An Etymological Dictionary of the German Language/Annotated/Hummel

by Friedrich Kluge

Hummel, feminine, ‘humble-bee, drone,’ from the equivalent Middle High German hummel, humbel, Old High German humbal, masculine; compare Dutch hommel, ‘drone,’ Middle English humbel-bee, English humble-bee (Anglo-Saxon *humbol-beó). The origin of the cognates is obscure; the derivation from Middle High German hummen, ‘to hum,’ is not satisfactory, since the soft labial in Old High German humbal must be archaic and original.