Ensign

Ensign is arank ofofficer in manynaval services andspace forces, most notablyEarth Starfleet and itsFederation counterpart.

Standing[]

An ensign is the most basicofficer rank, a grade above than anyenlisted person ornon-commissioned officer, and a grade belowlieutenant junior grade in most rank structures, although some organizations will advance to anotherlieutenant rank. The Federation also has used ranks below and above ensign,ensign junior grade andensign first class. The ensign rank is roughly equivalent with the authority of asecond lieutenant ofmilitary forces and service organizations. TheRomulan Star Empire has two ranks,antecenturion (erein in theRomulan language) andequitoriam, that are analogous to an ensign's standing. In theCardassian language,gil is aCardassian officer rank title which, in translation toFederation Standard, is approximately equivalent to an ensign. InKlingonese, an ensign is referred to aslagh. (TOS -Rihannsunovel:The Romulan Way;TLE -Terok Nornovel:Day of the Vipers;STreferences:The Klingon Dictionary,Klingon for the Galactic Traveler)

Starfleet ensigns[]

22nd century[]

In theEarth Starfleetuniforms of the22nd century, ensigns wore pininsignia of a single rectangular pip. (Star Trek: Enterprise)

23rd century[]

By the era of the early23rd centuryFederationStarfleet, ensigns wore standard duty uniforms with no sleeve stripes. (STmovie:Star Trek)

By the middle of the 23rd century, a new tunic was worn by Starfleet all line officers wore the same single-stripe sleeve insignia, including ensigns. (TOSepisode: "The Cage")

By the2260s, a new uniform design once again featured no discernable insignia for ensigns on everyday uniforms. This also occurred in an alternate reality uniform design used around2258. (TOS,STmovie:Star Trek)

By the uniform redesign of the2270s, ensigns wore a broken gold braid stripe on class A uniform sleeves and a similar broken band as an embroidered epaulet insignia. (TOSmovie:The Motion Picture)

In the uniforms of the2280s, ensigns wore pin a single V-shaped insignia. (STreference:The Star Trek Encyclopedia)

BeforeThe Star Trek Encyclopedia depicted a fairly accurate version of Robert Fletcher's rank pin designs used incanon, other sources presented differing ensign insignia, such asShane Johnson'sSTreference:Mr. Scott's Guide to the Enterprise, which specified ensigns wear no insignia.

24th century[]

In the uniform insignia introduced in the mid-24th century, an ensign wears one circular gold pip as their rank insignia. This style continued through several uniform styles before being replaced by a rectangular stylized pin. (FASA RPGmodule:Star Trek: The Next Generation Officer's Manual;Star Trek: Countdown,STOvideo game:Star Trek Online)

Ensign insignia[]

Starfleet ensign insignia
era	general wear	command division				operations division				sciences division
		command	tactical/military		flight-engineering (admin, pilot, engineer)		security	special services	sci-ops (ops, sci & tac ops)		medical
Earth Starfleet ranks
Federation Starfleet ranks (2160s)
Federation Starfleet ranks (2230s)
Federation Starfleet ranks (2240s) (insignia for all officer grades)
Federation Starfleet ranks (2260s)
Federation Starfleet ranks (2270s)
Federation Starfleet ranks (2270s-2350s)
Federation Starfleet ranks (2350s-2366)
Federation Starfleet ranks (2366-2373)
Federation Starfleet ranks (2370s-2380s)
Federation Starfleet ranks (2386-2410)
Federation Starfleet ranks (2800s)

Alternate ensign insignia[]

Starfleet alternate ensign insignia
era	command division				operations division				sciences division
Federation Starfleet ranks (2250s) alt
Federation Starfleet ranks (2386-2410) alt

Bajoran ensigns[]

TheBajoran Militia used ensign as their lowest officer rank. A Bajoran ensign wore an insignia of a stylized Bajoran insignia, with part of the symbol removed. (STreference:The Star Trek Encyclopedia)

Klingon ensigns[]

The naval forces of theKlingon Defense Force used ensign as their lowest officer rank. A Klingon ensign wore an insignia of a stylized circle with a symbol of two connected slashes. (FASA RPGmodules:The Klingons: Star Fleet Intelligence Manual,The Klingons: Game Operation Manual)

US ensigns[]

TheUS Navy ofEarth'sUnited States of Americanation used ensign as their lowest officer rank. An American ensign wore a pin insignia of a gold rectangular bar and a single gold stripe on uniforms with sleeve insignia.

The American insignia are derived from real-life sources and are known to have been used inStar Trekcanon productions.

Positions and lists[]

Starfleet[]

seecategory:Starfleet ensigns.

Klingon[]

seecategory:Klingon ensigns.

Appendices[]

Connections[]