Major
Comparative military ranks in English | ||
|---|---|---|
| Navies | Armies | Air forces |
Commissioned officers | ||
| Admiral of the fleet | Field marshal or General of the Army | Marshal of the air force |
| Admiral | General | Air chief marshal |
| Vice admiral | Lieutenant general | Air marshal |
| Rear admiral | Major general | Air vice-marshal |
| Commodore | Brigadier or brigadier general | Air commodore |
| Captain | Colonel | Group captain |
| Commander | Lieutenant colonel | Wing commander |
| Lieutenant commander | Major or Commandant | Squadron leader |
| Lieutenant | Captain | Flight lieutenant |
Lieutenant junior grade or sub-lieutenant | Lieutenant or first lieutenant | Flying officer |
Ensign or midshipman | Second lieutenant | Pilot officer |
| Officer cadet | Officer cadet | Flight cadet |
Enlisted grades | ||
Warrant officer or chief petty officer | Warrant officer or sergeant major | Warrant officer |
| Petty officer | Sergeant | Sergeant |
| Leading seaman | Corporal or bombardier | Corporal |
| Seaman | Private or gunner or trooper | Aircraftman or airman |
Talk·View | ||
Major is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world.
Contents
1 Background
2 Links to major ranks by country
2.1 Insignia of Army majors
2.2 Insignia of Air Force majors
2.3 Insignia of Naval Infantry majors
3 Ranks equivalent to major by country
4 See also
5 References
Background
When used unhyphenated, in conjunction with no other indicators, major is one rank senior to that of an army captain, and one rank subordinate or below the rank of lieutenant colonel. It is considered the most junior of the field officer ranks.[1]
Majors are typically assigned as specialised executive or operations officers for battalion-sized units of 300 to 1,200 soldiers.[citation needed] In some militaries, notably France and Ireland, the rank of major is referred to as commandant, while in others it is known as captain-major.[citation needed]
When used in hyphenated or combined fashion, the term can also imply seniority at other levels of rank, including general-major or major general, denoting a low-level general officer, and sergeant major, denoting the most senior non-commissioned officer (NCO) of a military unit.[disputed ][citation needed] The term major can also be used with a hyphen to denote the leader of a military band such as in pipe-major or drum-major.
Historically, the rank designation develops in English in the 1640s, taken from French majeur, in turn a shortening of sergent-majeur, which at the time designated a higher rank than at present.[citation needed]
The rank of major is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures, such as the Pennsylvania State Police, New York State Police, New Jersey State Police, and several others.[citation needed] As with a military major, this rank is most commonly the next rank above captain. The rank is equivalent to an inspector or commander in other large police departments or to the UK rank of superintendent.[citation needed]
Links to major ranks by country
A United States Marine Corps officer being promoted from captain to major
Alphabetically sorted by name of country:
- Major (Brazil)
- Major (Canada)
- Major (Czech Republic)
- Maggiore (Italy)
- Majuri (Finland)
- Major (Germany)
Tagmatarchis (Greece)- Major (India)
- Majoras (Lithuania)
- Mejar (Malaysia)
- Majoor (the Netherlands)
- Major (Pakistan)
- Major (Poland)
- Major (Slovenia)
- Major (Sri Lanka)
- Major (Sweden)
- Major (United Kingdom)
- Major (United States)
- Binbaşı (Turkey)
Insignia of Army majors
Albania
Australia
Bangladesh
Belgium
Brazil
Canada
Colombia
Croatia
Czech Republic
Denmark
Dominican Republic
Egypt
Estonia
Finland
Georgia
Germany
Greece
Hungary
Iceland
India
Indonesia
Israel
Italy
Iran
Malaysia
Macedonia
Netherlands
Norway
Pakistan
Poland
USSR
Portugal
Romania
Russia
Spain
Sri Lanka
Switzerland
Taiwan
Thailand
Turkey
United Kingdom
United States
United States (September 1959 to October 2015)
Insignia of Air Force majors
Argentina
Brazil
Croatia
Denmark
Georgia
Germany
Indonesia
Iran
Israel
Italy
Mexico
Netherlands
Poland
Portugal
Rossia
Turkey
United States
Israel
United Kingdom
United States Marine Corps
Indonesian Marine Corps
Ranks equivalent to major by country
Alphabetically sorted by name of country or sovereign state
- Jagran (جګړن) (Afghanistan)
- China
- 少校 (Shao xiao) (PR China)
- 少校 (Shaoxiao) (Republic of China/Taiwan)
- Bojnik (Croatia)
Ra'Ed (رائد) (Egypt and most Arab League member countries)- Commandant (France)
- Germany:
Sturmbannführer (Schutzstaffel and paramilitary organisations of Nazi Germany)
Tagmatarchis (Ταγματάρχης) (Greece & Cyprus)- Őrnagy (Hungary)
- Mayor (Indonesia)
- Sargord (سرگرد) (Iran)
Commandant (Ireland)
Rav seren (רב סרן) (Israel)
少佐 (Shousa) (Japan)
Mejar (Malaysia)
Хошууч (Mongolia)
w:ko:소좌 (North Korea)- Magat (Philippines)
Mayor (Russia)- Major (Serbia)
소령 (South Korea)- Comandante (Spain)
Binbaşı (Turkey)- Thiếu Tá (Vietnam)
Croatia (Bojnik)
Rav seren - Army (Israel)
Rav seren - Air Force (Israel)
Rav seren - Navy (Israel)
See also
- List of comparative military ranks
References
 | Wikimedia Commons has media related to Majors. |
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