Sotnik

{{Short description|Russian, Ukrainian, and Cossack military rank}} {{More citations needed|date=December 2009}} thumb|Sotnyk of Ukrainian Cossacks '''Sotnik''' or '''sotnyk''' ({{Langx|ru|сотник}}; {{langx|uk|сотник}}; {{langx|bg|стотник}}) was a military rank among the Cossack starshyna (military officers), the Russian ''streltsy'' and Cossack host, the Ukrainian Insurgent Army, the Ukrainian Galician Army, and the Ukrainian People's Army.

==Administrative rank== Holders of the rank also served as leaders of territorial units. In the Cossacks' paramilitary society of the Zaporozhian Host, Cossack Hetmanate, and Sloboda Ukraine, territories were organized along the lines of military organization and commanded by officers. During the Khmelnytsky Uprising and in the Cossack Hetmanate (17th-18th centuries), ''sotnyks'' were leaders of territorial administrative subdivisions called ''sotnyas''. Such sotnyks were subordinated to ''polkovnyks'' (colonel) who were in control of a polk (primary administrative division) and a regiment (military unit).

== Military ranks == The word ''sotnik'' literally means ''commander of a hundred men'' in most Slavonic languages, much like how the Latin term Centurion reflected a commander of a similar number of troops in the Roman Empire. In the Russian rank-structure the military role of a sotnik developed into that of a poruchik ({{langx|ru| поручик}}), eventually known as "lieutenant" ({{langx |ru| лейтенант | translit = leytenant}}). Ukrainian military formations retained the rank of ''sotnyk'' ({{langx |uk| сотник}}) well into the 20th century as the equivalent of an army captain.<ref> [https://www.encyclopediaofukraine.com/display.asp?linkpath=pages\C\A\Captain.htm Encyclopedia of Ukraine] {{in lang|en}} </ref> The rank did not officially change, but rather fell out of use after the Soviet Army and intelligence services suppressed the Ukrainian Insurgent Army in the late 1940s and 1950s.

Some translations render the word ''sotnik'' as "Captain", however the "Lieutenant" interpretation also appears in common usage, and for the sake of historical and social clarity the original rank-name is used.

===Slovenia=== The rank is still used by the Slovenian Armed Forces,<ref name="Slovenia">{{cite web |title=Čini in razredi |url=https://www.slovenskavojska.si/o-vojski/cini-in-razredi/ |website=slovenskavojska.si |publisher=Slovenian Armed Forces |access-date=26 May 2021 |language=sl}}</ref> and is equal to the rank of captain in other armed forces.<ref>{{cite book |author1=NATO |title=STANAG 2116 NATO |date=2021 |publisher=NATO Standardization Agency |edition=7th |location=Brussels, Belgium |pages=A-1–A-6}}</ref>

==Legacy== The name of "Sotnik" has been adopted as a surname. * Olena Sotnyk

==References== {{Reflist}}

==External links== * [https://web.archive.org/web/20110727000659/http://kraevid.org/lviv/history/personalities/hetmans/bohdan_khmelnytsky/ru/ Bogdan Khmelnitsky] {{in lang|ru}}

Category:Military organization of Cossacks Category:Military ranks of Ukraine Category:Military ranks of Russia