Stephen

For other uses, see Stephen (disambiguation).

"Steve" redirects here. For the film, see Steve (film).

"Stephanus" redirects here. For the translator of Plato, see Henri Estienne.

Stephen
Saint Stephen (detail) by Giacomo Cavedone Saint Stephen was the first martyred saint in the Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches.
Gender	Male
Origin
Word/name	Greek
Meaning	Wreath, Crown, Honour, Reward, Royalty (but not King)
Other names
Nickname(s)	Steve, Stevie
Derived	Στέφανος (Stephanos)
Related names	Steve, Steven, Stevie, Stefan, Stefano, Stephan, Stefani, Fen, Steph, Stephanie, Stevo, Stanley

Stephen or Steven /ˈstiːvən/ is a masculine first name, derived from the Greek name Στέφανος (Stéfanos), in turn from the Greek word "στέφανος", meaning "wreath, crown, honour, reward", literally "that which surrounds or encompasses". In ancient Greece, a wreath was given to the winner of a contest (from which the crown, symbol of rulers derived). The use of the noun was first recorded in Homer's Iliad. The name is significant to Christians: according to the Book of Acts in the New Testament, Saint Stephen was a deacon who was stoned to death and is regarded as the first Christian martyr. The name has many variants, which include Stephan, Stevan, Stefan and Stevon.

In Middle English, the name Stephen or Stephan was pronounced as a bi-syllabic word — Step-hen or Step-han — much like a Scandinavian surname. Steve was pronounced as it is in Modern English. This etymological usage began a decline in the mid-19th century.

Steve is the common short form, while various diminutives such as Stevie and Ste are also used. Many family names are derived from Stephen: the most common are Stephens/Stevens and Stephenson/Stevenson (others include Stephen, Stephan, Staphan, Stefan, Stevin and Stever).

The name was ranked 201 in the United States in 2009, according to the Social Security Administration. The name reached its peak popularity in 1951 but remained very common through the mid-1990s, when popularity started to decrease in the United States.

In the United Kingdom, it peaked during the 1950s and 1960s as one of the top ten male first names (ranking third in 1954) but had fallen to twentieth by 1984 and had fallen out of the top one hundred by 2002.

The female version of the name is Stephanie.

For Stephen as a surname see Stephen (surname), Stephenson and Stevenson.

