commandant

Etymology

It is borrowed from French commandant (“commanding; the one commanding”),^[2][3][4][5] the present participle of commander (“to command”) used as a noun,^[6][7] from Old French comander (“to order, enjoin”),^[7][3][5] from Vulgar Latin *commandō, from Latin commendō (“to recommend, entrust to”), altered under the influence of mandō (“to commit, entrust”).^[3] The ODE allows Italian or Spanish as sources as well,^[8] and the OED compares Italian comandante, Spanish comandante and Portuguese commandante.^[2][3] In its South African sense it corresponds to Dutch commandant^[9] and Afrikaans kommandant.^[2][10]

Earliest recorded meaning

A commanding officer, whatever his rank, especially the military governor of a fortress, town or district: 1687, in the London Gazette,^[2][5] the 1680s in Etymonline.^[3]

Semantic evolution

The word was often used as a foreign title.^[2] In South Africa it was the chief military officer of a district or the leader of a Boer commando, from 1791, especially during the Anglo-Boer wars,^[9][2][10] and later a rank in the South African armed forces between major and colonel.^[2][10] The Shorter Oxford also records commandant-general, a commander-in-chief, and commandantship, from the mid 19th century.^[10]

Timeline

• 1687 – a commanding officer, especially of a fortress or town.^[2][5]
• 1791 – South African, the leader of a Boer commando.^[2][9]
• mid 19th century – commandantship.^[10]

Meanings

Noun

1. An officer in command of a place, force or establishment, such as a fortress, camp or military academy.^[11][5][10]
2. (South Africa, historical) The leader of a Boer commando, or the chief military officer of a district.^[10][9][2]
3. (South Africa) An officer ranking between a major and a colonel.^[2][10]

Related words

• command
• commander
• commando
• commend
• mandate

References

1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ a b c d e Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
4. ^ Klein, Ernest. A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the English Language. 2 vols. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 1966–1967.
5. ^ a b c d e Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
6. ^ Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
7. ^ a b The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (online 2024), 5th ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
8. ^ Stevenson, Angus, ed. (2010), Oxford Dictionary of English, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
9. ^ a b c d A Dictionary of South African English on Historical Principles, Dictionary Unit for South African English, https://dsae.co.za
10. ^ a b c d e f g h Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
11. ^ Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins