What is flank?

What Does flank Mean

The etymological origin of flank is found in Old High German hlanca , which translates as "hip . " That word became French as flanc that in our language , became flank.

The concept is used to name the lateral sectors of something . It is, therefore, about the sides or sides . For example: "The local team took advantage of the vulnerability of the left flank of its rival and attacked throughout the game through that sector" , "The combat moved to the western flank and peace is further and further away" , "The body found in the river bank had a bullet impact on the right flank ” .

The notion of flank is usually used with respect to the lateral regions of the body , seen from the front. Specifically, the abdominal area that extends over the hip and below the thorax is called the flank . When observing the human body, the navel is taken as a point of reference to distinguish the right flank from the left.
The flanks, in this sense, are fleshy portions that develop between the hips and the ribs . It is a poorly protected area, since there are no bones that cover them. This characteristic makes the flanks two ideal areas to attack when the objective is to cause a large percentage of damage with the least possible effort.
In a fight between two human beings, either spontaneous or regulated in the framework of some martial arts competition, the flank is one of the most vulnerable parts, and for that reason it must be covered with special attention from attacks. For this there are different techniques, depending on the discipline, but in general certain rapid movements with the hands are used to receive the blows and absorb a large part of their force before they hit the side.
If there is the possibility of wearing armor, it must be particularly resistant in the area of ​​the flanks, as well as in the crotch and the head, since they are all places where a serious injury can cause death more often than in the rest of the body.
In military terrain, flank is the lateral sector of a troop , or the lateral zone that it occupies in a terrain . While the end of a line that has been deployed is called the wing , the region beyond the wing is known as the flank.
As with the human body, the flank of a corps of soldiers can also be especially vulnerable if the enemy uses it cunningly. There are a large number of stories of past battles in which it was thanks to attacking the opposing army from one of its sides that the heroes achieved victory.

One of the reasons why the flank is more vulnerable than the front goes beyond organic issues, especially in the case of an army of hundreds of soldiers: the lack of attention we pay to the flank is the reason that leaves it more unprotected, and this happens because our vision is mainly focused on what takes place in front of us.
The sides of a bastion or bastion, which form an angle with the front and another with the curtain, are also called flanks.
There is also the verb flanking , which is part of the family of this word and can be defined in the following three ways: "to be located next to something"; "Provide protection to one's flanks"; "Threaten the enemy's sides , for example, approaching him from one of his flanks with the intention of attacking him."