Kolkhoz facts for kids

A former kolkhoz near Jermuk

A 1931 poster encouraging farmers to read books to help with farming plans.

Cotton growers at the "Zarya Vostoka" (Eastern Dawn) kolkhoz in 1938.

A kolkhoz (Russian: колхо́з) was a type of collective farm in the Soviet Union. These farms were created after the October Revolution of 1917. They were different from the old ways of farming, where rich landlords owned huge areas of land and poor farmers (called serfs) worked for them. Kolkhozes were also different from small family farms.

Kolkhozes started appearing in the 1920s, often encouraged by people who traveled around promoting the idea. At first, they were like updated versions of old Russian farming groups. But by 1928, joining a kolkhoz became mandatory. This period was known as "forced collectivization," meaning farmers had to join, even if they didn't want to.

What's in a Name?

Map showing kolkhozes (kolūkis) in the Lithuanian SSR.

The word "kolkhoz" is a short form of the Russian words "kollektívnoye khozyáystvo," which means "collective farm." It's like taking parts of two words to make a new, shorter one. Other countries also used this word or made their own similar words. For example, in Ukrainian, it's "kolhósp."

How Kolkhozes Were Set Up

Legally, a kolkhoz was supposed to be a "production cooperative." This means farmers would willingly join together to produce food. The rules said that kolkhozes should be managed by the members themselves, with everyone having a say.

However, in reality, after the forced collectivization led by Joseph Stalin, kolkhozes didn't work like true cooperatives. Farmers didn't really join by choice, and they couldn't easily leave. If someone did manage to leave, they couldn't take their share of the farm's property with them.

The government also had a lot of control. They told the kolkhozes what to grow and even chose who would manage the farms. So, even though members supposedly owned the farm together, the government treated them almost like state employees. By the late 1960s, kolkhoz members even started getting a guaranteed wage, just like workers on state-owned farms (called sovkhozes). This made the two types of farms very similar.

How Work Was Organized

Brigades

To manage the work, kolkhozes divided their workers into groups called brigades. By 1929, a large kolkhoz with 200 to 400 families might have several brigades, each with 15 to 30 families. These brigades were often given specific land, equipment, and even horses to work with. Each brigade had a leader called a brigadir, who was usually a local person.

Zvenos

Sometimes, brigades were split into even smaller groups called zvenos (which means "links"). These smaller units would handle specific tasks.

Life on a Kolkhoz During Stalin's Time

On a kolkhoz, a member was called a kolkhoznik (or kolkhoznitsa for a woman). They were supposed to get a share of the farm's products and profits based on how many days they worked. However, in practice, many kolkhozes didn't pay their members with money at all. In 1946, about 30% of kolkhozes paid no cash, and many paid very little grain.

The kolkhozes also had to sell their crops to the government at very low, fixed prices. The government then sold these products to city people at much higher prices. This difference in price was a big way the Soviet government made money. They used this money to buy machines from other countries to help build up Soviet industries. This was part of Stalin's plan to make the Soviet Union strong and modern.

For example, in 1948, the government paid kolkhozes about 8 rubles for 100 kilograms of rye, but then charged wholesalers 335 rubles for the same amount. These low prices for farmers didn't change much for many years, even when costs went up.

Private Plots and Work Requirements

Kolkhoz members were allowed to have a small piece of private land, usually about 1 acre (0.4 hectares), and some animals. Even though these plots were tiny, they were very productive. In 1938, these private plots made up less than 4% of all farmed land, but they produced over 21% of all farm goods!

Kolkhoz members also had to work a minimum number of "labor days" each year, both on the kolkhoz and on other government projects like building roads. For example, one kolkhoz required adults to work at least 130 labor days a year, and boys aged 12-16 had to work 50 days. If a member didn't complete their required work, they could lose their private plot or even face a trial, which could lead to forced labor.

However, most kolkhoz members worked much more than the minimum. The "labor day" was more of a way for the government to plan costs and production, rather than a fair way to pay workers. For example, completing one "labor day" of work (which was supposed to be 8 hours) often took much longer, sometimes multiple 12-hour days. This meant farmers worked very hard for little reward.

Kolkhozes in the Soviet Union: Key Numbers

The End of Kolkhozes After 1991

When the Soviet Union broke apart in December 1991, the countries that used to be part of it faced many challenges. They began to change from a government-controlled economy to a market economy, where businesses are more independent. Because of these changes, the number of kolkhozes and sovkhozes quickly dropped after 1992.

Even though many kolkhozes changed their names and legal forms, studies in the 1990s showed that many of these new farms still worked a lot like the old kolkhozes. The official changes didn't always mean big changes in how the farms actually operated.

Number of Kolkhozes and All Corporate Farms in Russia, Ukraine, and Moldova (1990–2005)

Today, kolkhozes have almost completely disappeared in countries like Armenia, Georgia, and Azerbaijan. In these places, individual family farms have mostly replaced the large collective farms. In Central Asian countries, some large farms still exist, but they are no longer called kolkhozes. For example, in Turkmenistan, kolkhozes were renamed "peasant associations." In Tajikistan, many farms are now "collective dehkan farms," which are different legally, even if people sometimes still call them "kolkhozy."

See also

• Collective farming – Learn about similar types of farm organizations in other countries.
• Zveno (Soviet collective farming) – Find out more about the smaller work units on collective farms.
• Kibbutz – Discover a different type of collective community in Israel.