A stick with a sharp pointed hook or spike at the end, used primarily by elephant handlers and mahouts in South Asia to guide and control elephants.
From Hindi "ānkus" or Sanskrit "aṅkuśa," meaning a goad or hook. The word entered English through colonial Indian literature and accounts of elephant management in Indian kingdoms and the British Raj.
An ankus is actually a pretty sophisticated tool—experienced mahouts use it with incredible finesse to communicate with elephants through subtle signals rather than pain, and elephants respond to the tool's use like it's a language.
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