An Etymological Dictionary of the German Language/Annotated/Spilling

by Friedrich Kluge

Spilling, masculine, ‘large yellow plum,’ from the equivalent Middle High German spillinc, spinlinc (g), masculine. Probably connected, like Old High German spënala, Middle High German spënel, ‘pin,’ with a primitively Teutonic spī̆na-, ‘thorn,’ which is cognate with Latin spîna, ‘thorn’ (compare Italian spillo, ‘pin’).