Byrnes

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. Armour made of small overlapping or interlinked metal rings, worn as a jacket by medieval soldiers
2. Protective body coverings of linked iron rings that were worn by warriors in the medieval period
3. Flexible metal armour of riveted or linked rings, a type of coat of mail once worn in battle

Etymology: Byrnes is the plural of "byrne", a coat of mail made of interlocking metal rings. The base word comes from Old English, where it was attested as "byrne" or "byrnie" for this kind of armour, and it is closely related to the Old Norse "brynja", which had the same sense. The shared forms point to a common Germanic ancestor, though its deeper origin is uncertain.