See peasant in Webster's New World College Dictionary
noun
any person of the class of small farmers or of farm laborers, as in Europe or Asia
a person regarded as coarse, boorish, ignorant, etc.
See peasant in American Heritage Dictionary 4
(pĕzˈənt)
noun
A member of the class constituted by small farmers and tenants, sharecroppers, and laborers on the land where they form the main labor force in agriculture.