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| Polish Armed Forces |
|---|
| Branches |
Land Forces Air Force Navy Special Forces Territorial Defence Force |
| History |
| Timeline Wars |
| Personnel |
| Senior officers Rank insignia Awards Oaths |
| Equipment |
| Land Forces Navy |
This article presents themilitary ranks of the entirePolish Armed Forces as well as the rank insignia used today. The system of rank insignia is a direct descendant of various systems used throughout history by thePolish Army. Some of the grades trace their name back to the Middle Ages, for instance the rank ofchorąży literally means aflag bearer or anEnsign.
Names of Polish ranks are often of foreign origin, like the ones introduced by the 17th-century mercenaries serving for the Polish Crown. These include the rank ofkapral, which is a derivative of the Italiancaporale - much like the English equivalent ofcorporal.
Most rank titles are cognates to the ones in English, with some exceptions. Notablycolonel's literal meaning isregimental-leader, likewiseplutonowy meansplatoon-leader. Also, the title equivalent to petty officer is identical to the word forboatswain, so aBosman may or may not be abosman.
UntilWorld War II, each of the branches of the Land Forces used a set of different names for the same grades. For instance asergeant was calledsierżant in theinfantry,ogniomistrz (literallymaster of fire) in theartillery andwachmistrz (from GermanWachtmeister, orMaster of the Guards) in thecavalry. This is similar to the German army calling a cavalry officer which is equivalent toHauptmann aRittmeister
Modern Polish military practices were heavily influenced by Prussian/German and Russian traditions, as most founding officers after 1918 independence were veterans of those respective armies.
The Polish language requires the use of a prior honorific before stating the addressee's rank e.g. 'Panie Kapitanie...' (Sir Captain...). This is directly equivalent to French practice where the possessiveMon is pre-pended to the addressee's rank. During the communist period use of the formal 'Pan' (Sir) was frowned upon and 'Obywatel' (Citizen) (as in:Obywatelu Kapitanie!) was used. This has reverted to prior style in the post-communist era.
It is customary to include other titles when referring to an officer in writing. This can lead to some interesting abbreviations. For example, a Lt. Col. in the airforce by the name Nowak who is a pilot and has anMSc in engineering would be writtenppłk pil. mgr inż. Nowak (LtCol plt MEng Nowak).
Uniquely, Polish forces use atwo-fingered version of the salute, and the saluting custom does not allow saluting with the fingers to the head without having headgear on (cap/beret or helmet).
From 2024, working dogs in the Polish Army could be given ranks up toSierżant.[1]
The rank insignia ofcommissioned officers.
The rank insignia ofnon-commissioned officers andenlisted personnel.
| NATO code | OR-9 | OR-5 | OR-3 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Polish Land Forces |  |  |  |  |  |
| Chorąży sztabowy | Młodszy chorąży sztabowy | Starszy sierżant sztabowy | Sierżant sztabowy | Starszy plutonowy | |
 Polish Air Force |  |  |  |  |  |
| Chorąży sztabowy | Młodszy chorąży sztabowy | Starszy sierżant sztabowy | Sierżant sztabowy | Starszy plutonowy | |
 Polish Navy | .svg) | .svg) | .svg) | .svg) | .svg) |
| Chorąży sztabowy marynarki | Młodszy chorąży sztabowy marynarki | Starszy bosman sztabowy | Bosman sztabowy | Starszy bosmanmat | |
Until 2004 the ranks ofchorąży (OR-9 and OR-8) constituted a separate group, roughly corresponding to U.S.Warrant Officers. On July 1, 2004, the number of these ranks was reduced and they were included in the group of non-commissioned ranks.
On January 1, 2014, all reserve NCOs, holders of the rank ofchorąży sztabowy / chorąży sztabowy marynarki andmłodszy chorąży sztabowy / młodszy chorąży sztabowy marynarki were promoted to the rank ofstarszy chorąży sztabowy / starszy chorąży sztabowy marynarki; holders of the rank ofstarszy sierżant sztabowy / starszy bosman sztabowy andsierżant sztabowy / bosman sztabowy were promoted to the rank ofmłodszy chorąży / młodszy chorąży marynarki; and holders of the rank ofstarszy plutonowy / starszy bosmanmat were promoted to the rank ofsierżant / bosman.[4]
Thus the ranks discontinued on July 1, 2004, were officially abolished in the Polish Armed Forces.[4]
