NKVD

English

Alternative forms

• N.K.V.D.

Etymology

From the Russian НКВД (NKVD), through phonetic spelling of Наро́дный комиссариа́т вну́тренних де́л (Naródnyj komissariát vnútrennix dél) and the use of acronym.

Pronunciation

• Audio (US):

  (file)

Proper noun

NKVD

1. The People’s Commissariat for Internal Affairs — the Soviet interior ministry known for its secret police, forerunner of the KGB
   • 1968, Robert Conquest, The Great Terror: Stalin's Purge of the Thirties‎^[1], Macmillan Company, →LCCN, →OCLC, →OL, pages 546–547:

     On the defensive side, Stalin had made equally thorough preparations. Lenin’s personal guard consisted of two men, later increased to four after the attempt on his life by Fanny Kaplan. Stalin’s was several thousand strong, and the NKVD in addition kept other units at a state of readiness. The road to his country dacha, some twenty miles away, was guarded by over 3,000 agents, with cars, telephone connections, etc. When Stalin was actually en route, the road was virtually under martial law.

Translations

Soviet NKVD

• Polish: NKWD (pl) n
• Russian: НКВД (ru) m (NKVD)
• Ukrainian: НКВС (NKVS), Народний комісаріат внутрішніх справ (Narodnyj komisariat vnutrišnix sprav)
• Yiddish: ענקאַוועדע f (enkavede)

See also

• FSB
• KGB
• GRU