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kärna

Kärna is a Swedish noun with several related senses centered on the idea of a central part or seed. The primary meanings are: the core or central part of something; the edible seed or stone inside a fruit (for example äpplets kärna); and by extension the kernel in computing or in mathematics, i.e., the essential or underlying part of a system, function, or morphism. As a verb, kärna means to remove the core or seed from a fruit (to core), or more generally to remove the essential part from something.

In biology, the word appears in fixed compounds such as cellkärna, meaning the nucleus of a cell;

Etymology: kärna comes from Old Swedish and is cognate with Norwegian kjerne and Danish kerne; all reflect

in
everyday
language
one
may
speak
of
"kärnan
i
problemet"
to
refer
to
the
core
issue.
In
information
technology,
"kärna"
is
used
for
"kernel,"
for
example
operativsystemets
kärna
refers
to
the
kernel
of
an
operating
system.
In
mathematics
and
computer
science,
"kärna"
denotes
the
kernel
of
a
function
or
a
homomorphism.
a
Proto-Germanic
root
meaning
"core"
or
"seed."