The fruit 'date' comes from Old French, from Latin 'dactylus,' from Greek 'dáktylos' (finger) — the date was named for its finger-like shape, the same Greek word that gave us 'pterodactyl' (wing-finger) and the dactylic meter of poetry, and is entirely unrelated to 'date' the calendar term.
The sweet, dark-brown oval fruit of the date palm (Phoenix dactylifera), a staple food of the Middle East and North Africa since antiquity.
From Old French 'date,' from Latin 'dactylus,' from Greek 'dáktylos,' which meant both 'finger' and 'date fruit.' The date fruit was named for its supposed resemblance to a finger — the elongated fruit clusters hanging from the palm like spread fingers. This is completely unrelated to 'date' the calendar term (from Latin 'data,' given). The Greek word for finger also gave us 'pterodactyl' (wing-finger) and 'dactyl' the poetic meter (one long syllable
Greek 'dáktylos' (finger) is one of antiquity's most versatile words. It named the date fruit (finger-shaped), a poetic meter (dactyl: one long + two short syllables, like finger joints), and eventually the flying reptile (pterodactyl: wing-finger). All because the Greeks saw fingers everywhere they looked.