hauberk

American  

[haw-burk] / ˈhɔ bɜrk /

noun

Armor.

1. a long defensive shirt, usually of mail, extending to the knees; byrnie.

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hauberk British  

/ ˈhɔːbɜːk /

noun

1. a long coat of mail, often sleeveless

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Etymology

Origin of hauberk

1250–1300; Middle English < Old French hauberc, earlier halberc < Frankish *halsberg, equivalent to *hals neck ( see hawse) + *berg protection ( see harbor); cognate with Old High German halsberc Old English healsbeorg, Old Norse halsbjǫrg

Explanation

A hauberk was part of the suit of armor worn by knights. Made of strong chain mail, a knight's hauberk helped protect the upper half of his body during a battle. Chain mail, which is basically metal fabric, was a relatively lightweight part of a medieval knight's armor. The word hauberk comes from the Frankish halsberg, "neck-cover," a small section of chain mail that protected only a knight's neck and shoulders. The hauberk expanded on this, covering more of the body from blows, sometimes extending from neck to knees.

Example Sentences

My Vigor cools to speak of him, so girt is he in Solemnity — Helm and Hauberk — with only the Eyes peering out through the gloomy Visor.

From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume I: The Pox Party" by M.T. Anderson

And then as a gift of the morning the Hauberk shall ye take.’

From The House of the Wolfings by Morris, William

She said: “I lied to thee concerning the Hauberk when I said that no evil weird went with it: and this I did for the saving of thy life.”

From The House of the Wolfings by Morris, William

She said: “And wilt thou bear the Dwarf-wrought Hauberk? for if thou dost, thou wilt live, and if thou dost not, thou wilt die.”

From The House of the Wolfings by Morris, William

Lo here the Hauberk which thou hast done off thee, that thy breast might be the nearer to mine! 

From The House of the Wolfings by Morris, William