Hussards

An hussar (/həˈzɑːr/ hə-ZAR, /hʊˈzɑːr/) was a member of a class of light cavalry, originating in Eastern and Central Europe during the 15th and 16th centuries, originally Hungarian. The title and distinctive dress of these horsemen were subsequently widely adopted by light cavalry regiments in European and European colonial armies in the late 17th and 18th centuries.

A number of armored or ceremonial mounted units in modern armies retain the designation of hussars.

Historically, the term derives from the cavalry of late medieval Hungary, under Matthias Corvinus.

The origin of the word "hussar" remains uncertain and several alternative theories are summarised below.

The first written mention of the word Hussarones (in Latin, plural; in Hungarian: Huszár) has been found in documents dating from 1432 in Southern Hungary (at the time the Ottoman military frontiers of the Hungarian Kingdom). A type of irregular light horsemen was already well-established by the 15th century in medieval Hungary. Etymologists are divided over the derivation of the word hussar.

Byzantinist scholars argue that the term originated in Roman military practice, and the cursarii (singular cursarius). 10th-century Byzantine military manuals mention chonsarioi, light cavalry, recruited in the Balkans, especially Serbs, "ideal for scouting and raiding". This word was subsequently reintroduced to Western European military practice after its original usage had been lost with the collapse of Rome in the west.

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