internet. He collaborates with Dmitry Puchkov.
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Dmitry Kozak
- Enrolled in St. Petersburg State University
- Studied in 1985
- Occupations
- politicianjuristlawyer
- Biography
-
Dmitry Nikolayevich Kozak is a Russian politician who has served as the Deputy Kremlin Chief of Staff since 24 January 2020. He previously served as the Deputy Prime Minister of Russia from 2008 to 2020. He has the federal state civilian service rank of 1st class Active State Councillor of the Russian Federation.
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Antanas Smetona
- Occupations
- pedagoguepoliticianlawyerwriterjournalist
- Biography
-
Antanas Smetona was a Lithuanian intellectual, journalist and politician. He served as the first president of Lithuania from 1919 to 1920 and later as the authoritarian head of state from 1926 until the Soviet occupation of Lithuania in 1940. Referred to as the "Leader of the Nation" during his presidency, Smetona is recognised as one of the most important Lithuanian political figures between World War I and World War II, and a prominent ideologist of Lithuanian nationalism and the movement for national revival.
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Vsevolod Merkulov
- Occupations
- politicianwriterplaywrighttorturer
- Biography
-
Vsevolod Nikolayevich Merkulov (Russian: Всеволод Николаевич Меркулов; 27 November [O.S. 25 October] 1895 – 23 December 1953) was the head of NKGB from February to July 1941, and again from April 1943 to March 1946. He was a leading member of what was later derisively described as the "Beria gang".
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Viktor Shklovsky
- Occupations
- poetscreenwriterfilm scholarcriticscience fiction writer
- Biography
-
Viktor Borisovich Shklovsky was a Russian and Soviet literary theorist, critic, writer, and pamphleteer. He is one of the major figures associated with Russian formalism.
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Vyacheslav Menzhinsky
- Occupations
- military personnelpolitician
- Biography
-
Vyacheslav Rudolfovich Menzhinsky was a Soviet revolutionary and politician who served as chairman of the OGPU, the secret police of the Soviet Union, from 1926 to 1934.
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Andrey Markov
- Occupations
- statisticianuniversity teachermathematician
- Biography
-
Andrey Andreyevich Markov was a Russian mathematician best known for his work on stochastic processes. A primary subject of his research later became known as the Markov chain. He was also a strong, close to master-level, chess player.
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Wassily Leontief
- Occupations
- statisticianpedagogueeconomist
- Biography
-
Wassily Wassilyevich Leontief, was a Soviet-American economist known for his research on input–output analysis and how changes in one economic sector may affect other sectors.
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Olga Bergholz
- Enrolled in St. Petersburg State University
- Studied in 1930
- Occupations
- journalistplaywrightpoetwriterchildren's writer
- Biography
-
Olga Fyodorovna Bergholz was a Soviet and Russian poet, writer, playwright and journalist. She is most famous for her work on the Leningrad radio during the city's blockade, when she became the symbol of city's strength and determination.
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Juri Lotman
- Enrolled in St. Petersburg State University
- 1939-1950 graduated with specialist degree in philology
- In 1952 graduated with candidate of philology
- In 1961 graduated with Doctor of Sciences in Philology
- Occupations
- semiotician
- Biography
-
Juri Lotman, a prominent Russian-Estonian literary scholar, semiotician, and historian of Russian culture, worked at the University of Tartu. He was elected a member of the British Academy (1977), the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters (1987), the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences (1989) and the Estonian Academy of Sciences (1990). He was a founder of the Tartu–Moscow Semiotic School. The number of his printed works exceeds 800 titles. His extensive archive (now kept at the University of Tallinn and at the Tartu University Library) includes his correspondence with a number of Russian and Western intellectuals.
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Alexander Friedmann
- Enrolled in St. Petersburg State University
- Studied in 1906-1910
- Occupations
- mathematicianscientistphysicistmeteorologist
- Biography
-
Alexander Alexandrovich Friedmann was a Russian and Soviet physicist and mathematician. He originated the pioneering theory that the universe is expanding, governed by a set of equations he developed known as the Friedmann equations.
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Levon Ter-Petrosyan
- Occupations
- historianpolitician
- Biography
-
Levon Hakobi Ter-Petrosyan, also known by his initials LTP, is an Armenian politician and historian who served as the first president of Armenia from 1991 until his resignation in 1998.
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Akaki Tsereteli
- Occupations
- translatorpoetopinion journalistwriterpublic figure
- Biography
-
Count Akaki Tsereteli, often mononymously known as Akaki, was a prominent Georgian poet and national liberation movement figure.
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Valentin Glushko
- Enrolled in St. Petersburg State University
- Studied in 1925
- Occupations
- engineerpoliticianaerospace engineerphysicistwriter
- Biography
-
Valentin Petrovich Glushko was a Soviet engineer who was program manager of the Soviet space program from 1974 until 1989.
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Ilya Kormiltsev
- Occupations
- translatorpublishermusic criticlyricistjournalist
- Biography
-
Ilya Valeryevich Kormiltsev was a Russian poet, translator, and publisher. Kormiltsev is most famous for working during the 1980s and the 1990s as a songwriter in Nautilus Pompilius, one of the most popular rock bands in the Soviet Union and, later, Russia. He was also a prominent literary translator and publisher. Since 1997, he translated into Russian many important pieces of modern prose, such as Chuck Palahniuk's Fight Club, or Irvine Welsh's Trainspotting. In 2003, he established Ultra.Kultura publishing house, which immediately gained a scandalous reputation and was closed by the authorities in 2007. Through its brief history, Ultra.Kultura published numerous counter-culture books in a wide range from ultra-right to radical left authors.
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Leonid Kantorovich
- Enrolled in St. Petersburg State University
- Studied in 1926-1930
- Occupations
- university teachereconomistmathematician
- Biography
-
Leonid Vitalyevich Kantorovich was a Soviet mathematician and economist, known for his theory and development of techniques for the optimal allocation of resources. He is regarded as the founder of linear programming. He was the winner of the Stalin Prize in 1949 and the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences in 1975.
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Sergey Gorshkov
- Enrolled in St. Petersburg State University
- Studied in 1927
- Occupations
- politicianadmiralwriternaval officer
- Biography
-
Sergey Georgyevich Gorshkov was an admiral of the fleet of the Soviet Union. Twice awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union, he oversaw the expansion of the Soviet Navy into a global force during the Cold War as its Commander-in-Chief from 1956 to 1985.
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Pyotr Yershov
- Occupations
- playwrightpoetwriterprose writerchildren's writer
- Biography
-
Pyotr Pavlovich Yershov was a Russian poet and author of the fairy-tale poem The Little Humpbacked Horse (Konyok-Gorbunok).
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Vitaly Bianki
- Occupations
- ornithologistjournalistnaturalistwriterchildren's writer
- Biography
-
Vitaly Valentinovich Bianki was a popular Russian children's writer and a prolific author of books on nature.
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Nikolai Kondratiev
- Enrolled in St. Petersburg State University
- Studied in 1914
- Occupations
- politicianeconomist
- Biography
-
Nikolai Dmitriyevich Kondratiev was a Russian Soviet economist and proponent of the New Economic Policy (NEP) best known for the business cycle theory known as Kondratiev waves.
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Yelena Bonner
- Years
- 1923-2011 (aged 88)
- Occupations
- pediatriciandissidentwriterhuman rights activist
- Biography
-
Yelena Georgiyevna Bonner was a human rights activist in the former Soviet Union and wife of the physicist Andrei Sakharov. During her decades as a dissident, Bonner was noted for her characteristic blunt honesty and courage.
