Many languages, including English, contain words (Russianisms) most likely borrowed from the Russian language. Not all of the words are of purely Russian or origin. Some of them co-exist in other Slavic languages, and it can be difficult to determine whether they entered English from Russian or, say, Bulgarian. Some other words are borrowed or constructed from classical ancient languages, such as Latin or Greek. Still others are themselves borrowed from indigenous peoples that Russians have come into contact with in Russian or Soviet territory.

Compared to other source languages, English contains few words adopted from Russian. Direct borrowing first began with contact between England and Russia in the 16th century and picked up heavily in the 20th century, with the establishment of the Soviet Union as a major world power. Most of these words denote things and notions specific to Russia, Russian culture, politics, and history, but also well known outside Russia. Some others are in mainstream usage and independent of any Russian context.

Since both English and Russian are distantly related members of the Indo-European language family and therefore share a common ancestor, Proto-Indo-European, cognate pairs such as mother – мать (mat) will be excluded from the list.

Common

-nik, a borrowed suffix (also used in Yiddish)

Babushka (Russian: активные мероприятия, <small>romanized:</small> aktivnye meropriyatiya) is political warfare conducted by the Soviet or Russian government since the 1920s. It includes offensive programs such as disinformation, propaganda, deception, sabotage, destabilization, and espionage.

Agitprop (Russian: агитпро́п; blend of Russian агита́ция agitatsiya "agitation" and пропага́нда propaganda "propaganda"; origin – 1930's, from shortened form of отде́л агита́ции и пропага́нды, transliteration otdel agitatsii i propagandy, ('Department for Agitation and Propaganda'), which was part of the Central and regional committees of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. The department was later renamed Ideological Department.)

  • Political (originally communist) propaganda

Apparatchik derived from the title of a KGB black propaganda department. Disinformation was defined in the Great Soviet Encyclopedia (1952) as "false information with the intention to deceive public opinion".)

Term for eight of Russia's 85 federal subjects, often translated as territory, province, or region.

Leninism (Russian: ленини́зм) (after Vladimir Lenin, the term was coined in 1918) The political, economic, and social principles and practices of the Russian revolutionary Vladimir Lenin, especially his theory of government, which formed the basis for Soviet communism.

Lishenets (Russian: лише́нец) (from Russian лишение, "deprivation", properly translated as disenfranchised) (historical) A certain group of people in the Soviet Union who, from 1918 to 1936, were prohibited from voting and denied other rights.

Maskirovka (Russian: маскировка) (literally 'disguise') is a Russian military doctrine developed from the start of the twentieth century. The doctrine covers a broad range of measures for military deception, from camouflage to denial and deception.

Menshevik (Russian: меньшеви́к) (from Russian word меньшинство́ menshinstvo, "minority", from ме́ньше men'she "less"; the name Menshevik was coined by Vladimir Lenin when the party was (atypically) in the minority for a brief period) (historical) A member of the non-Leninist wing of the Russian Social Democratic Workers' Party, opposed to the Bolsheviks, who defeated them during the Russian Civil War that followed the 1917 Russian Revolution.

Mir (Russian: мир) (from Russian mir, meaning both "world" and "peace")

  • (historical) A peasant farming commune in pre-Revolutionary Russia.
  • Mir, a space station created by the former Soviet Union and continued by Russia until 2001.

Namestnik (, ; Russian, literally "deputy" or "lieutenant") (historical)

  1. (12th–16th century) An official who ruled an uyezd and was in charge of local administration.
  2. (18th–20th century) A type of viceroy in Russia who ruled a namestnichestvo and had plenipotentiary powers.

Narkompros (Russian: Наркомпро́с) (Russian Народный комиссариат просвещения, an abbreviation for the People's Commissariat for Enlightenment (historical) The Soviet Union agency charged with the administration of public education and most other issues related to culture, such as literature and art. Founded by the Bolsheviks during the Russian Revolution, it was renamed in 1946 to the Ministry of Enlightening.

