"armor for the chest and back," mid-15c., curase, curasse, from Old French cuirace (15c.), from Late Latin coriacea vestis "garment of leather," from Latin corium "leather, hide" (see corium). Cognate with Italian corazza, Spanish coraza, Portuguese couraça. Related: Cuirassier "mounted soldier wearing a cuirass," 1620s; "the proper name of a certain type of heavy cavalry in European armies" [OED].
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