Chorbaji (sometimes variously transliterated as tchorbadji, chorbadzhi, tschorbadji) (Turkish: çorbacı,) was a military rank of the corps of Janissaries in the Ottoman Empire, used for the commander of an orta (regiment), i.e., approximately corresponding to the rank of colonel. The word is pronounced [tʃoɾbaˈdʒɯ] in Turkish and literally means "soup cook", derived from çorba, "soup". In seafaring, the term was in use for the boss of a ship's crew, a role similar to that of boatswain.