The cotte (orcote) was a medieval outer garment, a long sleeved shift, or tunic, usually girded, and worn by men and women. In medieval texts, it was used to translate tunicaorchiton. Synonyms included tunicorgown. It was worn over a shirt (chemise), and a sleeveless surcote could be worn over it. By the sixteenth century, it had become a woman's undergarment. By the seventeenth century, it split into an upper 'corps' and a lower 'cotte', or skirt, amongst the poorer classes.[1][2]
In modern French, it survives in the expression cotte de mailles ("chainmail"). The Old French cote also gave rise to the word cotillon ("cotillion", a dance). Petticoat is another indirect descendant of cote.