Forms: 6 boiaren, 7 bojar, boyaren, 7– boyar, 8– boyard. [a. Russ. бояринъ boyárin, pl. бояре boyáre ‘grandee, lord’:—earlier боляринъ bolyárin, prob. f. OSlav. root bol- great; but Miklosich would connect it with Turkish boj stature, boijlu high; Dahl, and others, with Russ. бои, boi ‘war,’ which may have influenced the later form. The word occurs in Byzantine Greek as βοϊλάδαι, βολιάδαι; Bulg. bolerin, Serv. bolyar, Rouman. boiér.]
A member of a peculiar order of the old Russian aristocracy, next in rank to a knyaz or ‘prince,’ who enjoyed many exclusive privileges, and held all the highest military and civil offices: the order was abolished by Peter the Great, and the word is in Russia only a historical term, though still often erroneously applied by English newspaper writers to Russian landed proprietors. In Roumania the boiér still exist as a privileged class. (The Eng. boyar appears to have been taken from the plural; boyard is an erroneous French spelling.)
1591. G. Fletcher, Russe Commw. (1836), 46. The emperours of Russia giue the name of counsellour to diuers of their chiefe nobilitie…. These are called Boiarens.
a. 1618. Raleigh, St. Maxims, in Rem. (1661), 43. As the Turk, his Ianizaries; the Russe, his Boyarens.
1676. Lond. Gaz., No. 1077/1. Then the Bojars, which are the most eminent persons in this Countrey.
1698. Luttrell, Brief Rel. (1857), IV. 432. The czar … has caused 200 of the boyars in his country to be put to death.
1796. Morse, Amer. Geog., II. 77. Not only the common people but many of the boyards or nobles.
1858. Times, 28 Aug., 10/1. The Boyards [of Roumania] are not an aristocracy of birth or wealth; they are simply a privileged class.
1865. Spectator, 11 Feb., 151. The older families of Russia retain the traditions of the boyars and of their power to a dangerous degree.
1879. H. S. Edwards, Russ. at Home, I. 202. The rich ‘boyars’ (as foreigners persist in styling the Russian proprietors of the present day).
Hence Boyardism.
1848. Tait’s Mag., XV. 482/1. Boyardism stands a good chance of being vanquished by democracy [in Roumania].
