Etymology Explorer › Scots

Where does “cairn” come from?

cairn (Scots) comes from Scottish Gaelic carn, from Old Irish carn, from Proto-Celtic karnos, from Proto-Indo-European ḱerh₂- — head, top; horn.

Ancestry of “cairn”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Scottish Gaeliccarnheap of stones
2Old Irishcarn—
3Proto-Celtickarnoscairn; horn
4Proto-Indo-Europeanḱerh₂-head, top; horn

Words derived from “cairn”

  • cairn
  • cairned
  • cairnlike
  • Cairnwood
  • ケアン
  • ケルン
Every word from Proto-Indo-European ḱerh₂- →