Ranks and Colors

The Beninese Army continually expresses itself through a profusion of verbal and nonverbal signs. This is particularly true of ranks and titles, which represent a subject of major interest for the semiologist seeking to look beyond the appearances that mask the military scene. Our research hypothesis is based on the fact that the language of rank insignia implies two types of differentiation within the Beninese Army: first, vertical differentiations, and second, horizontal differentiations. The aim is to understand the social logics underlying military symbols-in this case, ranks and titles. The study involved distributing questionnaires to 300 military personnel from different branches and ranks within the army, namely officers, noncommissioned officers, and enlisted personnel. Approximately ten semi-structured interviews were also conducted, along with a review of the literature on semiotics and semantics, as well as on the army itself.