Stan

Stan 

(1) In Rus’ from the 11th to 17th centuries, a military camp, usually situated on high ground and protected by carts (kolymagi), a palisade (tyn), and, more rarely, a ditch and earthworks.

(2) A place for long stopovers during trips or journeys. This type of stan (stanovishche) was known in Rus’ from the 11th century. It was the precursor of the relay station for coach horses (iamskoi stan) and the postal service (pochtovyistan).

(3) A place where feudal officials levied tribute and held court over the local population. Originally, representatives of feudal authority came to the stan periodically, when it was time for the population to pay taxes. In the 14th and 15th centuries, stan also came to mean the land under the jurisdiction of these representatives of princely authority, and the stan was thenceforth a territorial-administrative unit as well. From the late 15th century, the stan was part of an uezd (district). In the 16th and 17th centuries, the stany were formed in the newly established frontier districts of the Russian state, such as Simbirsk and Tambov districts. The stan persisted as a territorial unit in Russia until the early 20th century.

(4) From 1837, a police territorial unit in an uezd; there were usually two stany in each uezd (see).