Cairn
/kɛərn/noun
A mound of stones built as a landmark, memorial, or burial marker.
Did you know?Cairn comes from a Gaelic word for a stone heap, and in Celtic landscapes these piles often functioned as ritual markers, burial signs, and wayfinding symbols all at once.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Celtic
PCelt
*karnā
“stone heap; pile of rocks”
Old Irish
OIr
carn
“heap of stones; cairn”
Middle Irish / Scottish Gaelic
Gaelic
càrn
“stone pile; mound”
16th Century
English
cairn
“a heap of stones set up as a landmark or memorial”
Modern English
English
cairn
“a mound of stones built as a landmark, memorial, or burial marker”