Kulaks, meaning "fist" in Russian, originally described wealthy peasant farmers who accumulated land and wealth
. Following the Russian Revolution of 1917, the term became synonymous with the most affluent peasants who often resisted the Soviet Union's collectivization efforts in the 1920s
. Joseph Stalin, viewing them as a threat to communist ideals, initiated dekulakization in 1929, intending to eliminate them as a class
. Kulaks were divided into three categories based on their perceived opposition to the government, resulting in executions, forced labor in gulags, or deportation to remote areas like Siberia
. Historians estimate that millions of kulaks were affected, with many dying during resettlement
. The anti-kulak campaign stands as a grim chapter in Soviet history, highlighting the conflict between capitalist and communist ideologies
. After Stalin's death in 1953, former kulaks could return to their land, and in 1992, the Russian government began compensating victims of these policies