List of alternatives

• Esthapannose (Malayalam)
• Estepan, Estebe, Extiban, Ixtebe (Basque)
• Estevan (old Spanish)
• Esteban (Spanish, Filipino, Basque)
• Estêvão (Portuguese)
• Esteve (Catalan)
• Estevo (Galician)
• Étienne ("Estienne" is an archaic spelling), Stéphane, Stefane, Stephanne (French)
• Êtiên (Vietnamese)
• İstefanos, Stefan (Turkish)
• İstfan, Stepan (Azeri)
• István (Hungarian)
• Kepano, Kiwini (Hawaiian)
• Stefan, Shtjefën, Fan, Sven (Albanian language)
• Sitiveni (Tongan, Fijian)
• Staffan, Stefan (Swedish)
• Steafán, Stíofán, Stiofán (Irish)
• Stefán (Icelandic)
• Stefano (Esperanto)
• Stefano (Italian)
• Ștefan, Ștefăniță, Ștefănel, Ștefănuț (Romanian)
• Štefan (Slovak)
• Štefan (Slovene)
• Stefan, Stefaan, Stefanus, Steven, Stephan (Afrikaans, Dutch)
• Stefan, Stephan, Steffen (German)
• Stefan, Szczepan (Polish)
• Steffan, Stifyn, Stîfyn (Welsh)
• Steffen (Norwegian)
• Steffen, Stephen, Stefan, Stephan (Danish)
• Štěpán (Czech)
• Stefanus, Stephanus (Latin)
• Stepans, Stepons (Latvian)
• Steponas, Stepas (Lithuanian)
• Stefan, Steven (Breton)
• Stiefnu (Maltese)
• Stìobhan, Stìophan, Stèaphan (Scottish Gaelic)
• Stjepan, Stipan, Stipe, Stipo, Stipa, Štef, Stevko, Stevo (Croatian)
• Tapani, Teppana, Teppo (Finnish)
• Tehvan (Estonian)
• Tipene (Māori)
• Istifanous, إستفانوس, ستيف, ستيفن, اسطفان , Istifaan ستيفن, Stiifan (Arabic)
• استیون (Estiven; Persian)
• סטיבן (Stiven; Hebrew)
• Στέφανος (Stephanos, Stefanos, Stephanas, Stepfan, Stephano, Stephanus Greek)
• Степан, Стівен, Стефан (Stepan, Stiven, Stefan, Ukrainian; Стефан [Stefan] is a more western Ukrainian usage)
• Стефан (Stefan), diminutive: Чефо (Chefo), Стефчо (Stefcho), Стефо (Stefo), (Bulgarian)
• Стефан/Stefan, Стеван/Stevan, Степан/Stepan, Стјепaн/Stjepan, Шћепан/Šćepan, Стево/Stevo, Стијепо/Stijepo, Шћепо/Šćepo, Стевица/Stevica (Serbian)
• Стефан/Stefan, Стеван/Stevan, Шћепан/Šćepan (Montenegrin)
• Стефан/Stefan, Стеван/Stevan, Стево/Stevo, Стефче/Stefche (Macedonian)
• Степан/Stepan, Stepa, Stepane, Stepanya, Stepka, Stipan (Russian, Ukrainian, Belarusian)
• Ычтапан/Içtapan (Tatar)
• Ստեփանոս, Ստեփան, (Stepʿan, Stepanos, Stepan, Stepʿani, Stepʿanicʿ, Stepʿanov Armenian)
• სტეფანე (Stepane, Georgian)
• ஸ்டீபன், சுதீபன் (Sṭīpan,Sudeipan, Tamil)
• スティーブン、スティーブ、スティーヴン (Stiibun, Stiibu, Stiivun, Sutīvun, Sutībun; Japanese)
• 斯蒂芬, 史蒂芬 (Sidifen, Shidifen; Mandarin Chinese)
• 스티븐 (Seutibeun; Korean)
• સ્ટીફન (Sṭīphana; Gujarati)
• स्टीफन (Sṭīphana; Hindi)
• ಸ್ಟೀಫನ್ (Sṭīphan; Kannada)
• स्टीफन (Sṭīphana; Marathi)
• Стефен (Styefyen; Mongolian)
• स्टीफन (Sṭīphana; Nepali)
• ਸਟੀਫਨ (Saṭīphana; Punjabi)
• స్టీఫెన్ (Sṭīphen; Telugu)
• สตีเฟ่น (S̄tīfèn; Thai)
• اسٹیفن (Urdu)
• סטעפאנוסן (Stʻpʼnwsn; Yiddish)
• Eapen (Malayalam)
• Steephan (South Indian)
• Steeve or Stephane and Stephanie for female (Québec)
• İstfan, Stepan (Azeri)
• Steffeni, Stefani, Stiifaat (Greenlandic)
• ᔅᑏᕕᓐ (Stiifin; Inuktitut)
• Ecen (Wolof)
• Etiiviuq (Yup'ik)
• uStefanu (Zulu)

Notable people known by the name Stephen

Note: to find people with the given name Stephen who are also known by another name, see All pages beginning with "Stephen".

Saints

• Saint Stephen (died c. 35), the first martyr (Protomartyr) of the Christian church
• Stephen, one of the pair of Christian saints and martyrs Socrates and Stephen
• Stephen the Younger (ca. 715–765), Byzantine iconodule martyr
• Stephen I of Hungary (c. 965–1038), canonized in 1083
• Stephen of Obazine (1085–1154), Cistercian, first Abbot of Obazine Abbey, France
• Stephen Harding (died 1134), English, one of the founders of the Cistercian Order
• Stephen III of Moldavia or Stephen the Great and Holy (c.1432–1504), son of Bogdan II

