gabardine

Etymology

Recorded from 1904 as an alteration of the earlier gaberdine (‘long, coarse outer garment’), itself recorded since 1520. It came from Spanish gabardina (perhaps shaped by gabán, ‘overcoat’, and tabardina, ‘coarse coat’), which came from Middle French galverdine. That in turn probably traces back to (Old or Middle) High German wallevart (‘pilgrimage’), used in the sense ‘pilgrim's cloak’, from wallen (‘to ambulate’) and vart (‘journey’).