Emigration from the Russian Empire to Brazil in the late XIX and early XX centuries

Author(s)

Ryazantsev, Sergey, V ; Smirnov, Alexey, V ; Truzzi, Oswaldo Mario Serra ; Ruseishvili, Svetlana

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: BYLYE GODY; v. 18, n. 2, p. 16-pg., 2023-06-01.

Abstract

Brazil in the second half of the 19th century, with large areas of unpopulated land and experiencing a shortage of workers, began to actively attract the population of European countries to settle its territory. At the end of the 19th century, a significant number of immigrants came from the Russian Empire, represented by various ethnic and religious groups. The aim of the article is to analyze the scale, ethnic and socio-demographic structure of the migration flow from the Russian Empire to Brazil in the late 19th - early 20th centuries.Materials of the pre-revolutionary sources of the end 19th - beginning 20th centuries, first, periodicals served as the base of the study.Emigration was caused by external and internal reasons. External causes included: Brazil's immigration policy of attracting labor with the provision of free travel, incentive payments to steamship companies, and the work of emigration agents. Internal causes: unfavorable economic situation, famine caused by crop failures in 1889 and 1891; presence of many landless and land-poor peasants; low wages. Emigration from the Russian Empire began in 1870-1880, reaching its peak in 1891 with 109,000 people.The migration flow from Russia to Brazil was represented mainly by Poles, Jews, and Germans (mostly Mennonites). It was mainly the population of the Prislinna and southern provinces who left. Ethnic Russians and Orthodox until the early 20th century predominantly participated in the processes of internal migration, moving to the east of the country. The absence of Russian and Orthodox populations in the migration flows was due to a lack of information about the opportunities open to migrants in the New World. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 22/04437-3 - Socio-demographic and political features of the development of Russian-speaking communities in Brazil and Latin America in the context of geopolitical upheaval
• Grantee: Oswaldo Mario Serra Truzzi
• Support Opportunities: Research Grants - Visiting Researcher Grant - International