A posad (посад) was a settlement, often rounded by bulwarks and a moat, by a town or a kremlin, but outside the town/kremlin, or by a monastery in the 10th to 15th centuries. Usually it was inhabited by kraftsmen and merchants.

In Russian Empire a posad was a small semi-urban settlement.

A number of posads evolved into towns. Those by a kremlin often gave rise to local toponyms, kind of Nagorny Posad (Uphill Settlement), Kazanski Posad for the historical center of Kazan. Those by a monastery often gave rise to cities named after the monastery,e.g., Sergiev Posad is for Troitse-Sergiyeva Lavra. See also Pavlovsky Posad, Mariinsky Posad , Gavrilov Posad .