Narodniks (Russian: plural наро́дники, singular наро́дник) (from Russian narod, "people", in turn from the expression "хождение в народ", meaning "going to the people") (historical) The name for Russian revolutionaries (active from the 1860s to the 1880s) that looked on the peasants and intelligentsia as revolutionary forces, rather than the urban working class.

NEP or The New Economic Policy (NEP) (Russian: нэп, acronym for но́вая экономи́ческая поли́тика novaya ekonomicheskaya politika) (historical) An economic policy instituted in 1921 by Lenin to attempt to rebuild industry, especially agriculture. The policy was later reversed by Stalin.

Nomenklatura (Russian: номенклату́ра) (Russian nomenklatura, from the Latin nomenclatura, meaning a list of names) (historical) In the former Soviet Union, a list of influential posts in government and industry to be filled by Communist Party appointees; collectively the holders of these posts, the Soviet élite.

Oblast (Russian: область) A type of administrative division

Obshchina (Russian: ́община, общи́на) (Russian о́бщий obshchiy common, commune) Russian peasant agrarian communities during Imperialist Russia.

Obtshak (Russian: обща́к) In criminal jargon, a mutual aid fund in the environment of a criminal community.

Okhrana in full: The Okhrannoye otdeleniye (Russian: Охра́нное отделе́ние) (Russian, literally "protection section") (historical) The secret police organization (established in the 1860s) for protection of the Russian czarist regimes. It ended with the Bolshevik takeover of Russia in 1917; the Bolsheviks set up their own secret police organization, called the Cheka.

Okrug (Russian: о́круг) (Russian okrug is similar to the German word Bezirk ("district"), both referring to something that is "encircled").

  • In the former Soviet Union, an administrative division of an oblast and krai
  • A federal district in the present-day Russian Federation

Oprichnina (Russian: опри́чнина) (from the obsolete Russian word опричь, oprich, meaning "apart from" or "separate") (historical) Term for the domestic policy of Russian czar Ivan the Terrible.

Oprichnik plural Oprichniki (Russian: опри́чник) (historical) Name given to the bodyguards of Ivan the Terrible, who ruthlessly suppressed any opposition to his reign.

Perestroika (Russian: перестро́йка) (Russian perestroika, literally "restructuring"; the term was first used in 1986) The reform of the political and economic system of the former Soviet Union, first proposed by Leonid Brezhnev at the 26th Communist Party Congress in 1979 and later actively promoted by Mikhail Gorbachev from 1985.

Podyachy (Russian: подья́чий) (Russian, from the Greek hypodiakonos, "assistant servant") (historical) An office occupation in prikazes (local and upper governmental offices) and lesser local offices of Russia from the 15th to the 18th century.

Politburo (Russian Политбюро́ politbyuro, from Полити́ческое бюро́ polit(icheskoe) byuro, "political bureau") (historical) The principal policymaking committee in the former Soviet Union that was founded in 1917; also known as the Presidium from 1952 to 1966.

Posadnik (Russian: поса́дник) (from Old Church Slavic posaditi, meaning to put, or place, since originally, they were placed in the city to rule on behalf of the prince of Kiev) (historical) A mayor (equivalent to a stadtholder, burgomaster, or podestà in the medieval West) in some East Slavic cities, notably in the Russian cities of Novgorod and Pskov; the title was abolished in the 15th and 16th centuries.

Praporshchik (Russian: пра́порщик) (from Slavonic prapor (прапор), meaning flag, since the praporshchik was a flag-bearer among Kievan Rus troops) The name of a junior officer position in the military of the Russian Empire equivalent to ensign. Nowadays, this rank is used by the modern Russian army, police, and FSB and is equivalent to warrant officer.

Prikaz (Russian: прика́з)

  1. (historical) An administrative (palace, civil, military, or church) or judicial office in Muscovy and Russia of 15th–18th centuries; abolished by Peter the Great.
  2. In modern Russian, an administrative or military order (to do something).

