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ku·lak

(k-lăk, klăk′, -läk′)

A prosperous landed peasant in czarist Russia, characterized by the Communists during the October Revolution as an exploiter.

[Russian, fist, kulak ("tightfisted landowner"), from Old Russian kulakŭ, fist, probably akin to dialectal Czech kulák, small stone (both Czech and Old Russian then being from Proto-Slavic *kulakŭ, fist, of unknown origin), or possibly of Turkic origin (akin to Turkish kol, arm, from Old Turkic kōl, upper arm).]

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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