Soldier
37338
226174127
2008-07-17T04:13:20Z
75.139.181.219
/* Non-English equivalents */
{{Military ranks}}
{{otheruses1|a military rank}}
{{otheruses4|a military rank|civilian and generic usage|Armed forces}}
A '''soldier''' is a general English term that refers to a member of a land component of [[nation|national]] [[armed forces]] who are without [[officer (armed forces)|officer's commission]], and serve in the rank variously equivalent to a [[Private (rank)|private]].
In most societies of the world, "soldier" is also a general term for any member of the land forces including [[Commissioned officer|commissioned]] or [[Non-commissioned officer|Non-commissioned officers]].
==Etymology==
The word ''soldier'' is derived from an [[Old French]] word, itself a derivation of ''Solidarius'', [[Latin]] for someone who served in the [[armed forces]] for pay, as opposed to [[warrior]]s in tribal society where every grown man is automatically a member of his clan's fighting force. ''Solidare'' in Latin means "to pay"; [[Ancient Rome|Roman]] soldiers were paid in ''[[Solidus (coin)|solidi]]'', so-called because they were a new type of '''solid''' [[silver]] coin brought in after a reform of the Roman money system.
==Non-English equivalents==
The common Romance origin for the words ''soldier'' and ''payment'' survives not only in [[French language|French]] as ''soldat'' and ''solde'', but also in other languages, like [[German language|German]] ''Soldat'' and ''Sold'', [[Spanish language|Spanish]] ''soldado'' and ''sueldo'', [[Portuguese language|Portuguese]] ''soldado'' and ''soldo'', [[Dutch language|Dutch]] ''soldaat'' and ''soldij'', [[Italian language|Italian]] "soldato" and "soldo", [[Arabic language|Arabic]] "Gondi" and "moganad" and many other languages.
In the Russian language the word soldier is also "солдат" ("soldat"), although it is not related to the Russian word for money, but was borrowed from German use. In some languages the word ''soldier'' is derived from different etymology, for example Estonian "sõdur" is derived from word "sõda," which means "war."
==Occupational specialities==
[[Image:Bundeswehr_G36.jpg|thumb|right|[[German Army]] soldiers in Bosnia]]
[[Image:Iraqi Soldiers Cooking.jpg|thumb|right|Iraqi soldiers preparing meal.]]
In most armed forces the word soldier has been mostly abandoned with increasing specialisation in military occupations that require different areas of knowledge and skill-sets, and have been replaced by names which reflect Arm, Service or Branch of individual's service, type of unit or operational employment or technical use such as: [[Cavalry|trooper]], [[Commando]], [[dragoon]], [[Infantry|infantryman]], [[marine (armed services)|marine]], [[paratrooper]], [[Ranger (disambiguation)|ranger]], [[sniper]], [[Combat Engineer|engineer]], or a [[sapper]].
==Other terms==
In some English speaking countries soldiers serving in specific occupations are referred to by terms other then their occupational name. For example [[military police]] personnel are known as "redheads" from the colour of their berets, and in the [[United States Army]], artillerymen are sometimes referred to as "redlegs," from the branch color for artillery.
==Other uses==
A soldier who no longer serves in the armed forces is often called a [[veteran]], a term which can also apply to a long-serving or experienced soldier who is still in the army.
==See also==
{{commons}}
*[[Army]]
*Related terms: [[Mercenary]], [[Guerrilla warfare|Guerrilla]], [[Militant]], [[Combatant]]
*Famous groups of soldiers: [[Praetorian Guard]], [[Swiss Mercenaries]], [[Swiss Guard]], [[Red coat]], [[French Foreign Legion]], [[Samurai]], [[Household Cavalry]], [[Conquistadors]], [[Varangian Guard]], [[Buffalo Soldier]].
*[[Military animals]]
*[[Toy soldier]]
*[[Military use of children]]
==External links==
*[http://webpages.charter.net/usaihp/wwii.html US Army from American Revolution to 2006]
*[http://Soldier.lt Lithuanian Soldier]
*[http://www.roninreunited.com Roninreunited]
[[Category:Military life]]
[[Category:Military personnel]]
[[Category:Military occupations]]
[[ar:جندي]]
[[az:Əsgər]]
[[bg:Войник]]
[[cs:Voják]]
[[cy:Milwr]]
[[da:Soldat]]
[[pdc:Soldaat]]
[[de:Soldat]]
[[es:Soldado]]
[[eo:Soldato]]
[[ko:군인]]
[[it:Soldato]]
[[ja:軍人]]
[[jv:Prajurit]]
[[he:חייל]]
[[kk:Әскер]]
[[la:Miles]]
[[lv:Kareivis]]
[[lt:Karys]]
[[nl:Soldaat]]
[[no:Soldat]]
[[pl:Żołnierz]]
[[pt:Soldado]]
[[qu:Awqaq]]
[[ru:Солдат]]
[[simple:Soldier]]
[[fi:Sotilas]]
[[sv:Soldat]]
[[th:ทหาร]]
[[tr:Asker]]
[[uk:Солдат]]
[[yi:סאלדאט]]
[[zh:军人]]