Propiska (Russian: пропи́ска) (Russian full term пропи́ска по ме́сту жи́тельства, "The record of place of residence", from the Russian verb propisat "to write into", in reference to writing a passport into a registration book of the given local office) (historical) A regulation promulgated by the Russian czar designed to control internal population movement by binding a person to his or her permanent place of residence. Abolished by Lenin but later reinstated under Stalin in the Soviet Union.

Silovik (Russian: силови́к), plural siloviks or siloviki (Russian: силовики́) (from Russian си́ла sila, "strength", "force") A collective name for ministers, generals, and other officials of "силовые ведомства" "siloviye vedomstva" – force departments – ministries and other departments that have arms (weapons) and ability to use armed force, such as the army, FSB (KGB), or MVD (police). The term siloviks is often used to highlight or suggest their inclination to use force to solve problems.

Soviet (Russian: сове́т) (Russian sovet, "council") (historical)

  • A revolutionary council of workers or peasants in Russia before the 1917 Revolution
  • An elected local, district, or national council in the former Soviet Union
  • A citizen in the former Soviet Union
  • Of or concerning the former Soviet Union

Sovkhoz plural sovkhozes (Russian: совхо́з) (Russian сове́тское хозя́йство, (Sov) eckoje (khoz)yaistvo, "Soviet farm")

  • (historical) A state-owned farm in the former Soviet Union
  • A state-owned farm in countries of the former Soviet Union

Sovnarkhoz (Russian: Совнархо́з) (Russian сове́т наро́дного хозя́йства, sovet narodnogo hozyaistva, Council of National Economy, usually translated as "Regional Economic Council") (historical) An organization of the former Soviet Union to manage a separate economic region.

Sovnarkom (Russian: Сове́т Мини́стров СССР) (Russian Sovet Ministrov SSSR, Council of Ministers of the USSR, sometimes abbreviated as Совми́н Sovmin; between 1918 and 1946, it was named the Council of People's Commissars of the USSR (Совет Народных Комиссаров СССР, Russian Sovet Narodnykh Komissarov SSSR, sometimes Sovnarkom or SNK).) (historical) In the former Soviet Union, the highest executive and administrative body.

Spetsnaz or Specnaz (Russian: Войска́ специа́льного назначе́ния – спецна́з) or Russian special purpose regiments (Voyska spetsialnogo naznacheniya) A general term for police or military units within the Soviet Union (later Russian Federation) who engage in special activities; similar to commando.

Stakhanovite (Russian: стаха́новец) (after Aleksei Grigorievich Stakhanov (Алексе́й Григо́рьевич Стаха́нов), a coal miner from Donbas noted for his superior productivity; the Soviet authorities publicized Stakhanov's prodigious output in 1935 as part of a campaign to increase industrial output).

  • (historical) In the former Soviet Union, a worker who was exceptionally hardworking and productive and thus earned special privileges and rewards
  • Any exceptionally hardworking or zealous person, often with connotations of excessive compliance with management and lack of solidarity with fellow workers

Stalinism (Russian: сталини́зм; the term Stalinism was first used in 1927, though not by Stalin himself, as he considered himself a Marxist–Leninist).

  • (historical) The political, economic, and social principles and policies associated with Joseph Stalin during his rule (1924–1953) of the Soviet Union; especially the theory and practice of communism developed by Stalin, which included rigid authoritarianism, widespread use of terror, and often emphasis on Russian nationalism.
  • Any rigid centralized authoritarian form of government or rule.

Stavka (Russian: Ста́вка) (historical) The general headquarters of armed forces in late Imperial Russia and in the former Soviet Union.

Streltsy singular strelitz, plural strelitzes or strelitzi (Russian: стрельцы́; singular: стреле́ц strelets, "bowman") (historical) Units of armed guards created by Ivan the Terrible in the 16th century and later abolished by Peter the Great.

