History of the English language
g. WHOLESOME FOOD)
3. Old Norse heill (healthy) HAIL (as a greeting), TO HAIL (to greet, also: to hail a
taxi, also fig. to praise highly, to acclaim, as in "critics hailed her new book"),
WASSAIL; German "Heil!" not used any more ("Heil Hitler! and the associated shame
(just as with Reich)
Germanic *hailitho > Old English hælth HEALTH
Germanic *hailjan > Old English hælan TO HEAL
Germanic *hailagaz > Old English halig HOLY
Germanic *hailigon > Old English halgian to
consecrate, to bless,
halga sacred, a saint, Middle English halwe (see Prologue to the Canterbury Tales: ferne
halwes distant shrines metonymic from the meaning "saint"
TO HALLOW (as in "Our Father who art in heaven,hallowedbe thy name"), HALLOW
meaning "saint" (the latter is a French loan (ALL HALLOWS' DAY, HALLOWEEN).
The metonymic link between "being in one piece" and "being healthy" is fairly universal
(cf
annaabi.ee 
