Major is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators, major is one rank above captain in armies and air forces, and one rank below lieutenant colonel. It is considered the most junior of the senior officer ranks.
Background
Etymologically, the word stems from the Latin word major meaning "greater". The rank can be traced back to the rank of sergeant major general, which was shortened to sergeant major, and subsequently shortened to major.
When used in hyphenated or combined fashion, the term can also imply seniority at other levels of rank, including 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.
Links to major ranks by country
Alphabetically sorted by name of country:
Insignia
Army insignia
- Major
(Antigua and Barbuda Regiment) - Major
(Australian Army) - Major
(Barbados Regiment) - Major
(Belize Defence Force) - Major
(Botswana Ground Force) - Major
(Fiji Infantry Regiment) - Major
(Gambian National Army) - Major
(Guyana Army) - Major
(Indian Army) - Major
(Jamaican Army) - Major
(Kenya Army) - Major
(Lesotho Army) - Major
(Liberian Ground Forces) - Major
(Malawi Army) - Major
(Namibian Army) - Major
(New Zealand Army) - Major
(Nigerian Army) - Major
(Philippine Army) - Major
(Rwandan Land Forces) - Major
(SKN Regiment) - Major
(Seychelles Army) - Major
(South African Army) - Major
(Sri Lanka Army) - Major
(Tongan Land Component) - Major
(Trinidad and Tobago Regiment) - Major
(Ugandan Land Forces) - Major
(British Army) - Major
(United States Army) - Major
(Zimbabwe National Army)