Tovarishch also Tovarich (Russian: това́рищ IPA [tɐˈvarʲɪɕɕ], tovarishch, "close friend", referring to the noun това́р tovar, "merchandise"); In the former Soviet Union, a comrade; often used as a form of address.

Tsar also czar, tzar, csar, and zar (Russian: царь , English : from Latin Caesar).

  • (historical) Title of a Southern Slav ruler, as in Bulgaria (913–1018, 1185–1422, and 1908–1946) and Serbia (1346–1371).
  • (historical) Title for the emperor of Russia from about 1547 to 1917, although the term after 1721 officially only referred to the Russian emperor's sovereignty over formerly independent states.
  • (latter part of the 20th century) A person with great authority or power in a particular area, e.g., drug czar (spelled only as "czar" in this usage).

Tsarina also tsaritsa (formerly spelled czaritsa), czarina, German zarin, French tsarine (Russian: цари́ца) (Russian, etymology from tsar) (historical) The wife of a tsar; also the title for the empress of Russia.

Tsarevna also czarevna (Russian царе́вна, etymology from tsar).

  • (historical) The daughter of a tsar
  • The wife of a tsarevitch

Tsarevich also tsesarevich, czarevich, tzarevitch Russian: царе́вич, early 18th century, from tsar + patronymic -evich (historical) The eldest son of an emperor of Russia; the male heir to a tsar.

Tysyatsky also tysiatsky (Russian: ты́сяцкий) (sometimes translated as dux or Heerzog but more correctly meaning thousandman; sometimes translated into the Greek chilliarch, literally meaning "rule of a thousand") (historical) A military leader in Ancient Rus who commanded a people's volunteer army called tysyacha (Russian: ты́сяча), or a thousand.

Ukase (Russian: ука́з ordinance, edict, from указывать, ukazat, to show) (pronunciation: /juːˈkeɪs/; yoo-KASE), a decree:

  1. (historical) In Imperial Russia, a proclamation or edict of the ruling tsar or tsarina, the Russian government, or a religious leader (patriarch) that had the force of law
  2. (historical) In the former Soviet Union, a government edict issued by the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet and subject to later ratification by the Supreme Soviet
  3. In the Russian Federation, a presidential decree

Uskoreniye (Russian: ускоре́ние, literally "acceleration") A slogan and policy initiated in 1985 by Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, aimed at the acceleration of social and economic development of the Soviet Union.

Votchina also otchina (Russian: во́тчина (о́тчина) "father's heritage") (historical)

  1. An East Slavic land estate that could be inherited
  2. The land owned by a knyaz

Yevsektsiya also Yevsektsia (Russian: ЕвСе́кция) (from the abbreviation of the phrase "Евре́йская се́кция" Yevreyskaya sektsiya) (historical) The Jewish section of the Soviet Communist party that was created in 1918 to challenge and eventually destroy the rival Bund and Zionist parties, suppress Judaism and "bourgeois nationalism", and replace traditional Jewish culture with "proletarian culture". It was disbanded in 1929.

Zampolit (Russian замполи́т, the abbreviation of (зам)еститель командира по (полит)ической части, "deputy commander (political)) A military or political commissar.

Zek (Russian abbreviation of ЗаКлючённый (З/К), zaklyuchennyi (Z/K), "incarcerated") (historical) In the former Soviet Union, a person held in a forced labour camp, known as Gulag, or in a prison.

Zemshchina (from Russian земля́ zemlya, "earth" or "land") (historical) The territory under the rule of the boyars who stayed in Moscow during the reign of Ivan the Terrible. It was separate from the rule of Ivan's own territory, which was administered by the Oprichnina.

Zemsky Sobor (Russian: зе́мский собо́р) (Russian assembly of the land) (historical) The first Russian parliament of the feudal estates type during the 16th and 17th centuries.

Zemstvo (Russian: зе́мство) (historical) A district and provincial assembly in Russia from 1864 to 1917.

Religious

Beglopopovtsy also Beglopopovtsy (Russian: Беглопоповцы, "people with runaway priests") (historical) A denomination of the Old Believers that included priests who had deserted the Russian Orthodox Church during the Raskol.

