Stephen

Did you know?

A few things about Stephen you might not know, from US birth records and Wikipedia. Handy for convincing a partner, or a grandparent.

⭐ Famous Stephen

Stephen King

American novelist and writer (born 1947)

Choose Stephen and your child shares a first name with Stephen King, an American novelist and writer. A ready-made answer when someone asks “Stephen, like who?” Stephen King's Wikipedia article is available in 147 languages, a good sign of just how widely known they are.

Read about Stephen King on Wikipedia ↗ (opens in a new tab)

Photo: Kevin Payravi, CC BY-SA 4.0 (opens in a new tab), via Wikimedia Commons

• 👶How commonAbout 1 in every 2,061 baby boys born in the US in 2025 was named Stephen, 829 babies in all. In a typical school of 500 kids, your Stephen would very likely be the only one.
• 📜HistoryStephen has been in use since at least 1880, the first year US birth records were kept. That's 145 years of Stephens, and counting.
• 🏆Best yearIt was far more popular in 1951, when it ranked #19. Today it's #383, so it could be due a comeback.
• 📉Then vs nowStephen was 4.3× more common in 2000 than it is today. In 2000 it was given to about 1 in 475 baby boys; in 2025, about 1 in 2,061.
• 🍂TrendStephen has slipped 61 places over the last five years and now sits at #383. Good news if you want a familiar name that fewer kids will share.
• 📍Where it's lovedStephen is most popular in Pennsylvania, where it ranks #196, followed by West Virginia (#227) and Mississippi (#239). It's in the top 1,000 in 37 states.
• 💬MeaningIn Greek, Stephen means “crown”. Our records link it to English and Greek roots.

About the name Stephen

Stephen is a boy name of English and Greek origin meaning “crown”. It has 7 letters and 2 syllables, starting with S and ending in “-hen”. US birth records list Stephen for boys from 1880 to 2025, in 146 of those 146 years. Its best year was 1951, when it ranked #19 among boy names. In 2025 it ranked #383, with 829 babies.

Origin:English namesGreek names