Soldier

A soldier is a general English term that refers to a member of a land component of national armed forces who are without officer's commission, and serve in the rank variously equivalent to a private. In most societies of the world, "soldier" is also a general term for any member of the land forces including commissioned or Non-commissioned officers. The word soldier is derived from an Old French word, itself a derivation of Solidarius, Latin for someone who served in the armed forces for pay, as opposed to warrior in tribal society where every grown man is automatically a member of his clan's fighting force. Solidare in Latin means "to pay"; Roman soldiers were paid in solidi, so-called because they were a new type of solid gold coin brought in after a reform of the Roman money system. The common Romance origin for the words soldier and payment survives not only in French as soldat and solde, but also in other languages, like German Soldat and Sold, Spanish soldado and sueldo,... full article at wikipedia