Krokodil was a
satiricalSatire is primarily a literary genre or form, although in practice it can also be found in the graphic and performing arts. In satire, vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, ideally with the intent of shaming individuals, and society itself, into improvement...
magazineMagazines, periodicals, glossies or serials are publications, generally published on a regular schedule, containing a variety of articles. They are generally financed by advertising, by a purchase price, by pre-paid magazine subscriptions, or all three...
published in the
Soviet UnionThe Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
. It was founded in 1922. At that time, a large number of satirical magazines existed, such as
Zanoza and
Prozhektor. Nearly all of them eventually disappeared.
Although political
satireSatire is primarily a literary genre or form, although in practice it can also be found in the graphic and performing arts. In satire, vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, ideally with the intent of shaming individuals, and society itself, into improvement...
was dangerous during much of the Soviet period,
Krokodil was given considerable license to lampoon political figures and events. Typical and safe topics for lampooning in the Soviet era were the lack of initiative and imagination promoted by the style of an average Soviet middle-bureaucrat, and the problems produced by drinking on the job by Soviet workers.
Krokodil also ridiculed capitalist countries and attacked various political, ethnic and religious groups that allegedly opposed the Soviet system. For example, at the time of the
Doctors' plotThe Doctors' plot was the most dramatic anti-Jewish episode in the Soviet Union during Joseph Stalin's regime, involving the "unmasking" of a group of prominent Moscow doctors, predominantly Jews, as conspiratorial assassins of Soviet leaders...
it published a number of anti-semitic articles and cartoons.
Many notable persons contributed to the magazine, including
Vladimir MayakovskyVladimir Vladimirovich Mayakovsky was a Russian and Soviet poet and playwright, among the foremost representatives of early-20th century Russian Futurism.- Early life :...
, Kukriniksy, and
Yuliy GanfYuliy Abramovich Ganf - Soviet Russian graphic artist, People's Artist of the USSR, especially known for his satirical cartoons in the Krokodil magazine....
.
Similar magazines existed in all the
Union republicThe Republics of the Soviet Union or the Union Republics of the Soviet Union were ethnically-based administrative units that were subordinated directly to the Government of the Soviet Union...
s, and in several ASSRs
| Republic |
Title |
Translation |
Ukrainian SSRThe Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic or in short, the Ukrainian SSR was a sovereign Soviet Socialist state and one of the fifteen constituent republics of the Soviet Union lasting from its inception in 1922 to the breakup in 1991...
|
Перець Perets is a Ukrainian satirical newspaper, in the style of Krokodil.It was originally founded in the then capital of the Ukrainian SSR, Kharkiv, as Червоний Перець in 1927. It moved to Kiev in 1941....
|
Pepper |
| Belarusian SSR |
Вожык |
Hedgehog |
Uzbek SSRThe Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic , also known as the Uzbek SSR for short, was one of the republics of the Soviet Union since its creation in 1924...
|
Муштум |
Fist |
Kazakh SSRThe Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic , also known as the Kazakh SSR for short, was one of republics that made up the Soviet Union.At in area, it was the second largest constituent republic in the USSR, after the Russian SFSR. Its capital was Alma-Ata . Today it is the independent state of...
|
Ара |
Bumblebee |
| Georgian SSR |
ნიანგი |
Crocodile |
| Azerbaijani SSR |
Кирпи |
Hedgehog |
Lithuanian SSRThe Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic , also known as the Lithuanian SSR, was one of the republics that made up the former Soviet Union...
|
Šluota |
Broom |
Moldavian SSRThe Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic , commonly abbreviated to Moldavian SSR or MSSR, was one of the 15 republics of the Soviet Union...
|
Кипэруш |
Pepper |
Latvian SSRThe Latvian Soviet Socialist Republic , also known as the Latvian SSR for short, was one of the republics that made up the Soviet Union. Established on 21 July 1940 as a puppet state during World War II in the territory of the previously independent Republic of Latvia after it had been occupied by...
|
Dadzis |
Bur |
| Kyrgyz SSR |
Чалкан |
Nettle |
Tajik SSRThe Tajik Soviet Socialist Republic , also known as the Tajik SSR for short, was one of the 15 republics that made up the Soviet Union. Located in Central Asia, the Tajik SSR was created on 5 December 1929 as a national entity for the Tajik people within the Soviet Union...
|
Хорпуштак |
Hedgehog |
Armenian SSRThe Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic The Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic The Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic The Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic The Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic The Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic The Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic The Armenian Soviet...
|
Ոզնի |
Hedgehog |
Turkmen SSRThe Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic , also known as the Turkmen SSR for short, was one of republics of the Soviet Union in Central Asia. It was initially established on 7 August 1921 as the Turkmen Oblast of the Turkestan ASSR. On 13 May 1925 it was transformed into Turkmen SSR and became a...
|
Токмак |
? |
| Estonian SSR |
Pikker |
Pikker |
| Bashkir ASSR |
Хэнэк |
Pitchfork |
| Chuvash ASSR |
Капкан |
Trap |
| Komi ASSR |
Чушканзі |
Wasp |
| Mari ASSR |
Пачемыш |
Wasp |
| Tatar ASSR |
Чаян |
Scorpion |
| Udmurt ASSR |
Шӧкыч |
Hornet |
and in other states of the Soviet bloc, e.g.
Стършел ("Wasp") in
BulgariaBulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
,
Eulenspiegel in East Germany,
UrzicăUrzica is a commune in Olt County, Romania. It is composed of two villages, Stăvaru and Urzica....
("The
NettleNettles constitute between 24 and 39 species of flowering plants of the genus Urtica in the family Urticaceae, with a cosmopolitan though mainly temperate distribution. They are mostly herbaceous perennial plants, but some are annual and a few are shrubby...
") in
RomaniaRomania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
and
Dikobraz ("
porcupinePorcupines are rodents with a coat of sharp spines, or quills, that defend or camouflage them from predators. They are indigenous to the Americas, southern Asia, and Africa. Porcupines are the third largest of the rodents, behind the capybara and the beaver. Most porcupines are about long, with...
") in
CzechoslovakiaCzechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
.
Among the vocal compositions of
Dmitri ShostakovichDmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich was a Soviet Russian composer and one of the most celebrated composers of the 20th century....
, who is known for his satirical character, there are
5 Romances on texts from Krokodil Magazine (1965), which is a satire of satire.
Reinstatement
After the
dissolution of the Soviet UnionThe dissolution of the Soviet Union was the disintegration of the federal political structures and central government of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , resulting in the independence of all fifteen republics of the Soviet Union between March 11, 1990 and December 25, 1991...
, the magazine was discontinued. It was reinstated in 2005 in
RussiaRussia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, issued monthly, headquartered in
MoscowMoscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
, and with editor-in-chief Sergei Mostovshchikov. The reinstated version is deliberately printed on old Soviet-style paper.