# carnyx

> English word · Noun · IPA /ˈkɑːnɪks/

## Definitions
1. A bronze wind instrument used by Iron Age Celts (c. 200 B.C.E. – 200 C.E.) as a type of battle trumpet; held vertically when played, it was shaped like an elongated S with a mouthpiece at the lower end and a bell (often resembling an animal with an open mouth) at the upper end.

## Etymology
Learned borrowing from Late Latin carnyx, from Byzantine Greek κάρνυξ (kárnux, “carnyx”), from κάρνον (kárnon, “carnyx”) (both translating Galatian words into Greek), from Gaulish carno- (“horn of an animal”) (used in names), from Proto-Celtic *karnos, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ḱerh₂- (“head, top; horn of an animal”).

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/carnyx