cairn

/kɛrn/

Other forms: cairns

A cairn is a pile of stones made by a person. Some cairns are used to mark different paths on a hiking trail.

Cairn is derived from the Scottish carne, "heap of stones." Around the world, ancient cairns mark the spots where people were buried and stand as memorials on battle sites. Countries including Iceland, Scotland, and Ireland have particularly strong traditions of using stacked stones as beacons for travelers. When tourists create their own rock piles on hiking trails and beaches, they disrupt historic cairns, disturb animal habitats, and put others in danger of getting lost.

Definitions of cairn

1. noun

   a mound of stones piled up as a memorial or to mark a boundary or path
   type of:

   insignia, mark, marker, marking

   a distinguishing symbol
2. noun

   a small, rough-haired breed of terrier from Scotland
   synonyms: cairn terrier

   type of:

   terrier

   any of several usually small short-bodied breeds originally trained to hunt animals living underground