The 1889–1890 Russian influenza pandemic begins (1889)

The 1889–1890 influenza pandemic, known as the 'Russian flu' or 'Asiatic flu', was a global respiratory viral outbreak. Its onset is conventionally dated to May 1889 in Bukhara, though local medical commissions identified the agent as malaria. The disease spread through the Russian Empire in October 1889, reaching Saint Petersburg where deaths peaked in December. Modern transport facilitated transmission, and excess mortality in the Russian Empire is estimated between 60,000 and 90,000.

Episodes

Background and detail

Background. The 1889–1890 pandemic was a worldwide respiratory viral event, often called the 'Asiatic flu' or 'Russian flu'. It was the last great pandemic of the 19th century. Excess mortality in the Russian Empire for 1889–1890 is estimated at 60,000 to 90,000 people, with a lethality rate slightly above 0.2%. Unlike later pandemics, elderly people were the primary victims in 1889.

Onset and Disputes. The disease was first reported in May 1889 in Bukhara, then the capital of the Emirate of Bukhara, a protectorate of the Russian Empire. However, a local commission in August 1889 and historians in 2023 identified the infectious agent in Bukhara from May to August as malaria, not influenza. Anomalously cold winters and high groundwater levels may have exacerbated the outbreak.

Spread Within the Empire. Influenza spread within the Russian Empire in October 1889. Modern transport infrastructure assisted this transmission. Deaths peaked in Saint Petersburg on 1 December 1889. In Livonia province, excess mortality increased by 8% in November 1889 and 67% in December 1889 compared to the 1888–1895 average. Pneumonia cases increased as general morbidity declined in mid-December.

People involved

Sources

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