Russian Émigrés in the Educational and Cultural Life of 20th-century Yugoslavia: The Jelačić Family

Abstract

This paper presents the life and professional path of the Jelačić family—Aleksei and Maria and their son Ćirilo (Kirill)—in Yugoslavia from 1920 onwards. Aleksei and Maria Jelačić started their careers as teachers in Petrograd, and later became teachers at the gymnasiums in Skopje (present-day Republic of North Macedonia) and Leskovac (present-day Republic of Serbia), while Ćirilo became a teacher at the University of Tuzla (today Bosnia and Herzegovina). The family faced numerous professional and personal challenges in their life. After migrating to the territory of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (which nine years later changed its name to the Kingdom of Yugoslavia), the Jelačić family instantly became actively involved in educational and enlightenment activities. The consequences of the First and then the Second World War forced the Jelačić family to become refugees twice. Aleksei Jelačić made a significant contribution to the development of historical scholarship. His works in the field of socio-political studies are particularly valuable, most notably his research about events in Slavonia and Croatia. Through many public lectures, he taught the history of the Slavic peoples to the Yugoslav public. After his death, his wife and son continued with teaching activities during the occupation and later under socialism. Aleksei and Maria’s son Ćirilo had a significant influence on the formation and development of engineering higher education institutions in the then underdeveloped Bosnia and Herzegovina. Maria Jelačić taught foreign languages and history at the Leskovac Gymnasium. One of the authors of this paper personally met one of Maria’s former students – Hranislav Rakić – who was the director of the National Museum of Leskovac for more than three decades. Maria Jelačić had a great influence on Hranislav Rakić’s choice of profession.

Received 8 July 2025

Revised 26 September 2025

Accepted 5 December 2025

For citation: Petković V., Milenković M., 2025. Russian Émigrés in the Educational and Cultural Life of 20^th-century Yugoslavia: The Jelačić Family. Slavic World in the Third Millennium, 20 (3–4), pp. 52–78. https://doi.org/10.31168/2412-6446.2025.20.3-4.03