An officer is a

person A person ( : people) is a being that has certain capacities or attributes such as reason, morality, consciousness or self-consciousness, and being a part of a culturally established form of social relations such as kinship, ownership of prope ...

who has a position of

authority In the fields of sociology and political science, authority is the legitimate power of a person or group over other people. In a civil state, ''authority'' is practiced in ways such a judicial branch or an executive branch of government.''T ...

in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from

Old French Old French (, , ; Modern French: ) was the language spoken in most of the northern half of France from approximately the 8th to the 14th centuries. Rather than a unified language, Old French was a linkage of Romance dialects, mutually intel ...

''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from

Medieval Latin Medieval Latin was the form of Literary Latin used in Roman Catholic Western Europe during the Middle Ages. In this region it served as the primary written language, though local languages were also written to varying degrees. Latin functioned ...

''officiarius'' "an officer," from

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through ...

''officium'' "a service, a duty" the

late Latin Late Latin ( la, Latinitas serior) is the scholarly name for the form of Literary Latin of late antiquity.Roberts (1996), p. 537. English dictionary definitions of Late Latin date this period from the , and continuing into the 7th century in t ...

from ''officiarius'', meaning " official."

Examples

Ceremonial and other contexts

*Officer, and/or Grand Officer, are both a grade, class, or rank of within certain

chivalric order An order of chivalry, order of knighthood, chivalric order, or equestrian order is an order of knights, typically founded during or inspired by the original Catholic military orders of the Crusades ( 1099–1291) and paired with medieval conc ...

s and

orders of merit The Order of Merit (french: link=no, Ordre du Mérite) is an order of merit for the Commonwealth realms, recognising distinguished service in the armed forces, science, art, literature, or for the promotion of culture. Established in 1902 by Ki ...

, e.g.

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleo ...

(France), Order of the Holy Sepulchre (

Holy See The Holy See ( lat, Sancta Sedes, ; it, Santa Sede ), also called the See of Rome, Petrine See or Apostolic See, is the jurisdiction of the Pope in his role as the bishop of Rome. It includes the apostolic episcopal see of the Diocese of R ...

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

( UK), Order of Leopold (

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to ...

) * Great Officer of State * Merchant marine officer or licensed mariner * Officer of arms * Officer in The Salvation Army, and other state decorations

Corporations

Bank officer A bank officer is an employee of a bank endowed with the legal capacity to agree to and sign documents on behalf of the institution. The title is usually held by branch managers, assistant managers, loan officers, and other experienced personnel. ...

*Corporate officer, a corporate title **

Chief executive officer A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especiall ...

(CEO) **

Chief financial officer The chief financial officer (CFO) is an officer of a company or organization that is assigned the primary responsibility for managing the company's finances, including financial planning, management of financial risks, record-keeping, and fina ...

(CFO) **

Chief operating officer A chief operating officer or chief operations officer, also called a COO, is one of the highest-ranking executive positions in an organization, composing part of the " C-suite". The COO is usually the second-in-command at the firm, especially if ...

(COO) * Executive officer

Education

*Chief academic officer, a provost * Sabbatical officer

Law enforcement

* Bylaw enforcement officer * Corrections officer *

Customs officer A customs officer is a law enforcement agent who enforces customs laws, on behalf of a government. Canada Canadian customs officers are members of the Canada Border Services Agency. It was created in 2003 and preceded by the Canada Customs and ...

Environmental Health Officer Environmental Health Officers (also known as Public Health Inspectors or Environmental Health Practitioners) are responsible for carrying out measures for protecting public health, including administering and enforcing legislation related to enviro ...

Officer of the court In common law jurisdictions, the generic term officer of the court is applied to all those who, in some degree in the function of their professional or similar qualifications, have a part in the legal system. Officers of the court may include en ...

* Parking enforcement officer *

Police officer A police officer (also called a policeman and, less commonly, a policewoman) is a warranted law employee of a police force. In most countries, "police officer" is a generic term not specifying a particular rank. In some, the use of the ...

* Security officer

Military

* Officer (armed forces) * Commanding officer * Petty officer

Politics and government

Chief Medical Officer Chief medical officer (CMO) is the title used in many countries for the senior government official designated head of medical services, sometimes at the national level. The post is held by a physician who serves to advise and lead a team of medical ...

* Foreign Service Officer, a diplomatic officer * Internal Service Officer, a diplomatic officer * Presiding Officer (disambiguation) * Returning officer

Shipping industry

* Captain (nautical), the person in charge of a merchant ship * Chief Engineering Officer, the person in charge of the technical department on a merchant ship *Chief officer or

chief mate A chief mate (C/M) or chief officer, usually also synonymous with the first mate or first officer, is a licensed mariner and head of the deck department of a merchant ship. The chief mate is customarily a watchstander and is in charge of the s ...

, typically the person in charge of the deck department of a merchant ship * Coastguard Rescue Officer, a rescue officer employed by HM Coastguard *Second officer or second mate, typically the navigator and medical officer on a merchant ship *Third officer or third mate, typically the safety officer on a merchant ship * Second Engineering Officer, the person in charge of the engine room on a merchant ship * Third Engineering Officer, an Engineering Officer of the Watch

References

{{reflist Management occupations Positions of authority