Kapzsczyzna
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Kapzsczyzna (Belarusian: Капщызна, Ukrainian: Капщизна) was a tax in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania on distilling or selling alcoholic drinks, a type of the excise tax on alcohol. In Polish lands of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth the corresponding tax was called czopowe.[1][2]
By one suggestion, the term is a variation of the Polish term kopczyzna, a different kind of tax, under the influence of the Belarusian language feature of akanye (o->a phonemic shift).[1] Kopzschyzna itself is derived from the monetary unit Kopa. By another suggestion it is derived from Latin capagium (a kind of monetary subsidy (pecuniarium subsidium)[3]).[2]
This tax was collected annually before Christmas and directed to the state treasury.[4] Its amount was uniform over the state.[5]
