Helllllllp—I fell down an etymological rabbit hole after wondering whether the diminutive "-kin" suffix on "pumpkin" meant there was a larger squash known as a "pump." @mashedradish ivacheung.com/2016/01/fact-c…
There was not. "Pumpkin" comes from "pumpion" (or "pompion") + "-kin". A pompion is just a regular squash or melon. It comes from the French "pompon."
Whether "pompom" and "pompion" are related is under dispute: some think "pompom" comes from "pomp" (of "…and circumstance" fame). littre.org/definition/pom…
Why people started using the diminutive "-kin" is a bit of a mystery, but it was part of a cutesy-ing pattern: some began calling the pompion a "pompillion"—adding syllables just for kicks. Or, as the OED says, "Apparently an arbitrary alteration."
As @mashedradish points out in this post, pumpkins are etymologically related to apples:
But "apples" used to refer to any kind of tree fruit—not just the fruit we now know as apples.
But "apples" used to refer to any kind of tree fruit—not just the fruit we now know as apples.
From the same root that gave us French "pomme" and "pumpkin," we also (probably) got "pampelmoes" (which became French "pamplemousse"—grapefruit), "pomelo," and "pomegranate" (from French "pomme granade").
"Pepita" is another diminutive of the "pepō" root, which makes sense: a seed is a wee squash in a way. Also compare "pippin" and "pip"—more indirect apple connections!
OK, OK—last diminutive of the day, and then I should, uh, get back [*cough*] to work.
"Courgette" = little "courge," which comes from Old French "cohourde" (which came from Latin "cŭcŭrbĭta"), which became both "courge" and "gourde" in French.
"Courgette" = little "courge," which comes from Old French "cohourde" (which came from Latin "cŭcŭrbĭta"), which became both "courge" and "gourde" in French.
"Courge" mostly applies to squash that we eat, and in English we use "gourd" to refer to squash that we use as vessels or as decorations.
wondering about pumpkins 
