army ranks [was: assorted comments]

David Bowie db.list at PMPKN.NET
Wed Mar 29 13:42:30 UTC 2006


From:    Jonathan Lighter <wuxxmupp2000 at YAHOO.COM>
> Poster: "Joel S. Berson"

> <snip>

>> But where does the colonel fit into this hierarchy? How is he
>> distinguished from the major? (A question that actually bears upon
>> a current project of mine; I don't have a good answer.)

> There have been "colonel-generals" as well, notably in the Soviet
> Army (and at least some of its descendants) since 1940.

Wikipedia has an insane amount of information on military ranks
worldwide. I'd take some of the historical information with a grain of
salt, naturally, but it seems to me that it does a pretty good job of
giving (a) what the enlisted and officer ranks are in the world's
armies, (b) how each army's ranks are stratified (wrong word?),
and--though probably with a bit of unavoidable fuzziness--(c) how each
army's ranks compare in the hierarchy with each other army's ranks.

It seems to be a good reference, in any event, for projects relating to
military ranks and their names.

--
David Bowie                                         http://pmpkn.net/lx
     Jeanne's Two Laws of Chocolate: If there is no chocolate in the
     house, there is too little; some must be purchased. If there is
     chocolate in the house, there is too much; it must be consumed.

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