Whistling arrows make a sound similar to a whistle when shot. Initially, they were used to indicate the intended target or the direction of fire to the soldiers.

The Huns were a people who lived in the Mongolian steppes. Horn bows and whistling arrows were the main weapons of this nomadic warrior tribe. The whistling arrows consisted of a shaft with an eyelet to string the bow, fletching and an arrowhead made of bronze, iron or bone.

The Huns were a nomadic people who used composite recurve bows. They were convenient to use even at a gallop.

The whistle produced by such an arrow stood out among all other sounds. It was supposed to be easily recognizable at a sufficiently large distance with strong winds and noise from a large crowd of people or the sounds of battle. When a special nozzle was attached to the arrow, it did not whistle, but rather made a hissing sound.

There were three types of whistling arrows:

All commanders of the Hun archers kept a whistling arrow in their quivers. It was used for the following reasons:

In general, the arrows were primarily used as a signal. Subsequently, such arrows were used by Japanese and Chinese archers.

According to Chinese sources, the whistling arrow was invented by Modu, or Meta Khan, himself (circa 234 — 174 BC). He was the founder of the Xiongnu Empire and its ruler (chanyu).