Petty officer - wikipedia Petty officer This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. ( March 2010 ) Common military ranks in English Navies Armies Air forces Commissioned and Non-commissioned officers Admiral of the fleet General of the Army or Field marshal Marshal of the air force Admiral General Air chief marshal Vice admiral Lieutenant general Air marshal Rear admiral Major general Air vice-marshal Commodore Brigadier or Brigadier general Air commodore Captain Colonel Group captain Commander Lieutenant colonel Wing commander Lieutenant commander Major or Commandant Squadron leader Lieutenant Captain Flight lieutenant Sub-lieutenant Lieutenant or First lieutenant Flying officer Ensign Second lieutenant Pilot officer Midshipman Officer cadet Flight cadet Enlisted grades Warrant officer or Chief petty officer Warrant officer or Sergeant major Warrant officer Petty officer Sergeant Sergeant Leading seaman Corporal Corporal Seaman Private or Trooper Aircraftman Talk View A petty officer ( PO ) is a non-commissioned officer in many navies and is given the NATO rank denotion OR - 6. In many nations, they are typically equal to a corporal or sergeant in comparison to other military branches. Often they may be superior to a seaman, generally the ( or one of the ) lowest ranks in a navy, and subordinate to a more senior non-commissioned officer, such as a chief petty officer. Contents 1 Origin 2 Usage in Navies 2.1 Canada 2.2 India 2.3 United Kingdom 2.4 United States 2.5 Non English - speaking countries 3 See also 4 References Origin The modern petty officer dates back to the Age of Sail. Petty officers rank between naval officers ( both commissioned and warrant ) and most enlisted sailors. These were men with some claim to officer rank, sufficient to distinguish them from ordinary ratings, without raising them so high as the sea officers. Several were warrant officers, in the literal sense of being appointed by warrant, and like the warrant sea officers, their superiors, they were usually among the specialists of the ship 's company. The Oxford English Dictionary suggests that the title derives from the Anglo - Norman and Middle French `` petit '', meaning `` of small size, small, little ''. Two of the petty officer 's rates, midshipman and master 's mate, were a superior petty officer with a more general authority, but they remained no more than ratings. However, it was quite possible for a warrant officer ( such as the armourer ), in his role as a superior officer, to be court - martialed for striking a midshipman. This is because both were regarded as future sea officers, with the all - important social distinction of having the right to walk the quarterdeck. Midshipmen wore distinctive uniforms, master 's mates dressed respectably, and both behaved like officers. The master 's mate rating evolved into the rank of sub-lieutenant, and midshipman evolved into naval cadet. Usage in navies Canada There are two petty officer ranks in the Royal Canadian Navy. Petty officer, 2nd class ( PO2 ) ( maître de deuxième classe or m2 in French ) is equivalent to a sergeant and petty officer, 1st class ( PO1 ) ( maître de première classe or m1 ) is equivalent to a warrant officer. Petty officers are normally addressed as `` Petty Officer Bloggins '' or `` PO Bloggins '', thereafter as `` PO ''. The `` 1st class '' and `` 2nd class '' designations are normally only used when such a distinction needs to be made, such as on a promotion parade or to distinguish two petty officers with similar names but different ranks. The NATO rank denotion for `` petty officer, 2nd class '' is OR - 6 ( petty officers, 2nd class with less than 3 years seniority are considered OR - 5 ). The NATO rank denotion for `` petty officer, 1st class '' is OR - 7. India A petty officer is a non-commissioned officer in the Indian Navy, equivalent to the NATO rank enlisted grade of OR - 5. They are equal in rank to a sub inspector of police in the Indian Police Services, or sergeant in the Indian Army and Indian Air Force. A petty officer is superior in rank to a leading rate and subordinate to a chief petty officer, as is the case in the majority of Commonwealth navies. A petty officer has the ability to work as a leader, capable of taking charge of a group of personnel, and taking