Stephen
Boy nameStephen has been given to 867,669 babies in the U.S. since 1880. It peaked in 1952 and currently ranks #383 for boys (2025).
Meaning & origin /ˈstiːvən/
From Latin Stephanus, from Ancient Greek Στέφανος (Stéphanos), from στέφανος (stéphanos, “crown, wreath”), from στέφω (stéphō, “to put round, to surround”). From *stegʷʰ- (“to enlace”) + -νος (-nos, suffix forming an adjective or noun) from Proto-Indo-European *-nós (suffix forming a verbal adjective from a verb stem).
Origin: Ancient Greek
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Popularity over time births per year, 1880–2025
Total babies
867,669
Peak year
1952 (23,082 babies)
Rank in 2025
#383 for boys
First recorded
1880
10-year trend
▼ -45%
Gender split
0% girls / 100% boys
Famous people named Stephen
Stephen Hawking
British theoretical physicist, cosmologist and author (1942–2018)
Stephen King
American novelist and writer (born 1947)
Grover Cleveland
President of the United States (1885–89; 1893–97)
Stephen Harper
22nd prime minister of Canada from 2006 to 2015
Notability data from Wikidata (CC0).
Names with a similar vibe
Same primary gender, peaked around the same years, and roughly as common as Stephen.
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