Xiao (rank)

Xiao (Chinese: 校, Wade–Giles: Hsiao) is the rank held by field officers in the militaries of China and Taiwan. The Chinese military (PLA) uses four grades while the Taiwanese military 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: 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 Chinese 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 Taiwanese military (ROC) does the same for enlisted ranks and company-grade officers, it has distinct names for the higher naval ranks.

Rank	Literal translation	Army translation	Navy translation	Chinese army insignia	Chinese navy insignia	Chinese air force insignia	Chinese People's Armed Police insignia	Taiwanese army insignia	Taiwanese navy insignia	Taiwanese air force insignia	Taiwanese Marine Corps insignia	NATO rank equivalent
Da xiao (大校)	Grand field officer	Senior colonel	Commodore					No equivalent	No equivalent	No equivalent	No equivalent	OF-6
Shang xiao (上校) (shang hsiao)	Senior field officer	Colonel	Captain									OF-5
Zhong xiao (中校) (chung hsiao)	Middle field officer	Lieutenant colonel	Commander									OF-4
Shao xiao (少校) (shao hsiao)	Junior field officer	Major	Lieutenant commander									OF-3