Major is a Senior Officer rank in the

Sri Lanka Army The Sri Lanka Army (; ) is the oldest and largest of the Sri Lanka Armed Forces. The army was officially established as the Ceylon Army in 1949, though the army traces its roots back in 1881 when Ceylon Light Infantry Volunteers was created; ...

. The rank insignia for a major is the Sri Lankan emblem. It ranks below lieutenant colonel and above

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

. The equivalent is Lieutenant-Commander in the

Sri Lanka Navy The Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) (; ) is the navy, naval arm of the Sri Lanka Armed Forces and is classed as the country's most vital defence force due to its island geography. It is responsible for the maritime defence of the Sri Lankan nation and its ...

and Squadron Leader in the

Sri Lanka Air Force The Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF; ; ) is the air force, air arm and the youngest of the Sri Lanka Armed Forces. It was founded in 1951 as the Royal Ceylon Air Force (RCyAF) with the assistance of the Royal Air Force (RAF). The SLAF played a major r ...

. From 1949 to 1972, in the Ceylon Army the rank insignia for a major was a

crown A crown is a traditional form of head adornment, or hat, worn by monarchs as a symbol of their power and dignity. A crown is often, by extension, a symbol of the monarch's government or items endorsed by it. The word itself is used, parti ...

, similar to that of the British Army Major. A major of the Sri Lanka Army would usually commanding independent companies, squadrons and batteries, but those that were organically part of a regiment or battalion were still usually commanded by captains. They would be

second-in-command Second-in-command (2i/c or 2IC) is a title denoting that the holder of the title is the second-highest authority within a certain organisation. Usage In the British Army or Royal Marines, the second-in-command is the deputy commander of a unit, f ...

of battalions in infantry or regiments (in the artillery and armoured regiments) as well as serve as

Brigade major A brigade major was the chief of staff of a brigade in the British Army. They most commonly held the rank of major, although the appointment was also held by captains, and was head of the brigade's "G - Operations and Intelligence" section direct ...

s. During the Sri Lankan Civil War majors commanded area commands known as military sectors and have commanded battalions in combat. In 1947, at its formation the uniform of the

Serjeant-at-arms A serjeant-at-arms or sergeant-at-arms is an officer appointed by a deliberative body, usually a legislature, to keep order during its meetings. The word "serjeant" is derived from the Latin , which means "servant". Historically, serjeants-at-ar ...

of the

Sri Lankan Parliament The Parliament of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka (Sinhala: ශ්‍රී ලංකා පාර්ලිමේන්තුව ''Śrī Laṇkā Pārlimentuvā'', Tamil: இலங்கை நாடாளுமன்றம் '' ...

was molded on

uniforms A uniform is a variety of costume worn by members of an organization while usually participating in that organization's activity. Modern uniforms are most often worn by armed forces and paramilitary organizations such as police, emergency ser ...

of a major.

Notable majors

* G. S. Jayanath -

Parama Weera Vibhushanaya __NOTOC__ The Parama Weera Vibhushanaya (PWV) ( Sinhala: පරම වීර වීභූෂණය ''parama vīra vibhūṣaṇaya''; Tamil: பரம வீர விபுஷனைய) is Sri Lanka's highest military decoration, awarded for ac ...

recipient * K. A. Gamage - Parama Weera Vibhushanaya recipient * E. A. Nugawela - first Cabinet

Minister of Education An education minister (sometimes minister of education) is a position in the governments of some countries responsible for dealing with educational matters. Where known, the government department, ministry, or agency that develops policy and deli ...

of Ceylon, later Cabinet Minister of Health, a Member of Parliament and State Council. *

Montague Jayawickrama Major (rank), Major Deshamanya Walter Geoffrey Montague "Monti" Jayawickrama (January 15, 1911 – November 16, 2001) was a Sri Lankan politician. He served as the Minister of Communications and Works (Ceylon), Minister of Transport and Publ ...

- Government Ministers and Provincial Governor * L. V. Gooneratne, ED - Mayor of Dehiwala - Mt Lavinia * Bevis Bawa, ADC,

CLI CLI may refer to: Computing * Call Level Interface, an SQL database management API * Command-line interface, of a computer program * Command-line interpreter or command language interpreter; see List of command-line interpreters * CLI (x86 instruc ...

- former Aide-de-camp to the

Governor of Ceylon {{Use dmy dates, date=November 2019 The governor of Ceylon can refer to historical vice-regal representatives of three colonial powers: Portuguese Ceylon * List of captains of Portuguese Ceylon (1518–1551) * List of captain-majors of Portugue ...

Victor Gunasekara Major Victor Joseph Harold Gunasekera, CCS (1921 — 1993) was a former Ceylonese civil servant. The former Controller of Imports Exports, Government Agent of Kegalle and Secretary to the Board of Control for Cricket. A reservist, he was a Maj ...

, CCS - former Controller of Imports Exports and Government Agent of

Kegalle Kegalle (; ) is a large town in Sabaragamuwa Province of Sri Lanka. It is located on the Colombo–Kandy road, approximately from Colombo, from Kandy, from Kurunegala and from Avissavella. It is the main town in the Kegalle District, which i ...

Deshamanya Deshamanya (; ; Pride of the Nation) is the second-highest national honour of Sri Lanka awarded by the Government of Sri Lanka as a civil honour. It is awarded for "''highly meritorious service''", and is conventionally used as a title or prefi ...

Duncan White Major Deshamanya Duncan M. White MBE, ED (1 March 1918 – 3 July 1998) was a Sri Lankan sportsman. He was the first Ceylonese athlete to win an Olympic medal, winning silver in the 400-metre hurdles at the 1948 Summer Olympics in London, E ...

, MBE, ED - first Ceylonese athlete to win an

Olympic medal An Olympic medal is awarded to successful competitors at one of the Olympic Games. There are three classes of medal to be won: gold medal, gold, silver medal, silver, and bronze medal, bronze, awarded to first, second, and third place, respect ...

Wickremasinghe Wimaladasa Deshabandu Wickramesinghe Wimaladasa (born 29 August 1943) is a Sri Lankan former sprinter who competed in the 1972 Summer Olympics. He won two gold medals at the 1974 Asian Games held in Tehran, Iran, in the men's 400m and relay events. ...

- Asian games (

Tehran Tehran (; , ''Tehrân'') is the capital and largest city of Iran. It is the capital of Tehran province, and the administrative center for Tehran County and its Central District (Tehran County), Central District. With a population of around 9. ...

) 400 metres gold medalist.

References

*Army, Sri Lanka. (1st Edition - October 1999). ''"50 YEARS ON" - 1949-1999'',

External links

Sri Lanka ArmyMinistry of Defence, Public Security, Law & Order - Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri LankaThree Service Commanders promoted : Official Government News Portal
Military ranks of the Sri Lanka Army {{mil-rank-stub

Notable majors

See also

References

External links