Rank Abbreviations

[pjs]

Hey,

I believe the following list contains the correct, exact abbreviations used in the U.S. Army during WWII; exact right down to every space, dash, and capital letter (1942-...?). Please correct me if I'm wrong on any of them. I did a lot of rersearch on the net and in books to come up with this complete list.

Pvt.
Pfc.
Cpl.
T/5 Cpl.
Sgt.
T/4 Sgt.
S/Sgt.
T/3 Sgt.
T/Sgt.
M/Sgt.
1st Sgt.

2nd Lt.
1st Lt.
Capt.
Maj.
Lt. Col.
Col.
Brig. Gen.
Maj. Gen.
Lt. Gen.
Gen.

Are those correct? If so, why is it there a lot of --for example-- video games that have them wrong? And why is there no source out there that lists them all like I have done above? It really confuses me, as I kind of figured it would be easy to search for "WWII army abbreviatrions" --among other combinations similar to that; but to my surprise, there wasn't one site out there with a complete, accurate list like the one I posted above.

Yet, after all the research I have done on these abbreviations, it makes me wonder, 'perhaps my list isn't correct either?'. I am trying to make a Wikipedia page for the WWII U.S. Army ranks. For now, I am using the list above, but if anyone has corrections they know of, let me know.

Thanks.

[jacobtowne]

Was sergeant major in use at the time?

JT

[RLeonard]

An equally, if not more, common abreviation for Lieutenant was "Lieut."

Rich

[Cancerkitty]

Great list! You wouldn't happen to have anything similar for the first world war, would you?

[ANN]

Can anyone tell me what a w/sgt, a p/a/sgt and a w/s/sgt are in the RAOC in India in WW2...I have received info on my dad's servicebut don't know what the letters before the sgt bit mean !!!!!
Ann

[Tom Canning]

Ann -
starting of with the p/a/sgt - paid acting sergent -

w/sgt - either war or warrant sergeant -

w/s/sgt - is war substantive sergeant which means he is fuly paid - and accepted as a sergeant - he would - most likely have started off as an unpaid acting sergeant - from a war substantive corporal etc... the lowest up from private is the
unpaid acting lance corporal...rank of course had it's privelege - once you got there !

Cheers

[dbf]

Hi Ann,

Just a thought now you have your father's records, perhaps you could start a thread of your own, keep all the information together, and possibly post up images when you need help.

That way anyone who offers information and background could see what has already been gleaned and possibly add to it.

Best of luck with it all,
D

[ANN]

Thanks everyone ...you are all stars...this army lingo is beyond me...perils of being a woman I suppose
Ann

[militarycross]

Hello pjs & welcome to the forum. Well done on the list.

[Slipdigit]

Originally Posted by pjs

Are those correct? If so, why is it there a lot of --for example-- video games that have them wrong? And why is there no source out there that lists them all like I have done above? It really confuses me, as I kind of figured it would be easy to search for "WWII army abbreviatrions" --among other combinations similar to that; but to my surprise, there wasn't one site out there with a complete, accurate list like the one I posted above.

Things change over time and probably outside of military circles, authors and other don't necessarily know (or care) what the "official" abbreviations are or were. In my lifetime, the US Postal Service state abbreviations have changed from three letters to two. An example would be Alabama, which was Ala. and was changed to AL, with no period.

There was not the rank of Sergeant Major in the US Army in WWII, but there was in the USMC. It was the rank equivalent to the First/Master Sergeant of the Army and Master Sergeant and Master Gunnery Sergeant of The Corps. The pay grade was the First Grade, which is a reverse of the practice today, where the lowest grade/rank is 1



I would suspect that even among military authors, you will see variance sometimes, especially in informal documents.

You will also see variance among the nations.