The first written appearance of the generic use of the word spackle was around 1940. The product name was likely derived from the German word , meaning "putty knife" or "filler."
Other possible origins include Russian  (tr. ; to fill holes with putty or caulk), Polish  (spatula or putty knife), and Yiddish  (to fill in small holes in plaster), all of which are likely derived from German.