mane n.

"growth of long hair on the back of the neck and shoulders," characteristic of the horse, lion, and some other animals, Old English manu "mane of a horse," from Proto-Germanic *mano (source also of Old Norse mön, Old Frisian mana, Middle Dutch mane, Dutch manen, Old High German mana, German Mähne "mane"), from PIE *mon- "neck, nape of the neck" (source also of Sanskrit manya "nape of the neck," Old English mene "necklace," Latin monile "necklace," Welsh mwng "mane," Old Church Slavonic monisto, Old Irish muin "neck"). The Scandinavian languages have the word in a diminutive form (Danish manke, Swedish manke). Extended use, of a person's hair, is from late 14c.