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Demographics of Kaliningrad

Posted: Thu Jul 14, 2016 5:49 pm
by Olekander
Hi guys,

Since the members of this forum are so well travelled, I was wondering whether you could help me. I can't seem to get any reliable figures as to the demographics of Kaliningrad, I find it hard to believe that the entire population has changed its mother tongue in less than 80 years? I believe it became soviet in 1946 with the first Russian influence in 1933?

Can anyone tell me a quick overview of the recent-ish linguistic breakdown of Kaliningrad Konigsberg?

Thanks!

Re: Demographics of Kaliningrad

Posted: Thu Jul 14, 2016 6:17 pm
by Saim
Olekander wrote:I find it hard to believe that the entire population has changed its mother tongue in less than 80 years?


There was a huge campaign of ethnic cleansing. Most historical Kaliningrad residents and their descendents live in Germany now, as do most Lower Silesians, eastern Prussians, Sudetenlanders, Volga Germans, Danube Swabians or Transylvania Saxons.

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Re: Demographics of Kaliningrad

Posted: Fri Jul 15, 2016 2:06 am
by aokoye
Olekander wrote:I find it hard to believe that the entire population has changed its mother tongue in less than 80 years? I believe it became soviet in 1946 with the first Russian influence in 1933?


When countries invade other countries linguistic change can be swift especially colonization and/or genocide (among other things) are at play. It happened in North America, the Soviet Union attempted (and failed) to do it to Latvia, there was an attempt in South Africa during Apartheid (and we know how that went)...

Re: Demographics of Kaliningrad

Posted: Wed Nov 09, 2016 12:35 pm
by DaveBee
Olekander wrote:Hi guys,

Since the members of this forum are so well travelled, I was wondering whether you could help me. I can't seem to get any reliable figures as to the demographics of Kaliningrad, I find it hard to believe that the entire population has changed its mother tongue in less than 80 years? I believe it became soviet in 1946 with the first Russian influence in 1933?

Can anyone tell me a quick overview of the recent-ish linguistic breakdown of Kaliningrad Konigsberg?

Thanks!
Wasn't there a major effort to evacuate the civilian population of Kaliningrad towards the end of ww2? I have a vague memory that the sinking of one of their civilian evacuee ships was the greatest single loss of life at sea.

EDIT
I think that factoid came from a Bernie Gunther novel.
For this eleventh book, Kerr’s homework took him to Kaliningrad because he “always wanted to write about the Battle of Königsberg, Germany’s equivalent of Stalingrad.” The city Königsberg is today called Kaliningrad because, explains Kerr, “the Russians ethnically cleansed it of Germans, and made it a Russian city,” keeping it as a “port for their submarines, even though it should technically belong to Poland.” The Cold War may be a thing of the past, but Kerr warns, “I don’t recommend you go there; Russians are not welcoming.”

Re: Demographics of Kaliningrad

Posted: Wed Nov 09, 2016 6:05 pm
by Josquin
DaveBee wrote:Wasn't there a major effort to evacuate the civilian population of Kaliningrad towards the end of ww2? I have a vague memory that the sinking of one of their civilian evacuee ships was the greatest single loss of life at sea.

Well, the evacuation of East Prussia was a chaotic flight of the civilian population. Most of them left on foot or using horse-drawn vehicles in the midst of winter. The ship you're referring to was the Wilhelm Gustloff, which was hit by a torpedo after leaving the harbour of Gdingen near Danzig. Thousands of people died. Günter Grass wrote about this tragedy in his novel "Im Krebsgang".