British Army Other Ranks Rank Insignia - Sergeant or Serjeant

Sergeant or Serjeant

The spelling serjeant is sometimes seen. This was in fact the official spelling, even during and after World War I – though interestingly not in the Royal Air Force – and appeared in such publications as King's Regulations and the Pay Warrant, which defined the various ranks. In common usage the modern spelling sergeant was already more usual, as for instance in the volumes of the Official History which began to appear in the 1920s. Serjeant-at-Arms is a title still held by members of the security staff in the Houses of Parliament. Also, in the newly-amalgamated infantry regiment The Rifles (as successor to The Light Infantry, which also used it), the spelling of Serjeant is held with the 'J' in place of the 'G'. This is currently the only British Army regiment using the alternative spelling.