An Etymological Dictionary of the German Language/Elfenbein
Elfenbein, n., from the equiv. MidHG. hëlfenbein, OHG. hëlfanbein, n., ‘ivory,’ but based anew on Elefant. How the word came b the initial h (AS. ylpendbân), which is also ound in MidHG. and OHG. hëlfant (also less frequently ëlfant, equiv. to AS. ylpend) ‘elephant,’ is not known. It is possible that the excrescent h at the beginning is due to the word being connected with helfen (in the Middle Ages special healing qualities were ascribed to ivory). Perhaps the word was obtained not from Romance, but from the East, from Byzantium (Gr. ἐλέφαντ-); for the word would probably correspond to Lat. (ebur) eboreus had it been introduced into Ger. through a Romance medium. Comp. Ital. avorio, Fr. ivoire, ‘ivory,’ Du. voor, E. ivory (yet also Span. marfil, Port. marfim). — With regard to the meaning of the second part of the compound (Bein, lit. ‘bone’), see Bein.