volia

alternative volya

1. uncountablefreedom; lack of restraint or constriction.

   The new restrictions being placed on the bride added up to a loss of her former “volia”.

   1995, Daniel Rancour-Laferriere, The Slave Soul of Russia, page 198

   2 more examples

   The educated classes had always feared that a peasant volia would soon degenerate into anarchic licence and violent revenge against figures of authority.

   1996, Orlando Figes, A People's Tragedy, Folio Society, published 2013, page 115

   Their integration into the imperial army was causing concern and resentment among the rank and file, who feared losing their volia and their participatory institutions.

   2001, Geoffrey Hosking, Russia and the Russians, page 229

2. uncountableliberty; independence, the right of individuals to choose their own goals.

   The history of Ukrainian resistance stands as a vivid example of the expression of volia.

   2024, Oksana Voytko, Volia — collective concept, most often translated as Freedom

   1 more example

   Volia, as longing for freedom – freedom of thoughts, beliefs, and acts – is what helped to form and preserve the Ukrainian nation.

   2023, What is volia, the Ukrainian superpower, that keeps us going?