Cossack
/ˈkɒz.æk/noun
A member of a group of East Slavic-speaking people known for military communities and cavalry traditions.
Did you know?The name ultimately comes from a Turkic word meaning “free man” or “adventurer,” which is why it became attached to frontier fighters living outside ordinary rule.
Etymological Timeline
13th Century
Turkic
qazaq
“a free, independent man; wanderer; adventurer”
15th Century
Russian
kazak
“a free man or frontier raider”
16th Century
Polish
kozak
“a Cossack, especially a steppe warrior”
16th-17th Century
English
Cossack
“a member of the military communities of the Ukrainian and southern Russian степpe frontier”
Modern English
English
Cossack
“a member of a historically military, semi-autonomous East Slavic community”