Etymograph

English

pogrom

Pogrom comes from Russian погро́м ‘pogrom, ethnic violence event’, from громи́ть ‘to smash, to sack’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *gʰrem- ‘to roar, rumble’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*gʰrem-1‘to roar, rumble’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*gʰrómos1‘a roar, rumble’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Slavicc. 400–900 CE*gromъ1‘thunder’reconstructed
  4. Proto-Slavicc. 400–900 CE*gromiti2‘to thunder, to rattle’reconstructed
  5. Russianmodernгроми́ть3‘to smash, to sack’
  6. Russianmodernпогро́м4pogróm‘pogrom, ethnic violence event’
  7. Yiddishmodernפּאָגראָם4pogrom
  8. Englishearliest quotation 2019pogrom4

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Proto-Slavic *gromiti
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Russian громить
  3. 3 Wiktionary, Russian погром
  4. 4 Wiktionary, English pogrom
  5. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 2019, Talia Lavin, When Non-Jews Wield Anti-Semitism as Political Shield: “More strikingly, when blood ran on the streets of…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*gʰrem-Wiktionary, Proto-Slavic *gromiti‘to roar, rumble’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*gʰrómosWiktionary, Proto-Slavic *gromiti‘a roar, rumble’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Slavicc. 400–900 CE*gromъWiktionary, Proto-Slavic *gromiti‘thunder’reconstructed
  4. Proto-Slavicc. 400–900 CE*gromitiWiktionary, Russian громить‘to thunder, to rattle’reconstructed
  5. Russianmodernгроми́тьWiktionary, Russian погром‘to smash, to sack’
  6. Russianmodernпогро́мWiktionary, English pogrompogróm‘pogrom, ethnic violence event’
  7. YiddishmodernפּאָגראָםWiktionary, English pogrompogrom
  8. Englishearliest quotation 2019pogromWiktionary, English pogrom. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 2019, Talia Lavin, When Non-Jews Wield Anti-Semitism as Political Shield: “More strikingly, when blood ran on the streets of…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *gʰrem- ‘to roar, rumble’

ground, grim, groin, grunting, 5 more

Today it means

noun A riot aimed at persecution or massacre of a particular ethnic or religious group (usually Jews).

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “pogrom”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Proto-Slavic *gromiti, Russian громить, Russian погром. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *gʰrem- / pogrom

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