Bezpopovets

noun

Bez·​po·​po·​vets

ˌbes-pə-ˈpȯ-vəts,

ˌbez-

plural Bezpopovtsy

ˌbes-pə-ˈpȯft-sē,

ˌbez-

: a member of a Raskolnik priestless sect in Russia compare popovets

Word History

Etymology

Russian, from bez without (from Old Russian) + popov- (plural stem of pop priest, from Old High German pfaffo, from Gothic papa, from Late Greek papas, from Greek, father) + -ets, agent suffix; akin to Old Slavic & Polish bez without, Lithuanian bè, Sanskrit bahis outside

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