Teffi, a renowned Russian writer, poet, and translator, was born in 1872 and passed away in 1952. Behind this pseudonym was the noblewoman Nadezhda Alexandrovna Lokhvitskaya, who possessed an incredible sense of humor and a sharp mind. She was called the "queen of laughter," and her works were beloved even by Russian Emperor Nicholas II. Teffi's biography is filled with interesting events, and she left a significant mark on 20th-century culture.

Nadezhda Lokhvitskaya was born on May 9 (21), 1872, in St. Petersburg to an intelligent noble family. Her father was a well-known lawyer in the city, and her mother, of French descent, raised six children and instilled in them a love for literature.

Nadezhda received an excellent education at the Litейная Women's Gymnasium, graduating in 1890. She was fascinated by Russian classics and even once approached Leo Tolstoy with a request to change the plot of "War and Peace" to save her favorite character, Andrei Bolkonsky.

Nadezhda's literary debut took place in 1901 when her family decided to submit one of her poems to the editorial office of the magazine "Sever." This step proved successful, and three years later, she published her first prose work, "The Day Has Passed."

Nadezhda Alexandrovna gained fame in 1910 with the release of her first collection, "Humorous Stories." By this time, she had adopted the pseudonym N. A. Teffi, under which she became widely recognized. Her work became so popular that perfumes and chocolate candies named "Teffi" appeared.

Nadezhda Lokhvitskaya became a recognized master of miniatures, a complex literary genre where it was essential to choose each word carefully and emphasize the main points.

Teffi became famous for her satirical poems and feuilletons, collaborating with the magazine "Satirikon." Her satire was original: witty, yet harmless and even compassionate.

After the revolution, Nadezhda Alexandrovna could not accept the new realities of Russia and emigrated to Paris in 1920, where she continued to write. The support of talented compatriots, such as Gippius, Bunin, and Merezhkovsky, played an important role for her.

In Teffi's works from this period, humor and lightness disappeared, giving way to deeper, psychological stories with sad motifs, as seen in "The Little Town," "Nostalgia," "This Is How We Lived," "Ke Fer?".

In the 1930s, Teffi became interested in the memoir genre, writing autobiographical stories ("The First Visit to the Editorial Office," "Pseudonym," "How I Became a Writer," "45 Years") and artistic essays, as well as literary portraits of famous people.

Nadezhda Lokhvitskaya's first husband was the Pole Wladyslaw Buchinski, with whom she had three children: daughters Valeria and Elena and son Janek. The couple separated in 1900, and Teffi began to rapidly develop her career, leaving the children in the care of a governess and her husband.

The great love of the writer's life was St. Petersburg banker Pavel Tikston, with whom she lived in a civil marriage until his death in 1935.

Teffi passed away on October 6, 1952, in Paris at the age of 80 due to an angina attack.