Emmanuelle Arsan | |
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Born | Marayat Bibidh 19 January 1932 Bangkok, Thailand |
Died | 12 June 2005 Chantelouve, France |
(aged 73)
Pen name | Marayat, Marayata, Marayat Andriane, Marajat, Kramsaseddinsh, Krasaesundh, Krassaesibor, Virajjakkam, Virajjakam, Virajjakari |
Occupation | Writer, novelist, actress |
Years active | 1966-1976 |
Spouse | Louis-Jacques Rollet-Andriane UNESCO diplomat (1956-2005) (her death) |
Marayat Rollet-Andriane formerly Marayat Krasaesin (Thai: มารยาท กระแสสินธุ์) or her birthname Marayat Bibidh (Thai: มารยาท พิพิธ; rtgs: Marayat Phiphit; born 19 January 1932 – 12 June 2005), known by the pen name Emmanuelle Arsan, was a French novelist of Eurasian origin, best known for the novel featuring the fictional character Emmanuelle, a woman who sets out on a voyage of sexual self-discovery under varying circumstances. However, it was later claimed that the real author of the book was her husband, Louis-Jacques Rollet-Andriane.
Arsan was born Marayat Bibidh on 19 January 1932 in Bangkok, Thailand, into an aristocratic Siamese family closely connected to the royal family. Marayat's family home was in the affluent Ekkamai District of the Thai capital, where she reportedly discovered her sexuality in the company of her little sister Vasana.
After attending primary school in Thailand, Marayat was sent by her parents to Switzerland to continue her studies at the extremely selective Institut Le Rosey boarding school, located in Rolle, Canton of Vaud. The school offered a bilingual English-French education to the offspring of the international elite. It was at a ball there in 1948, that the 16-year-old Marayat first met her future husband, the 30-year-old French diplomat Louis-Jacques Rollet-Andriane. Although it was love at first sight, they did not marry until 1956, then settling in Thailand, where Louis-Jacques was given a diplomatic posting at the UNESCO mission in Bangkok.