Royalty

• Stephen of Armenia (died 1165), marshal, son of Leo I
• Stephen of England or Stephen of Blois (c.1096–1154), grandson of William the Conqueror
• Stephen I of Hungary (c. 965–1038), Grand Prince of the Magyars, first king of Hungary
• Stephen II of Hungary (1101–1131), elder son of King Coloman
• Stephen III of Hungary (1147–1172), eldest son of King Geza II
• Stephen IV of Hungary (c.1133–1165), third son of King Béla II
• Stephen V of Hungary (1239–1272), elder son of King Béla IV
• Stephen I of Moldavia (1394–1399), son of Costea
• Stephen II of Moldavia (died 1447), prince, son of Alexandru cel Bun
• Stephen III of Moldavia or Stephen the Great and Holy (c.1432–1504), son of Bogdan II
• Stephen Báthory of Poland (1533–1586), prince of Transylvania, king consort of Poland, grand duke consort of Lithuania
• Stefan Nemanja or Stefan I, Nemanja (c.1109–1199), grand prince of Serb state of Raška
• Stefan Nemanjić or Stefan II, Nemanja (1176–1228), proclaimed king of Serbia in 1217
• Stefan Radoslav of Serbia (c.1192-c.1235), king of Serbia, son of Nemanjić
• Stefan Vladislav I of Serbia (died after 1264), son of Stefan Nemanjić
• Stephen Uroš I of Serbia (died 1277), son of Stefan Nemanjić
• Stefan Dragutin (died 1316), son of Stefan Uroš I
• Stefan Uroš II Milutin of Serbia (1282–1321)
• Stefan Vladislav II of Syrmia (1321-c.1325)
• Stefan Uroš III Dečanski of Serbia (1321–1331)
• Stefan Uroš IV Dušan of Serbia (Dušan the Mighty) (1331–1355), king 1331–1346; tsar 1346–1355
• Stefan Uroš V of Serbia (Uroš the Weak) (1355–1371), tsar
• Stefan Lazarević (1374–1427), Serbian despot
• Stefan I Crnojević (1426–1465), lord of Zeta (Montenegro) 1451–1465
• Stefan II Crnojević, lord of Zeta (Montenegro) 1496–1499
• Stjepan Držislav of Croatia (died 997), king 969–997
• Stjepan I of Croatia (died 1058), king 1030–1058
• Stjepan II of Croatia (died 1091), king 1089–1091, last member of the Trpimirović dynasty
• Ivan Stephen of Bulgaria (died after 1343), tsar 1330–1331

Church figures (Stephen or Stephanus)

• Pope Stephen I (died 257), Bishop of Rome from 254–257
• Pope-elect Stephen (died 752), elected Pope but died before being ordained
• Pope Stephen II (died 757), pope from 752–757
• Pope Stephen III (720–772), pope from 768–772
• Pope Stephen IV (died 817), pope from 816–817
• Pope Stephen V (died 891), pope from 885–891
• Pope Stephen VI (died 897), pope from 896–897
• Pope Stephen VII (died 931), pope from 929–931
• Pope Stephen VIII (died 942), German, pope from 939–942
• Pope Stephen IX (c. 1020–1058), pope from 1057–1058
• Esteban, bishop of Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Zaragoza, Spain, from 1128 to 1130
• Ecumenical Patriarch Stephen I of Constantinople (867–893), patriarch from 886 to 893
• Ecumenical Patriarch Stephen II of Constantinople, from Amasea, patriarch from 925 to 928
• Stephanus I, Archbishop of Aquileia, Italy, c. 515
• Stephanus II, Patriarch of Grado, Italy, c. 670
• Stefan (Archbishop of Uppsala), Sweden, (before 1150–1185), first archbishop from 1164 to 1185

