ASZA BURMEISTER: furnace tapper in carbide factory
BARBARA ROHDE, ‘ENOEFF’: Ulrich’s wife, dressmaker; Christian’s aunt
BARSANO, MAX: General Secretary of District Party
BURRE, JAN, ‘NUTELLA’: conscript
CHRISTIAN HOFFMANN: senior high-school student, later conscript
CLARENS: psychiatrist at medical academy
‘COSTA’, LARS DIERITZ: conscript
DÄNE, LOTHAR: music critic
DANIEL FISCHER: Josta’s son by her divorced husband
DIETZSCH: sculptor, lives in the same house as Hans Hoffmann
DREYSSIGER: junior doctor in surgery
EMMY HOFFMANN: Christian’s paternal grandmother, Arthur’s estranged wife
ERIK ORRÉ: actor, lives in the same house as the Tietzes
ESCHSCHLORAQUE, EDUARD: writer, dramatist, Stalinist
EZZO TIETZE: son of Niklas and Gudrun
FABIAN HOFFMANN: son of Hans and Iris; Christian’s cousin
FALK TRUSCHLER: classmate of Christian
FIEBIG, CLÄRE: widow, inhabitant of ‘Tower’ district
GLODDE, MIKE: local postman, engaged to the Griesels’ daughter
GRIESEL, DR: engineer, keeps the house register where Christian’s family live
GUDRUN TIETZE: actress, wife of Niklas; Christian’s ‘aunt’
HANS HOFFMANN: toxicologist, husband of Iris; Christian’s uncle
HANSI NEUBERT: Regine’s son
HEIKE FIEBER: classmate of Christian, artist
HONICH, PEDRO AND BABETT: work in Party organizations, live in the same house as Meno
IRIS HOFFMANN: wife of Hans; Christian’s aunt
INA ROHDE: daughter of Ulrich and Barbara; Christian’s cousin
JENS ANSORGE: classmate of Christian
JOFFE: lawyer, communist
JOSTA FISCHER: Richard Hoffmann’s mistress, secretary in hospital administration
JUDITH SCHEVOLA: young novelist; Meno is her editor
KARLFRIEDE SINNER-PRIEST: ‘Mrs Privy-Councillor’, official in Book Ministry
KAMINSKI, RENÉ AND TIMO: twin sons of important Party member, live in same house as Meno
‘KING’ SIEWERT, RON: Free German Youth secretary at carbide factory
KITTWITZ, DR ROLAND: scientist in Abogast’s institute
KNABE, FRAU: dentist, lives in the same house as Hans Hoffmann and family
KRAUSEWITZ, HERR AND FRAU: live in the same house as Hans Hoffmann and family
KURT ROHDE: Christian’s maternal grandfather
LIBUSSA LANGE: wife of Alois, Czech
LONDONER, JOCHEN: writer on social/political topics, Meno’s ex-father-in-law
LUCIE FISCHER: Josta’s daughter by Richard
LÜHRER: novelist
‘MADAME EGLANTINE’, STEFANIE WROBEL: editor at Dresdner Edition
MAGENSTOCK: pastor of the church in the ‘Tower’ district
MALTHAKUS: owner of stamp and picture postcard shop
MARISA: Philipp Londoner’s partner, Chilean, communist
MARROQUIN, MALIVOR: Chilean, owner of fancy-dress shop, photographer
MENO ROHDE: zoologist, writer and editor at Dresdner Edition; Christian’s uncle
MÜLLER, PROFESSOR: head of surgery
MURIEL HOFFMANN: daughter of Hans and Iris; Christian’s cousin
‘MUSCA’, THILO EBERT: conscript, lance corporal
NIKLAS TIETZE: GP, husband of Gudrun; Christian’s ‘uncle’ (Richard’s cousin)
‘NIP’, STAFF SERGEANT EMMERICH: professional soldier, responsible for the conscripts
‘PANCAKE’, STEFFEN KRETZSCHMAR: conscript, imprisoned with Christian
PHILIPP LONDONER: son of Jochen, academic, economist
REDLICH, JOSEF: editor at Dresdner Edition
REGINE NEUBERT: friend of the Hoffmans whose husband, Jürgen, has fled to the West
REGLINDE TIETZE: daughter of Niklas and Gudrun
REINA KOSSMANN: classmate of Christian
RICHARD HOFFMANN: surgeon; Christian’s father (Anne’s husband)
RITSCHEL: technician in Arbogast’s institute
ROGALLA, STEFFEN: conscript, corporal
RUDEN, JOHANNES: conscript, corporal
SANDOR HOFFMANN: from Ecuador, husband of Alice; Christian’s ‘uncle’ (Richard’s cousin)
SCHADE, PAUL: writer, Party hack
SCHANETT: truck driver at open-cast mine, lives on a farm
SCHEFFLER: rector of Medical Academy
SCHIFFNER, HEINZ: publisher at Dresdner Edition
SCHMÜCKE, NINA: neighbour of Josta, artist, later political activist
SIEGBERT GÜGER: classmate of Christian
SPERBER: lawyer
STAHL, GERHART: husband of Sabine, engineer, lives in same house as Meno
STAHL, SABINE: wife of Gerhart
STENZEL SISTERS: three former circus bareback riders, live in the same house as Christian
SVETLANA LEHMANN: classmate of Christian, committed communist
TEERWAGEN, PROFESSOR: physicist, lives with his wife in ‘Tower’ district
ULRICH ROHDE: Barbara’s husband, Christian’s uncle, managing director of a state-owned company
VERENA WINKLER: classmate of Christian
WENIGER, MANFRED: gynaecologist, friend of Richard Hoffmann from their student days
WERNSTEIN: junior doctor in trauma clinic, marries Ina Rohde
ZSCHUNKE, FRAU: greengrocer in ‘Tower’ district