A sangar (, also sanger) is a temporary fortified position with a breastwork originally constructed of stones,'Afridi Picket near to Jumrood', 1878 and now built of sandbags, gabions or similar materials. Sangars are normally constructed in terrain where the digging of trenches would not be practicable. The term is still frequently used by the British Army, but has now been extended to cover a wider range of small fortified positions.
Etymology The word was adopted from Hindi and Pashto and derives originally from the Persian word sang, "stone".Garland Hampton Cannon, Alan S. Kaye. The Persian Contributions to the English Language: an historical dictionary, p. 126. Otto Harrassowitz Verlag, 2001. Its first appearance in English (as recorded by the Oxford English Dictionary) is in the form sunga, and dates from 1841. The word has also occasionally been used as a verb, meaning "to fortify with a sangar": however, this usage appears to have been limited to the first decade of the 20th century.
Traditional usage The term was originally used by the British Indian Army to describe small temporary fortified positions on the North West Frontier and in Afghanistan. It was widely used by the British during the Italian Campaign of the Second World War. The term is also used by the British Royal Air Force to describe fortified guard positions on airfields.
Modern usage
More recently, the use of the term has been extended to cover a wider range of small, semi-permanent fortified positions. The Independent Monitoring Commission stated immediately after The Troubles in Northern Ireland:Second Report of the Independent Monitoring Commission p. 44. Presented under Article 5(2) of the International Agreement establishing the Independent Monitoring Commission, Ordered by the House of Commons to be printed 20th July 2004
See also List of established military terms
References
External links
Article on the dismantling of the Borucki Sangar at Crossmaglen in south Armagh.
. A description and photographs of British Army Sangars.