Other

• Stephen Adekolu (born 1989), Canadian football player
• Stephen F. Austin (1793–1836), impresario who settled Texas
• Stephen Baldwin (born 1966), American actor
• Stephen Vincent Benét (1898–1943), American author
• Stephen Chow (born 1962), Hong Kong actor, comedian and director
• Stephen Cochran (born 1979), American country music singer/songwriter
• Stephen Colbert (born 1964), American political satirist, comedian, and television host
• Stephen Corry, Director of the British indigenous rights organisation Survival International
• Stephen Costello (born 1981), American opera singer
• Stephen Crane (1871–1900), American novelist and journalist
• Steven Dehler (born 1987), American model
• Stephen Dorff (born 1973), American actor
• Stephen Farrelly (aka Sheamus) (born 1978), Irish professional wrestler and actor
• Stephen Curry (basketball) (born 1988), American basketball player
• Stephen Foster (1826–1864), known as the "Father of American music"
• Stephen Fry (born 1957), British actor, comedian, and television presenter
• Steve Gonzalez (born 1980), American soccer player
• Steve Gonzalez (American football) (born 1981), American football player
• Stephen Goodin (born 1988), American football player
• Stephen Jay Gould (1941–2002), American paleontologist/biologist
• Stephen Victor Graham, 18th Governor of American Samoa
• Stephen Harper (born 1959), 22nd Prime Minister of Canada (2006-2015)
• Stephen Hawking (born 1942), British theoretical physicist
• Stephen Hawkins (born 1971), Australian rower
• Stephen Hendry (born 1969), British snooker player
• Stephen Kenyon (born 1951), English long-distance runner
• Stephen Kosgei Kibet (born 1986), Kenyan half marathon runner
• Stephen King (born 1947), American horror fiction and screenplay writer
• Stephen Maguire (born 1981), British snooker player
• Stephen Malkmus (born 1966), indie rock musician
• Stephen Joseph McGroarty (1830–1870), Irish American soldier
• Stephen Merchant (born 1974), British writer, director, radio presenter, and actor
• Stephen Milligan (1948–1994), British politician and journalist
• Stephen Campbell Moore (born 1979), British actor
• Stephen Morris (born 1957), British drummer and musician
• Stephen Sackur (born 1964), British BBC journalist
• Stephen C. Spiteri (born 1963), Maltese military historian
• Stephen Timms (born 1955), British politician
• Stephen Wallem (born 1968), American theater/television actor and singer
• Steve Allen (1921–2000), American television personality, musician, composer, comedian, and writer.
• Steve Backshall (born 1973), English Naturalist, writer, and television presenter of Deadly 60
• Steve Ballmer (born 1956), former CEO of Microsoft and current owner of the Los Angeles Clippers
• Steve Belles (born 1966), American football player
• Steve Beshear (born 1944), American attorney and politician
• Steve Birnbaum (born 1991), Major League Soccer player
• Steve Burns (born 1973), American entertainer
• Steve Cardenas (born 1974), American martial artist and retired actor
• Steve Case, founder of America Online
• Steve Chappell, American aerospace engineer, mountain climber and aquanaut
• Steve Coleman (born 1956), American saxophonist
• Steve Coleman (American football) (born 1950), American football player
• Steve Davis (born 1957), British snooker player
• Steve Dubinsky (born 1970), Canadian NHL center
• Steve Dublanica (born 1968), American author and blogger
• Steve Fossett (1944–2007), American businessman
• Steve Griffin (born 1964), American football player
• Steve Handelsman (born 1948), American journalist
• Steve Irwin (1962–2006), Australian TV personality, nicknamed "The Crocodile Hunter"
• Steve Jobs (1955–2011), American co-founder of Apple Inc
• Steve Kearns (born 1956), Canadian football player
• Steve Madden (born 1958), Founder and former CEO of Steve Madden Ltd., a footwear company.
• Steve Mandanda (born 1985), French international footballer
• Steve Martin (born 1945), American comedian
• Steve Matai (born 1984), New Zealand Rugby League player
• Steve McQueen (1930–1980), American actor
• Steve Nash (born 1974), Canadian retired basketball player
• Steve Nemeth (born 1967), Canadian ice hockey player
• Steve Nemeth (gridiron football) (1922–1998), American player of gridiron football
• Steve Rodehutskors (1963–2007), Canadian football player
• Steve Squyres (born 1957), American astronomer
• Steve Stone (disambiguation)
• Steve Winwood (born 1948), English singer
• Steve Wozniak (born 1950), American co-founder of Apple Inc
• Steve Yeager (born 1948), American major league baseball catcher
• Steve Zatylny, Canadian football player
• Steven Beitashour, Iranian footballer
• Steven Best (born 1955), American activist and presenter
• Steven Blane, American Jewish Universalist rabbi
• Steven Berk (born 1949), American physician and author
• Steven Francis "Steve" Cantwell (born 1986), American mixed martial arts fighter
• Steven Duren (born 1956) Also known as Blackie Lawless. American singer-songwriter
• Steven Gerrard (born 1980), English footballer
• Steven Herzberg (born 1957), English-born Australian cricketer
• Steven W. Mosher (born 1948), American social scientist and author
• Steven Pinker (born 1954), American cognitive scientist and popular science author
• Steven Seagal (born 1952), American actor
• Steven Shields (born 1972), Canadian NHL goalie
• Steven Spielberg (born 1946), American film director
• Steven Tyler (born 1948), American singer songwriter and Aerosmith frontman
• Steven Wright (born 1955), American comedian, actor, writer, and film producer
• Stevie Ray Vaughan (1954–1990), American guitarist, singer and songwriter
• Stevie Wonder (born 1950), American multi-instrumentalist and singer-songwriter
• Stephanus of Byzantium, 6th century author of Ethnica, a geographical dictionary
• Stephanus, pupil of Pasiteles (fl. 33 BCE) sculptor in the time of Caesar Augustus
• Stefan Mappus (born 1966), German politician
• Stefan Molyneux (born 1966), Anglo-Irish/Canadian blogger
• Stefan Burnett, lead vocals in hip-hop group Death Grips

