Steve

Meaning of Steve

Steve is the brisk, no-nonsense short form of Stephen, the Greek Stéphanos meaning “crown” or “garland,” a title once bestowed on victors in ancient games and early Christian martyrs alike. In the United States the nickname began edging onto birth certificates around the turn of the 20th century, but its real coronation came after World War II: by 1960 it had broken into the national Top 50, helped along by silver-screen rebel Steve McQueen and a wave of easygoing post-war informality. Since then the name has slipped down the charts—hovering near rank 800 today—yet it retains a quietly industrious image, thanks to figures such as tech pioneer Steve Jobs, comedian Steve Martin, and athlete Steve Young. Pronounced steev (/stiːv/), the single-syllable profile gives it a clean snap, and the built-in familiarity spares a child from classroom spelling tutorials. While Steve no longer wears the laurel of trendiness, it has settled into that comfortable American category of “everyone knows one,” granting it a certain understated longevity that flashier newcomers can only envy.