roles in the training and recruitment of new members of the Indian Navy. A petty officer of the Royal Navy on parade in London in 2015. The chevrons represent good conduct. United kingdom In the Royal Navy, the rate of petty officer comes above that of leading rating and below that of chief petty officer. It is the equivalent of sergeant in the Royal Marines, British Army and Royal Air Force. Petty officer is the lowest of the senior rating grades. Petty officers, like all senior rates, wear `` fore and aft '' rig. Relative Ranks in the Royal Navy, c1810 Ratings and other ranks of the British Armed Forces Service Royal Navy Royal Marines Army Royal Air Force OR - 1 Pte AC OR - 2 AB Mne Pte LAC OR - 3 Not Applicable LCpl LCpl SAC / SAC ( T ) / LCpl ( RAF Regt only ) OR - 4 LH Cpl Cpl Cpl OR - 5 / OR - 6 PO Sgt Sgt Sgt OR - 7 CPO CSgt SSgt / CSgt Chf Tech - Flt Sgt OR - 8 WO2 WO2 OR - 9 WO1 WO1 WO1 WO / MAcr United States Five United States Navy Reserve petty officers in uniform. The title of petty officer in the United States Navy and United States Coast Guard has three separate `` classes '' ( 3rd class through 1st class ) and three senior grades ( chief petty officer, senior chief petty officer, master chief petty officer ). Petty officer, first class is equivalent in paygrade to staff sergeant in the United States Army and Marine Corps, and technical sergeant in the United States Air Force. Petty officer, second class is equivalent in paygrade to sergeant in the United States Army and Marine Corps, and staff sergeant in the United States Air Force. Petty officer, third class is equivalent in paygrade to corporal in the United States Army ( or specialist ), corporal in the United States Marine Corps, and senior airman in the United States Air Force. Enlisted rank has two components : rate ( pay grade ) and rating ( job specialty ). Both components are reflected in the title. A sailor in the rate of petty officer first class with a rating of yeoman, would be a Yeoman 1st Class ( abbreviated `` YN1 '' ). In the Navy, it is acceptable to refer to Petty Officer as such, while in the Coast Guard, rating is always used. United States enlisted ranks Pay grade → Branch of service ↓ E-1 E-2 E-3 E-4 E-5 E-6 E-7 E-8 E-9 Army PVT PV2 PFC SPC -- CPL SGT SSG SFC MSG -- 1SG SGM -- CSM -- SMA Marine Corps Pvt PFC LCpl Cpl Sgt SSgt GySgt MSgt -- 1stSgt MGySgt -- SgtMaj -- SgtMajMarCor Navy SR SA SN PO3 PO2 PO1 CPO SCPO -- CMDCS MCPO -- CMDCM -- FORCM, FLTCM -- MCPON Air Force AB Amn A1C SrA SSgt TSgt MSgt -- 1st Sgt SMSgt -- 1st Sgt CMSgt -- 1st Sgt -- CCM -- CMSAF Coast Guard SR SA SN PO3 PO2 PO1 CPO SCPO MCPO -- CMC -- Area CMC, CGRF - MC -- MCPOCG Non English - speaking countries In some countries the same term is used as for a non-commissioned officer ( NCO ) in land forces, e.g. `` suboficial '' in some Spanish - speaking countries. The Russian equivalent is Glavny Starshina. See also Boatswain List of United States Navy ratings Royal Navy ratings rank insignia United States Navy enlisted rates References ^ Jump up to : Rodger, N.A.M. ( 1986 ). The Wooden World : An Anatomy of the Georgian Navy. Annapolis, MD : Naval Institute Press. p. 24. ISBN 0 - 87021 - 987 - 1. Jump up ^ Petty Officer, Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford University Press Jump up ^ Lavery, Brian ( 1989 ). Nelson 's Navy : The Ships, Men and Organization. Annapolis, Md : Naval Institute Press. p. 136. ISBN 0 - 87021 - 258 - 3. Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Petty_officer&oldid=807097820 '' Categories : Military ranks of the Commonwealth Military ranks of Australia Military ranks of Canada Military ranks of the Royal Navy Military ranks of the United States Navy Naval ranks Hidden categories : Articles needing additional references from March 2010 All articles needing additional references Talk Contents About Wikipedia Deutsch Ελληνικά فارسی Français Italiano Simple English Edit links This page was last edited on 25 October 2017, at 21 : 51. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution - ShareAlike License ; additional terms may apply. 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Question: where did the name petty officer come from
Answer: from the Anglo-Norman and Middle French "petit", meaning "of small size, small, little"