Fictional characters

• Stephen, an engine based on Stephenson's Rocket in the TV series Thomas and Friends.
• Steven (Alice Cooper character)
• Steve, a main character in the TV series Blue's Clues
• Steve, also known as Steve the Miner, a character in the video game Minecraft
• Steve Austin, the lead character in the TV series The Six Million Dollar Man
• Stephen Dedalus, a character in the novels A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man and Ulysses by James Joyce
• Stephen Falken, a character in the film WarGames
• Steven Fraser, a character in the film Cyberbully
• Steve Frazelli, a character in the film The Italian Job
• Steve Freeling, a character in the films Poltergeist and Poltergeist II: The Other Side
• Steven Hyde, a character in the TV series That '70s Show
• Steve McDonald, a character in the TV series Coronation Street
• Steven Quartz Universe, a character in the TV series Steven Universe
• Stevie Ray Botwin, a character in the TV series Weeds
• Steve Rogers, the civilian alias of Captain America
• Stefan Salvatore, a character in the TV series The Vampire Diaries
• Steve Sanders, a character in the TV series Beverly Hills 90210
• Stephen Strange, also known as Doctor Strange, the Sorcerer Supreme in the Marvel Universe
• Steven Stone, English translation of the character "Daigo" in the Pokémon game Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire
• Steve Urkel or Stefan Urquelle, a character in the TV series Family Matters
• Stephen Wilkins, a character in the film Trick 'r Treat

Popularity

The spelling "Stephen" reached its peak of popularity in the United States in the period 1949–1951, when it was the 19th most popular name for newborn boys. It stayed in the top 100 boys' names from 1936 through 2000, and for most years between 1897 and 1921. In 2008 it was the 192nd most common name for boys.

The spelling "Steven" reached its peak of popularity in the United States in the period 1955–1961, when it was the 10th most popular name for newborn boys. It stayed in the top 100 boys' names from 1941 through 2007. In 2008 it was the 104th most popular name for boys. Before the 20th century, the "Steven" spelling was heavily outweighed by "Stephen", never reaching above 391st.

In England and Wales, neither "Stephen" nor "Steven" was among the top 100 names for newborn boys in 2003–2007. In Scotland, "Steven" and "Stephen" were the 8th and 10th most popular names for newborn boys in 1975, but were not in the top ten in 1900, 1950 or 2000. "Stephen" was 68th in 1900, and 46th in 1950, while "Steven" was not in the top 100 either year. Neither spelling was in the top 100 names for newborn boys in Scotland in 2008. Neither "Stephen" nor "Steven" was among top 25 most popular baby boys' names in Ireland in 2006 or 2007.