honeyyoudaoicibaDictYouDict[honey 词源字典]
honey: [OE] Our Indo-European ancestors were very fond of honey, and their word for it, based on *melit-, has come down to many modern European languages, such as French and Spanish miel, Italian miele, and Welsh mel (it also contributed to English mellifluous, mildew, and molasses). The Germanic languages, however, have not persisted with it.

Their words for ‘honey’ (which also include German honig, Dutch honing, Swedish honung, and Danish honning) come from a prehistoric West and North Germanic *khunagom or *khunanggom. This may originally have described the colour of honey; it has been linked with Greek knēkós ‘pale yellow’ and Sanskrit kāncana- ‘golden’.
[honey etymology, honey origin, 英语词源]
honey (n.)youdaoicibaDictYouDict
Old English hunig, from Proto-Germanic *hunagam- (cognates: Old Norse hunang, Swedish honung, Old Saxon huneg, Old Frisian hunig, Middle Dutch honich, Dutch honig, Old High German honang, German Honig "honey"); perhaps from PIE *k(e)neko- "yellow, golden" (cognates: Sanskrit kancanum, Welsh canecon "gold"). The more common Indo-European word is represented by Gothic miliþ (from PIE *melith "honey;" see Melissa). A term of endearment from at least mid-14c. Meaning "anything good of its kind" is 1888, American English.
honey (v.)youdaoicibaDictYouDict
mid-14c., from honey (n.). Related: Honeyed; honeying.