borrowed from New Latin, going back to Latin, "helmet" (probably originally of leather, in contrast to cassis), borrowed from Greek galéē "weasel, marten," earlier probably "weasel skin," from gal- "weasel" (of uncertain origin) + -eē, suffix used in names of animal skins (as aigéā "goatskin," alōpēkéē "skin of a fox")
Note:
The Latin shift in the meaning of the Greek word is explained by the presumed custom of decorating helmets with the skin of a small carnivore, whose ferocity was hence magically transferred to the helmetʼs wearer; the meaning "helmet" is hypothetical in Greek, though not improbable (compare kynéē "helmet made from a dog skin").
