The parasitic landlord system was the system that allowed a parasitic landlord, who owned farmlands such as rice fields, vegetable fields, etc., to lend a farmland to a farmer called kosakunin (a tenant farmer) (also known as kosakuno or kosaku), to have him cultivate the land, and to take away some farm products, such as rice, barley, etc., as the land rent called kosakuryo (farm rent).
寄生地主制（きせいじぬしせい）は、田畑など農地の所有者である寄生地主（単に地主と略すこともある）が、小作人（こさくにん）と呼ばれる農民（小作農や単に小作と呼ばれることもある）に土地を貸し出して耕作させ、成果物である米やムギなどの農作物の一部を小作料（こさくりょう）と言う名の地代として徴収する制度。