Starshina

Template:Italic title Template:Short description (Template:Lang-rus or Template:Langx) is a senior military rank or designation in the military forces of some Slavic states, and a historical military designation. Depending on a country, it had different meanings. In the 19th century with the expansion of the Imperial Russia into Turkestan and the Central Asia, the word was even used to identify some Turkic leaders as a basic Russian word for aqsaqal (white-beard).

In Cossack armies the term initially identified a commissioned officer. During the times of Cossack Hetmanate, starshyna was a collective noun, and people described with this word were divided into starshyna (officers) and general starshyna (general officers) the latter being part of the Hetman's General Cossack Rada. In Russia the term was later adopted to describe a non-commissioned officer rank. Following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, most of post-Soviet countries have adopted the Russian interpretation of the word.

Since the 1930s in the Soviet and later Russian army terminology, a starshina has been equivalent to "Sergeant Major" (Most senior member at the company level) or a rank equal to a NATO OR-8. In naval terminology, starshina is a general term for junior and middle-ranking non-commissioned officers, similar in usage to "Chief Petty Officer".

The word originates from Old East Slavic language «*старъ»(old)

Russia

Imperial Russia

Later, in the Tsardom of Russia and Imperial Russia, a was the chief of a (a rural administrative unit), in charge of the distribution of taxes, resolving conflicts within (communes), distributing community lands and military conscription. The rank of ( – Starshina of the Army (Host)) was introduced into the ranks of the Imperial military in 1826, as the equivalent of a "Lieutenant Colonel" in the Cossack cavalry.

• Uzbek, stashina (aqsaqal) village Chodshagent (ru: Ходжагент), 1868, drawing by V.V. Vereshchagin
  Uzbek, stashina (aqsaqal) village Chodshagent (ru: Ходжагент), 1868, drawing by V.V. Vereshchagin
• Bashkirs-starshina with starshina insignia (medal), Orenburg, 1892
  Bashkirs-starshina with starshina insignia (medal), Orenburg, 1892

Soviet Union and Russian Federation

Template:Noref Template:Infobox military rank The word gained its modern meaning in the Red Army, and is a hangover from the functional titles (like "Brigade Commander" or "Assistant Platoon Leader") that were initially used by that force – the word literally means "senior". Most functional titles in the Red Army were abolished in 1942, but remained. was the highest non-commissioned rank in the Soviet Army until the reintroduction of the imperial rank of Praporshchik in 1972.

In the Soviet Navy, the term was introduced between 1940 and 1943 as term equivalent to "Petty Officer" for every enlisted seaman above "Matros, 1st class." There was also created a rank equal to in the Army, but termed (Template:Translation) – this is the naval rank depicted in the tables below.

Insignia in the Red Army (1919–1946) and Soviet Armed Forces (1946–1991)

File:Soviet Red Star Insignia.png	File:RA I K2a 1924v.jpg	File:1935-i-pg06v.png	File:RA I Starshina 1941v.png	File:RA-SA A-engin R8FirstSg 1955.png	File:RA-SA A R8FirstSg 1955field.gif	File:SA A-inf R8FirstSg 1963v.svg	File:SA AF R8FirstSg 1963v.svg	File:RAF N R8Starshina 1924-1940.gif	File:Rank insignia of главный корабельный старшина of the Soviet Navy.svg	File:Погон старшины ВВС с 2010 года.png
File:RA OR8-Starshina 1919v1.svg
(1919–1924)	collar insignia (1924–1935)	collar insignia (1935–1940)	collar insignia (1941–1943)	Technical troops (1943–1946)	Ground combat troops (1943–1955)	Ground forces (1955–1963)	Air force, airborne forces, air defence forces (1955–1963)	Navy (1924–1940)	Navy (1955–1963)	Air force, airborne forces (1963–1994)

Insignia in the Russian Federation

Russian Federation
File:RFAF - Starshina - Every day green.png	File:Russia-Army-OR-8-1994-field.svg	File:Russia-Navy-OR-8-1994-everyday.svg	File:RAF AF-ABTr R8Kursant 2010.png	File:Rus starshina field.svg	File:Погон старшины ВВС с 2010 года.png	File:Старшина ВВ(Р).png	File:Russia-Police-OR-8-2013.svg	File:Rank insignia of главный корабельный старшина 2 of the Soviet Navy.svg
Strategic Missile Troops, Airborne Forces (service dress) (1994–2010)	Ground Forces (service dress) (1994–2010)	Navy (dress uniform) (1994–2010)	Air Force and Airborne Forces kursant ("cadet") with rank of Starshina (dress uniform) (1994–2011)	Field dress (1994–2010)	Air force, airborne forces (2011–2015)	Internal troops (1995–2016) Ministry of Emergency Situations (firefighters) (1995–2001)	Militsiya, police, some internal troops	Navy (dress uniform) (after 2010)

Insignia

• Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "Lang". (Belarusian Ground Forces)[3]
  
  
  (Belarusian Ground Forces)
• Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "Lang". (Bulgarian Land Forces)[4]
  
  
  (Bulgarian Land Forces)
• Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "Lang". (Kyrgyz Army)[5]
  
  
  (Kyrgyz Army)
• Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "Lang". (Russian Ground Forces)[6]
  
  
  (Russian Ground Forces)
• Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "Lang". (Tajik Ground Forces)[7]
  
  
  (Tajik Ground Forces)
• Script error: No such module "Lang". (Turkmen Ground Forces)[8]
  
  (Turkmen Ground Forces)

Language variants

In some former communist state, the rank of "older" is used with the local language variants.

• Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "Lang". (Armenian Ground Forces)[9]
  
  
  (Armenian Ground Forces)
• Script error: No such module "Lang". Script error: No such module "Lang". (Mongolian Ground Force)[10]
  
  
  (Mongolian Ground Force)

External links

• Cossack starshyna at the Encyclopedia of Ukraine