chernozem

[ chur-nuh-zem, chair-; Russian chyir-nuh-zyawm ]
/ ˈtʃɜr nəˌzɛm, ˈtʃɛər-; Russian tʃyɪr nʌˈzyɔm /

noun

a soil common in cool or temperate semiarid climates, very black and rich in humus and carbonates.

Origin of chernozem

1835–45; < Russian chernozëm, equivalent to chërn(yĭ) black + -o- -o- + -zëm, variant, in compounds, of zemlyá earth, land; see humus

Words nearby chernozem

cherkess autonomous region, chernenko, chernigov, chernobyl, chernovtsy, chernozem, cherokee, cherokee rose, cherokees, cheroot, cherries jubilee

Example sentences from the Web for chernozem

  • About 20 percent of the agricultural land is of the chernozem type.

    Area Handbook for Romania |Eugene K. Keefe, Donald W. Bernier, Lyle E. Brenneman, William Giloane, James M. Moore, and Neda A. Walpole

  • Chernozem soils predominate, and the seasonal distribution of rainfall is more propitious than in Walachia.

    Area Handbook for Romania |Eugene K. Keefe, Donald W. Bernier, Lyle E. Brenneman, William Giloane, James M. Moore, and Neda A. Walpole

British Dictionary definitions for chernozem

chernozem

tschernosem

/ (ˈtʃɜːnəʊˌzɛm) /

noun

a black soil, rich in humus and carbonates, in cool or temperate semiarid regions, as the grasslands of Russia

Word Origin for chernozem

from Russian, contraction of chernaya zemlya black earth