Ombasha
Ombascha was a name for African private in the Imperial Protection Force for German East Africa . The origin of the word lies in the Egyptian pronunciation of the Turkish denomination of rank "onbaşı" in the army of the Ottoman Empire , to which Egypt nominally also belonged. The original meaning is "Haupt über 10", ie guide to the smallest division of 10 soldiers.
The rank designation was common among the mostly Sudanese mercenaries recruited by Hermann von Wissmann in Egypt to fight the uprising of 1889 on the coast of East Africa and was brought into the Wissmann's troops, which later became part of the Schutztruppe.
In the German colonial force in East Africa, Germans were only used as NCOs and officers, so there were no German ranks before the World War.
Ombashas were counted among the Askari , as the summary designation for the ranks of the protection force in East Africa was.