Skip to main content

How the fuck do I read the map?

Soviet military abbreviation practices employed standardized Cyrillic designations that Western intelligence services transliterated into Latin characters for operational mapping and order of battle tracking. The abbreviation system distinguished between basic unit types, specialized functions, and command relationships within the Warsaw Pact force structure.

The Guards designation (гвардейская/GV) indicated elite status units with enhanced training, equipment, and personnel standards compared to standard formations. Independent or separate units (отдельный/OTD) operated outside normal divisional structure and typically possessed specialized capabilities or direct higher-command control. These modifiers preceded the basic unit type abbreviation in standard Soviet military documentation.

Western intelligence agencies maintained Soviet abbreviation conventions in classified mapping products to ensure precise unit identification and avoid confusion during crisis situations. The transliterated system enabled rapid recognition of unit capabilities, command relationships, and organizational structure without requiring extensive translation or interpretation of captured enemy documents or intercepted communications.

"This seems grossly unclear" well, lock in. We still do it.

Standard Unit Type Abbreviations

SVYAZ
Unit Type Soviet Abbreviation Map Designation Example
Infantry Units      
Naval Infantry Battalion мп бат (mp bat) MP BAT 877 MP BAT
Naval Infantry Brigade мп бр (mp br) MP BR 336 GV MP BR
Motor-Rifle Battalion мсб (msb) MSB 134 MSB
Motor-Rifle Regiment мсп (msr)msp) MSRMSP 423 GV MSRMSP
Motor-Rifle Division мсд (msd) MSD 138 GV MSD
Air Assault Battalion дшб (dshb) DSHB 1 DSHB
Air Assault Regiment дшп (dshr) DSHR 234 GV DSHR
Air Assault Division вддв (ddv)vdd) DDVVDD 76 GV DDVVDD
Reconnaissance Company разв рота (razv rota) RAZV ROTA 145 RAZV ROTA
Reconnaissance Battalion разв бат (razv bat) RAZV BAT 12 RAZV BAT
Armored Units      
Tank Battalion тб (tb) TB 1 TB
Tank Regiment тп (tr)tp) TRTP 67 GV TRTP
Tank Division тд (td) TD 10 GV TD
Artillery Units      
Artillery Battalion аб (ab) AB 456 AB
Self-Propelled Artillery Battalionсаб (sab)SAB456 SAB
Artillery Brigade абр (abr) ABR 129 GV ABR
Artillery Regiment ап (ar)ap) ARAP 89 GV ARAP
Multiple Rocket Launcher Battalion рсзо бат (rszo bat) RSZO BAT 457 RSZO BAT
Air Defense Units      
Anti-Aircraft Missile Regiment зрп (zrp) ZRP 244 ZRP
SAM Battalion зрбдн (zrb)zrdn) ZRBZRDN 1 ZRB (SA-6)ZRDN
Support Units      
Engineer Regiment ип (ir)ip) IRIP 25 IRIP
Engineer Battalion иб (ib) IB 12 IB
Chemical Defense Battalion рхбз бат (rhbzrkhbz bat) RHBZRKHBZ BAT 47 RHBZRKHBZ BAT
Medical Battalion мед бат (med bat) MED BAT 67 MED BAT
Supply Battalion мто бат (mto bat) MTO BAT 145 MTO BAT
Material-Technical SupportSignal Battalion мсвязь батсб (mtsb)svyaz bat) MTSBSVYAZ BAT 14523 MTSB
Radio-Electronic Combat Regimentрэбп (rebr)REBR16 REBRBAT
Aviation Units      
Helicopter Regiment вп (vr)vp) VRVP 398 VRVP
Transport Aviation Regiment втап (vtap) VTAP 12 VTAP
IndependentEast Military Transport Aviation Regimentовтап (ovtap)OVTAP12 OVTAP
Border/SecurityGerman Units      
BorderFrontier Guards BattalionBrigade пгр бр (pgb)gr br) PGBGR BR 23DDR-6 PGBGR BR
FrontierMotorized BrigadeRifle Battalion (NVA) погрмсб (pogr)msb) POGRMSB 6DDR-134 POGRMSB
Polish Units   
Amphibious Assault Regimentдес п (des p)DES PPOL-15 DES P
Assault Battalionдес бат (des bat)DES BATPOL-1 DES BAT

Designation Modifiers

Modifier Soviet Term Abbreviation Usage
Guards гвардейская (gvardeyskaya) GV 336 GV MP BR
Independent/Separate отдельный (otdelnyy) OTD 25 OTD IP
Motorized мотострелковый (motostrelkovyy) MS 134 MS BAT
Self-Propelled самоходный (samokhodnyy) SA 456 SA AB

Nationality Prefixes

Nation Prefix Example Usage
Soviet No prefix 336 GV MP BR
East German DDR- DDR-134 MSB
Polish POL- POL-1 ASS BAT