Czynsz
The following article is from The Great Soviet Encyclopedia (1979). It might be outdated or ideologically biased.
Czynsz
in feudal Polish lands, a quitrent rendered in cash or kind by feudally dependent peasants to their lord; equivalent to the German Zins, the French cens,and the English census. Peasants who paid a czynsz were called czynszownice. These peasants usually held a hereditary piece of land, in exchange for which they fulfilled certain obligations to the feudal lord; among these obligations, the cash payment of the czynsz gradually assumed the greatest importance.
The Great Soviet Encyclopedia, 3rd Edition (1970-1979). © 2010 The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.