horn
A hard pointed growth on the head of cattle, goats, and other animals; also a musical instrument.
Etymology
From Old English horn, from Proto-Germanic *hurną, from PIE *ḱerh₂- "horn, head, top" (also reconstructed as *ḱer-). The PIE root referred to the topmost part of the head, and by extension what grew there. The musical sense arose because early instruments were made from animal horns. Latin cornū and English horn are cognates despite their different appearance.
The Journey: *ḱerh₂- → horn
*ḱerh₂-
*hurną
horn
horn
horn
Cognates Across Languages
These words in other languages descend from the same PIE root *ḱerh₂-. They are not borrowings but independent inheritances from a common ancestor.
| Language | Word |
|---|---|
| Greek | kéras |
| Latin | cornū |
| Welsh | corn |
| German | Horn |
| Sanskrit | śr̥ṅga- |
| Old Norse | horn |
Did You Know?
The word "unicorn" means "one horn" — from Latin ūni- + cornū, where cornū is a direct cognate of English "horn." Both descend from PIE *ḱerh₂-, but English inherited the Germanic h- while Latin kept the k-sound as c-.