E. Cobham Brewer 1810–1897. Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 1898.
Gaberlunzie,
or A gaberlunzie man (g hard). A mendicant; or, more strictly speaking, one of the king’s bedesmen, who were licensed beggars. The word gaban is French for “a cloak with tight sleeves and a hood.” Lunzie is a diminutive of laine (wool); so that gaberlunzie means “coarse woollen gown.” These bedesmen were also called bluegowns (q.v.), from the colour of their cloaks. (See above, GABARDINE.)