Bespopovtsy also Bespopovtsy (Russian: Беспоповцы, "priestless") A denomination of the Old Believers that rejected the priests and a number of church rites, such as the Eucharist.

Chlysty also Khlysts, Khlysty (Russian: Хлысты) (invented Russian word Христоверы, transliteration Khristovery, "Christ-believers"; later critics corrupted the name, mixing it with the word хлыст khlyst, meaning "whip") (historical) A Christian sect in Russia that split from the Russian Orthodox Church in the 17th century and renounced the priesthood, holy books, and veneration of the saints. They were noted for their practice of asceticism, which included ecstatic rituals.

Doukhobor plural Doukhobors or Doukhabors (also Dukhobory or Dukhobortsy) (Russian: Духоборы/Духоборцы) (Russian doukhobor, literally "spirit wrestlers") A Christian sect, later defined as a religious philosophy, ethnic group, and social movement, which in the 18th century rejected secular government, the Russian Orthodox priests, icons, all church ritual, the Bible as the supreme source of divine revelation, and the divinity of Jesus. Widely persecuted by the Russian tsarist regimes, many of them immigrated to Canada in the late 19th century.

Edinoverie (Russian: Единоверие, "unity in faith") The practice of integrating Old Believer communities into the official Russian Orthodox Church while preserving their rites. Its adherents are Edinovertsy, "people of the same faith".

Imiaslavie also Imiabozhie, Imyaslavie, Imyabozhie; also referred to as Onomatodoxy (Russian: Имяславие, "glorification of the name (of God)"

Lipovans also known as Lippovans, or Russian Old Believers. A religious sect that separated from the Russian Orthodox Church in the 17th century, now mostly living in Romanian Dobruja.

Molokan (Russian: Молока́не, from Russian moloko, "milk"). A Christian sect that broke away from the Russian Orthodox Church in the mid-16th century and rejected many traditional Christian beliefs, including the veneration of religious icons, the Trinity, the worship in cathedrals, and the adherence to saintly holidays.

Pomortsy (Russian: Древлеправославная Поморская Церковь). Branch of the priestless faction of the Old Believers.

Popovtsy also The Popovtsy or Popovschina (Russian: Поповцы, Поповщина, "priestist people"). A branch of the Old Believers who strived to have priests of their own.

Prelest (Russian: Прелесть). Spiritual delusion, spiritual deception, or spiritual illusion.

Raskol also Raskolnik Russian: раско́л (Russian, meaning "split" or "schism") The schism of the Russian Orthodox Church that was triggered by the 1653 reforms of Patriarch Nikon.

Rodnovery (Russian: Родноверие, "way of the people" or "way of the tribe"). A new religious movement from Russia and other Slavic countries that attempts to revive the pre-Christian beliefs of the ancient Slavs. Adherents of the Rodnovery religion, or anything related to Rodnovery, are known in English as Rodnover.

Rogozhskoe Soglasie (name from a Moscow cemetery called Rogozhskoe cemetery (Russian: Рогожское кладбище)). A denomination among the Popovtsy Old Believers.

Shaman (Russian: шама́н [ʂɐ'man], from the Evenki language). A tribal priest who enters an altered state of consciousness to commune with spirits.

Skoptzy plural Skopets, also Skoptsy, Skoptzi, Skoptsi, Scoptsy (Russian: скопцы, from Russian, meaning "castrated one") (historical). A Russian religious sect that practiced self-castration.

Starets (Russian: ста́рец old man, elder). A Russian religious spiritual leader, teacher, or counsellor.

Yurodivy (Russian: юродивый, jurodivyj). A form of Eastern Orthodox asceticism in which one intentionally acts foolish in the eyes of men; a Holy Fool.

Znamennoe singing, also Znamenny Chant (Russian: Знаменное пение or знаменный распев). The traditional liturgical singing in the Russian Orthodox Church.

Technical, special

Chernozem