Xiao (rank)

Xiao (校) (Wade–Giles: Hsiao) is the rank held by field officers in the military of both the People's Republic of China and the Republic of China. The People's Liberation Army uses four grades while the Republic of China uses only three, with the rank equivalent to the fourth being treated as a general officer rank. This difference is found in other militaries as well. For example. in the British Army a brigadier is considered a field officer, while the equivalent rank in the United States Army, brigadier general, is considered a general officer. The PLA use the same rank names for all services, prefixed by Hai Jun (海军) (Naval Force) or Kong Jun (空军) (Air Force). While the ROC does the same for enlisted ranks and company-grade officers, it has distinct names for the higher naval ranks.