Maria Iordanidou

Maria Iordanidou (1897-1989). Maria Iordanidou was born in Constantinople, the daughter of Nikolaos Kriezis, an engineer in the British merchant navy, and Efrosyni Magkou. From 1901 to 1909, she lived with her parents in Athens, but after their separation, Maria returned to her birthplace and enrolled in the American College there. From 1914 to 1919, she lived—trapped by the outbreak of World War I and the turmoil of the Russian Revolution during a visit to relatives in Russia—in Mariupol in the Caucasus. She managed to survive on her own by giving English lessons, while also attending classes at a Russian high school. In 1919, she returned to Constantinople and worked for an American trading company. In 1920, she was transferred to Alexandria, Egypt, where she became involved with intellectual circles, joined the Communist Party of Egypt, and in 1923 married the educator Iordanis Iordanidis. After her marriage, she settled with her husband and mother in Athens, where she worked at the Soviet Union’s embassy. In 1931, she divorced Iordanidis, with whom she had two children. In 1939, she was dismissed from the embassy and resumed teaching foreign languages. During the German occupation, her home was destroyed and she herself was persecuted and imprisoned in various camps. She collaborated with the periodical publication of the Communist Party of Greece. She was educated as a translator. Iordanidou made her literary debut at the age of sixty-five with the publication of the novel Loxandra. She was honored for her work with the Gold Cross and the title of Lady of the Ecumenical Throne by the Patriarchate of Constantinople (1978). Her works have been translated into many foreign languages. Maria Iordanidou is among the Greek prose writers of the interwar period, particularly among those authors who were beloved by the reading public—her works, most notably Loxandra, were adapted for television—but overlooked by critics. Key characteristics of her work include the autobiographical element, which became increasingly prominent throughout her literary career, her disregard for systematic organization of narrative material, and the immediacy, accuracy, and naturalness of her style. For more biographical information on Maria Iordanidou, see Angelos Afroudakis, "Maria Iordanidou," in "Interwar Prose: From the First to the Second World War (1914-1939)," vol. D, Athens, Sokolis, 1992, and ch.s., "Iordanidou Maria," in "World Biographical Dictionary," vol. 4, Athens, Ekdotiki Athinon, 1985. (Source: Archive of Greek Authors, EKEBI.)