STEVE KUNKEL

Short form of Stephen and Steven, also used as an independent given name. It is associated with the American film stars Steve McQueen (1930–80), noted for his ‘tough guy’ roles, and Steve Martin (b. 1945).

German: 1. from Middle High German kunkel ‘spindle’, ‘distaff’ (from Late Latin conicula, conucula diminutive of conus ‘cone’, ‘peg’), hence a metonymic occupational name for a maker of spindles or a spinner or alternatively a nickname for a tall thin person. 2. from a medieval German personal name, a pet form of Kuno (see Kuhn). 3. possibly from Low German kunkel ‘dugout’, ‘shelter’, or ‘deep water’, of uncertain application: perhaps a topographic name. 4. (Künkel): habitational name from a manor near Eisenack (Thuringia) or Erkelenz (Westphalia).