guberniya

[ goo-ber-nee-uh; Russian goo-byer-nyi-yuh ]
/ guˈbɛr ni ə; Russian guˈbyɛr nyɪ yə /

noun

(in the Soviet Union) an administrative division of the volosts, smaller than a district.
(in Russia before 1917) an administrative division equivalent to the province.

Origin of guberniya

< Russian gubérniya, probably derivative of gubernátor governor (< Polish < L), by analogy with imperátor emperor, impériya empire

British Dictionary definitions for guberniya

guberniya
/ Russian (ɡuˈbjɛrnɪjə) /

noun

a territorial division of imperial Russia
a territorial and administrative subdivision in the former Soviet Union

Word Origin for guberniya

from Russian: government, ultimately from Latin gubernāre to govern