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camlet

.
Searchable Lemmata: chamelet (AF), camelot (AF), camelotus (L), chamelet (ME), siamled (W), camlad (W), camlet (OScots), camlet (MdE).
Alternate Forms: camelotis, chamlet, chamelot, shamlet, samelet, camalitiz.

    Definitions and Defining Citations:

1(n.) Textile; rich, silken fabric; originally chamelet/camlet was associated with a silken material resembling or mimicking animal hair (particularly camel hair), but came to be associated with various rich fabrics, often of Eastern origin or provenance. From the 16th and 17th centuries, camlet was often made from Angora goat hair. In her article on silks used in various royal Wardrobe accounts, Lisa Monnas notes that 'Chamelett, whose exact structure has yet to be determined, is often associated with woollen cloths, particularly those made from camel hair, or with cloths made from mixtures of wool and silk. But in the Wardrobe accounts, chamelett refers to a silk cloth as the purchase rolls specifically refer to pann’ s’ici vocat’ camalitz (a silk cloth called camalitz)’ [Monnas, L. (1989), p. 286; with ref. to NA ms. E 101/390/1; 16 Ed. III].(ante 1300 still in current use)
1. regi mittat in Angliam ... ij pannos de cameloto brun, ij de cameloto de altero colore ... c pannos de alesta sine auro, xl ad aurum de levi precio, xx de majori, de predictis pa Legal. (citations from individual page of text may not appear in original order) [DMLBS Cl (175) 1244]
2. utantur ... presbiteri ... extra [ecclesiam] vestibus humilibus et j coloris, utpote de blueto, resseto, cameleto, nigra burnetta et consimili Historic. [DMLBS Ch. Sal. (348) 1269]
3. [132] ... spinter: affiçayl (vars. fiçayl, pin) ... [133] ... albos: blankeis ... blodios: de blu, bluis ... burneticos: burnet ... camelinos: de camelot, de camelin ... stanfordeos: estaunfordeis, de Estaford (l. Estanford) ... [134] ... cappa: cappe, copele ... [135] ... brachiola: bracerole, braceroles, bracerolis, brassenoles Gloss. (citations from individual page of text may not be in original order) [AND TLL (ii 132-135) ante 1300]
4. [p. 229] ... (PROME item 630) vii copes de velvet cremosy, sengle et nient garnisez, pris le pece .xlvi. s. .viij. d.; xvi.li .vi. s. .viij. d. ... (645) i cope de chamelet rouge d’or, les orfreys de velvet bloy, pris .xlvi. s. .viij. d. ... (662) Chesible de velvet vert playn, ovec III aubes, les orfreis enbroudés ovec signes. Item, II autr' clothes, I frountell de tarterin vert, II curteynes raiés de tarterin, ovec I stole, II phanons ... (668) Item, i chesible de damask bloy, les orfreis de velvet rouge et noier enbroudes, ovec .i. aube, et .i. amyte, pris .xxxvi. s. .viij. d. ... (675) Item, .viij. cropers de velvet d'or rouge, frengez et usez, et chescun croper de .vi. hangers, pris .iiij.li. ... (678) Item, .xi. horshouses de rouge drap, pris le pece .xx. d.; .xviij. s. .iiij. d. ... (679) Item, .vij. horshouses de rouge drap, pris le pece .vi. s. .viij. d.; .xlvi. s. .viij. d. ... [p. 230] ... i lite de soy baudekyn, blanc vert & glauc pale ... [p. 231] ... III carpettz de lether ... ii pair’ de draps champayn fyn ... Item, i esparver palez de tarterin vert, blanc & vermaille Legal. (citations from individual page of text may not appear in original order) [LexP PROME (Hen. VI: Parl. of Oct. 1423, items 630+) 1423]
5. ii quishons de chamelet vert Legal. [AND RotParl1 (v 240)]
6. Before þe sowdan sall na straunger com þat he ne sall be cledd in clathe of gold or tars, or in chamelet, a maner of clething whilk þe Sarzenes vsez.(cf. later version below) [MED Mandev.(2) ((Eg 1982) 20/21) ante 1425]
7. Before the Soudon schal no strong man come that he ne behouyth ben clad in ... samelet, that is a maner of clothynge that Sarasynys werith [L vtuntur]. [MED Mandev.(3) ((BodeMus 116) 31/8) ante 1450]
8. [38] ... j vestment of blewe chamlet enbraudet with whyte Roses, with stole, fanon, aube, amys, and alle þat longe for a preste. ... Item, j chesebyll of Ray wt a grene orfray ... [39] ... Item, j auter clothe playne Contenyng v yardis wt vij Rayes at euery ende ... j frontell for the fonte of blewe lynnen clothe frenchid with white, grene and Rede ... [42] ... Item, j lytyll clothe for weddynges, pauyd [read: panyd] wt rede and yollowe for to knele þeron ... [44] ... j Rode clothe ... j sudary of sylke and wt rays ouer thwerte ... j sudary of perpyll sylke wt iiij knoppys of syluer ouer gyldyd for þe Coupe. Accounts. [MED Rec.St.Stephen in Archaeol.50 (38-44) 1466]
9. Hoywddyn aur heddiw’n arwain / Caeau, modrwyau, a main ; / Ysgarlad aml a chamlod, / Sidan glân os ydyw’n glod. Poetic. [GPC IGE (288. 3-6)]
c.f.: cameline, fibrinus
AF, ME, MdE, OScots, W.
Sex: N/A    Ceremonial: No
Body Parts:
References: Monnas, L. (1989)

    Etymological Evidence:

Speculative, Obscure; through AF. Cham- forms were common until the early modern period. Appears in British Latin texts from at least 1235. The OED adds: 'at the earliest known date the word was associated (by Europeans) with camel, as if stuff made of camel's hair; but there is reason to think it was originally the Arabic khamlat, from khaml; Marco Polo (ed. Yule) I. 248 (Skeat). Khaml, khamlat, is explained by Lane as "the nap or pile or villous substance on the surface of cloth"; khamlat, by Johnson, as "camelot, silk and camel's hair, also, all silk or velvet, especially pily and plushy"'. ['camlet, n.', OED, 2nd ed. (1989)] On the borrowing into the Welsh, see Parry-Williams (1923)a, p.79.
WF:
Etym Cog:
References: Parry-Williams, T.H. (1923)
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