Alanas Chošnau was born to a Lithuanian mother and Iraqi Kurdish father[1] in Vilnius, Lithuania. The family—Alanas with his parents and sister Greta—lived in Baghdad, Iraq until Chošnau's mother died in 1983.[4] The 8 year old Alanas returned to Lithuania and was raised by his grandparents. However, his then teenaged sister was left in Baghdad with their father.[4] Thus Alanas grew up speaking the Arabic language and only later learned the Lithuanian language.[5] Tragic family split was not enough for the destiny.