What does cornu mean?
Cornu (plural: cornua) is the Latin word for 'horn', retained in English chiefly as a precise anatomical term for any horn-shaped structure within the body. Most familiarly, it names the curved extensions of the brain's lateral ventricles — anterior, posterior, and inferior cornua — as well as the dorsal and ventral horns of grey matter in the spinal cord. Its most celebrated application is 'cornu ammonis', the name for the hippocampus, which early anatomists thought resembled the curled horn of the ram-headed Egyptian god Amun. Because the word carries this classical pedigree, it lends anatomical writing a distinctive scholarly tone, appearing almost exclusively in medical textbooks, neuroanatomy papers, and radiology reports. Related descendants of the same Latin root include the cornea of the eye, the cornet, and the cornucopia, all of which preserve the original sense of something horned or horn-shaped.
nounA horn-shaped anatomical structure, especially one of the curved prolongations of an organ such as the lateral ventricles of the brain or the horns of the spinal cord's grey matter.
- Anatomy: a horn-shaped structure or curved prolongation of an organ, such as the horns of the ventricles of the brain or the grey columns of the spinal cord.
"The radiologist traced the anterior cornu of the lateral ventricle on the MRI scan."
"The inferior cornu of the lateral ventricle curves down into the temporal lobe."
"In cross-section, the grey matter of the spinal cord displays its characteristic dorsal and ventral cornua."
As a Latin-derived noun, cornu retains its original Latin plural, cornua, rather than forming an English-style plural.
"Both anterior cornua of the lateral ventricles appeared symmetric on imaging."
Every time doctors describe the hippocampus, they are naming it after a ram's horn — 'cornu ammonis' literally means the horn of the Egyptian god Amun, depicted with a ram's head.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of cornu
Cornu comes directly from Latin cornu, meaning 'horn', from the Proto-Indo-European root *ker- ('horn, head'), the same root that gave Greek keras and ultimately English words such as 'horn' itself via Germanic. Latin speakers used cornu both for animal horns and for horn-shaped objects, including the curved arms of a lyre and the cornu copiae, or horn of plenty. English borrowed the word in technical contexts during the development of modern anatomy, when Latin remained the language of scientific description. Its cognates in English include cornea (via Medieval Latin), unicorn, bicorn, and cornucopia.
How cornu is actually used
A technical term used almost exclusively in medical, anatomical, and zoological contexts; it appears in formal scientific writing rather than everyday speech. In classical texts it also denoted the curved end of a lyre or a horn-shaped drinking vessel, but modern English usage is overwhelmingly anatomical.
Easily confused with cornu
The cornea is the transparent front part of the eye, whereas a cornu is any horn-shaped projection of an organ such as the brain or spinal cord.
Corn is the cereal grain maize (or, in British usage, wheat and other grains), while cornu is a technical anatomical term for a horn-like structure.