Meanings
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1
noun
historical British military usage: a commissioned army officer below the rank of captain, such as a lieutenant
The young subaltern joined his regiment shortly before it sailed overseas.
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2
adj
lower or subordinate in rank, status, authority, or importance
He accepted a subaltern administrative post with little power over policy.
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3
noun
in social and postcolonial theory, a person or group excluded from dominant structures of political representation and power
The study asks how subaltern communities can preserve histories omitted from official archives.
Thesaurus
Etymology
Through French subalterne from Late Latin subalternus, formed from sub-, 'under,' + alternus, 'one after another.' The military noun denoted a junior officer; Antonio Gramsci and later postcolonial theorists broadened subaltern for socially and politically subordinated groups.