1550s, "estate manager's office," from French factorie (15c.), from Late Latin factorium "office for agents ('factors')," also "oil press, mill," from Latin factor "doer, maker," agent noun from past-participle stem of facere "to do" (from PIE root *dhe- "to set, put"). From 1580s as "establishment of merchants and factors in a foreign place." Sense of "building for making goods" is first attested 1610s. Factory farm is attested from 1890.
"manufactured in a factory prior to assembly on site," 1937, short for prefabricated "made by assembling large components made elsewhere," originally of housing (see prefabricate). As a noun, "prefabricated housing," from 1942.
also honkey, derogatory word for "white person," by 1967, African-American vernacular, of unknown origin, perhaps from late 19c. hunky "East-Central European immigrant," which probably is a colloquial shortening of Hungarian (compare hunk (n.2)). Honky in the sense of "factory hand" is attested by 1946 in blues slang. A connection to honky-tonk also is possible.
