early 13c., carione, "a dead body;" late 13c., "dead and putrefying flesh of animals;" from Anglo-French carogne (Old North French caroigne; Old French charogne "carrion, corpse" (12c., Modern French charogne), from Vulgar Latin *caronia "carcass" (source of Italian carogna, Spanish carroña "carrion"), from Latin caro "meat, flesh," originally "a piece of flesh," from PIE root *sker- (1) "to cut."
