Editing Chain mail (section)

==Etymology==
The origin of the word ''mail'' are not fully known. One theory is that it originally derives from the Latin word {{Lang|la|macula}}, meaning 'spot' or 'opacity' (as in [[macula of retina]]). Another theory relates the word to the old French {{Lang|fro|maillier}}, meaning 'to hammer' (related to the modern English word ''malleable'').<ref>{{Cite OED|mail|id = 112479}}</ref> In modern French, ''maille'' refers to a loop or stitch.<ref>[http://www.cnrtl.fr/definition/maille "maille"], ''Trésor de la langue française informatisé''. {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305052520/http://www.cnrtl.fr/definition/maille |date=2016-03-05 }}</ref> The Arabic words ''burnus'' ({{lang|ar|برنوس}} '[[Burnous|burnoose]], a hooded cloak', also a [[chasuble]] worn by Coptic priests) and ''barnaza'' ({{lang|ar|برنز}} 'to bronze') suggest an Arabic influence for the Carolingian armour known as [[Hauberk|byrnie]] (see below).

The first attestations of the word ''mail'' are in Old French and Anglo-Norman: ''maille'', ''maile'', or ''male'' or other variants, which became ''mailye'', ''maille'', ''maile'', ''male'', or ''meile'' in Middle English.<ref>[http://quod.lib.umich.edu/cgi/m/mec/med-idx?type=id&id=MED26516 "maille"], ''The Middle English Dictionary Online''. {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130731185249/http://quod.lib.umich.edu/cgi/m/mec/med-idx?type=id&id=MED26516 |date=2013-07-31 }}</ref>

[[File:Beowulf - byrnu.jpg|thumb|left|In early medieval Europe "byrn(ie)" was the equivalent of a "coat of mail"]]

Civilizations that used mail invented specific terms for each garment made from it. The standard terms for European mail armour derive from French: leggings are called [[chausses]], a hood is a [[mail coif]], and mittens, [[mitons]]. A mail collar hanging from a helmet is a [[Aventail|camail or aventail]]. A shirt made from mail is a [[hauberk]] if knee-length and a [[haubergeon]] if mid-thigh length. A layer (or multiple layers) of mail sandwiched between layers of fabric is called a [[jazerant]].

A waist-length coat in medieval Europe was called a byrnie, although the exact construction of a byrnie is unclear, including whether it was constructed of mail or other armour types. Noting that the byrnie was the "most highly valued piece of armour" to the [[Charlemagne|Carolingian]] soldier, Bennet, Bradbury, DeVries, Dickie, and Jestice<ref>Bennet, M., Bradbury, J., DeVries, K., Dickie, I., & Jestice, P. ''Fighting Techniques of the Medieval World''. Thomas Dunne Books, 2005, p. 82.</ref> indicate that:
<blockquote>
There is some dispute among historians as to what exactly constituted the Carolingian byrnie. Relying... only on artistic and some literary sources because of the lack of archaeological examples, some believe that it was a heavy leather jacket with metal scales sewn onto it with strong thread. It was also quite long, reaching below the hips and covering most of the arms. Other historians claim instead that the Carolingian byrnie was nothing more than a coat of mail, but longer and perhaps heavier than traditional early medieval mail. Without more certain evidence, this dispute will continue.
</blockquote>