How common is the surname Stephens?

144,646 people in the United States had the surname Stephens in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 2,134 Americans. It ranked 190th of 162,253 surnames.

Who is the most famous person named Stephens?

Toby Stephens, British actor, followed by John Lloyd Stephens.

Where is the surname Stephens most common?

Wikidata records people named Stephens in the United States, the United Kingdom and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and 1 other country.

How do you pronounce Stephens?

Stephens is /ˈstiːvənz/, 2 syllables.

Is the surname Stephens getting more or less common?

More common. 138,742 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 144,646 in 2010, up 4.3%.

Is Stephens also a first name?

Yes. Stephens is used as a first name as well as a surname; its first-name page has the meaning and how many babies were given it.

The surname Stephens

A patronymic surname, carried by 144,646 people in the United States.

Pronounced /ˈstiːvənz/ 2 syllables Soundex S315

Every surname held by 100 or more people in the 2010 US Census, most common on the left (162,253 in all). Stephens is more common than 99.9% of them.

Origin

From the given name Stephen + the patronymic suffix -s.

Stephens is a patronymic surname: formed from a father’s (or ancestor’s) given name.

Origin from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).

How common it is

2010 US Census

There were 144,646 people named Stephens in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 2,134 Americans. That is up 4.3% since 2000, when the Census counted 138,742.

#190

rank among US surnames

144,646

people in 2010

per 100,000 Americans

+4.3%

change since 2000 (was #181)

Rank	Surname	People	1 in
#181	Warren	152,147	2,029
#182	Mills	151,942	2,032
#183	Meyer	150,895	2,046
#184	Rice	149,500	2,065
#185	Schmidt	147,034	2,100
#186	Garza	147,005	2,100
#187	Daniels	146,570	2,106

Who is named Stephens

Race and Hispanic origin as people reported it in the 2010 Census

74% of people named Stephens identified as white (not Hispanic), 20% as Black (not Hispanic) and 2.5% as Hispanic or Latino (any race).

White (not Hispanic) 74%
Black (not Hispanic) 20%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 2.5%
Two or more races 2.1%
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.7%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.5%

Compare: most common surnames among white Americans.

Famous Stephenss

27 notable people on Wikidata, most written-about first

Toby Stephens
British actor, born 1969
John Lloyd Stephens
American explorer, writer, and diplomat (1805–1852)
Helen Stephens
Athletics competitor (1918–1994)
Harvey Stephens
American actor (1901-1986)
Laurie Stephens
American para-alpine skier, born 1984
William Dennison Stephens
American politician (1859–1944)
Frederic George Stephens
British art critic, in the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood (1827-1907)
Michael Stephens
American soccer player, born 1989
Ann S. Stephens
American writer (1810–1886)
Neil Stephens
Australian cyclist, born 1963
Darryl Stephens
American actor, born 1974
Lauren Stephens
American cyclist, born 1986

Notable Stephenss come mostly from the United States (22), the United Kingdom (2) and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland (2).

Spellings and sound-alikes

Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling

Surnames that sound like Stephens

Stephens has the Soundex code S315, the code US census indexes have used since the 1930s. Every surname with code S315.

Questions

Where does the surname Stephens come from?: From the given name Stephen + the patronymic suffix -s.
How common is the surname Stephens?: 144,646 people in the United States had the surname Stephens in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 2,134 Americans. It ranked 190th of 162,253 surnames.
What ethnicity is the surname Stephens?: In the 2010 Census, 74% of people named Stephens identified as white (not Hispanic), and 20% as Black (not Hispanic).
Who is the most famous person named Stephens?: Toby Stephens, British actor, followed by John Lloyd Stephens.
Where is the surname Stephens most common?: Wikidata records people named Stephens in the United States, the United Kingdom and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and 1 other country.
How do you pronounce Stephens?: Stephens is /ˈstiːvənz/, 2 syllables.
What type of surname is Stephens?: Stephens is a patronymic surname, formed from a father’s (or ancestor’s) given name.
Is the surname Stephens getting more or less common?: More common. 138,742 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 144,646 in 2010, up 4.3%.
Is Stephens also a first name?: Yes. Stephens is used as a first name as well as a surname; its first-name page has the meaning and how many babies were given it.