mir

Definition

A traditional village community in Imperial Russia, characterised by self-government and collectivist control of local lands.

Etymology

Borrowing from Russian мир (mir, “community, village commune; peace; world”).

Example Sentences

• "[T]he constitution of the village […] was a subject which specially interested me, because I was aware that the Mir is the most peculiar of Russian institutions."
• "The mir was the only means to prevent this, and mir meant serfdom under another name. The landowners disposed of their land, or of so much as was required to support the peasants, not to individuals but to the mir."
• "Consisting of village elders elected by the male heads of household, the mir conducted almost all peasant business, fixing the dates for the agricultural year, deciding what, when and how crops should be grown, distributing plots of land on the open fields, collecting taxes and enforcing basic community discipline."