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Stephen or Steven is a common English first name. It is particularly significant to
Christians Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρ� ...
, as it belonged to
Saint Stephen Stephen ( grc-gre, Στέφανος ''Stéphanos'', meaning "wreath, crown" and by extension "reward, honor, renown, fame", often given as a title rather than as a name; c. 5 – c. 34 AD) is traditionally venerated as the protomartyr or first ...
( grc-gre, Στέφανος ), an early disciple and
deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian churches, such as the Catholic Chur ...
who, according to the
Book of Acts The Acts of the Apostles ( grc-koi, Πράξεις Ἀποστόλων, ''Práxeis Apostólōn''; la, Actūs Apostolōrum) is the fifth book of the New Testament; it tells of the founding of the Christian Church and the spread of its message ...
, was stoned to death; he is widely regarded as the first
martyr A martyr (, ''mártys'', "witness", or , ''marturia'', stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an externa ...
(or "
protomartyr A protomartyr (Koine Greek, ''πρότος'' ''prótos'' "first" + ''μάρτυρας'' ''mártyras'' "martyr") is the first Christian martyr in a country or among a particular group, such as a religious order. Similarly, the phrase the Protom ...
") of the
Christian Church In ecclesiology, the Christian Church is what different Christian denominations conceive of as being the true body of Christians or the original institution established by Jesus. "Christian Church" has also been used in academia as a synonym fo ...
. In English, Stephen is most commonly pronounced as ' (). The name, in both the forms Stephen and Steven, is often shortened to
Steve ''yes'Steve is a masculine given name, usually a short form (hypocorism) of Steven or Stephen Notable people with the name include: steve jops * Steve Abbott (disambiguation), several people * Steve Adams (disambiguation), several people * Steve ...
or Stevie. The spelling as Stephen can also be pronounced which is from the Greek original version, Stephanos. In English, the female version of the name is Stephanie. Many surnames are derived from the first name, including Stephens, Stevens, Stephenson, and Stevenson, all of which mean "Stephen's (son)". In modern times the name has sometimes been given with intentionally non-standard spelling, such as Stevan or Stevon. A common variant of the name used in English is Stephan ; related names that have found some currency or significance in English include Stefan (pronounced or in English), Esteban (often pronounced ), and the
Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...
an Stephano ().


Origins

The name "Stephen" (and its common variant "Steven") is derived from
Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...
(), a first name from the Greek word (), meaning 'wreath, crown' and by extension 'reward, honor, renown, fame', from the verb (), 'to encircle, to wreathe'. In
Ancient Greece Ancient Greece ( el, Ἑλλάς, Hellás) was a northeastern Mediterranean civilization, existing from the Greek Dark Ages of the 12th–9th centuries BC to the end of classical antiquity ( AD 600), that comprised a loose collection of cu ...
, crowning wreaths (such as
laurel wreath A laurel wreath is a round wreath made of connected branches and leaves of the bay laurel (), an aromatic broadleaf evergreen, or later from spineless butcher's broom ('' Ruscus hypoglossum'') or cherry laurel ('' Prunus laurocerasus''). It is ...
s) were given to the winners of contests. Originally, as the verb suggests, the noun had a more general meaning of any "circle"—including a circle of people, a circling wall around a city, and, in its earliest recorded use, the circle of a fight, which is found in the
Iliad The ''Iliad'' (; grc, Ἰλιάς, Iliás, ; "a poem about Ilium") is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. It is one of the oldest extant works of literature still widely read by modern audiences. As with the ''Ody ...
of
Homer Homer (; grc, Ὅμηρος , ''Hómēros'') (born ) was a Greek poet who is credited as the author of the ''Iliad'' and the ''Odyssey'', two epic poems that are foundational works of ancient Greek literature. Homer is considered one of the ...
.


In other languages

Like all biblical names, Stephen has forms in other world languages. Among them are: * '' Esteban'' (Spanish, Filipino,
Basque Basque may refer to: * Basques, an ethnic group of Spain and France * Basque language, their language Places * Basque Country (greater region), the homeland of the Basque people with parts in both Spain and France * Basque Country (autonomous co ...
) * ''Estepan'', ''Estebe'', ''Extiban'' * ''Estebão '' (
Old Portuguese Galician-Portuguese ( gl, galego-portugués or ', pt, galego-português or ), also known as Old Portuguese or as Medieval Galician when referring to the history of each modern language, was a West Iberian Romance language spoken in the Middle ...
) * ''Ixtebe'' (
Basque Basque may refer to: * Basques, an ethnic group of Spain and France * Basque language, their language Places * Basque Country (greater region), the homeland of the Basque people with parts in both Spain and France * Basque Country (autonomous co ...
) * ''Estevan'' (
Old Spanish Old Spanish, also known as Old Castilian ( es, castellano antiguo; osp, romance castellano ), or Medieval Spanish ( es, español medieval), was originally a dialect of Vulgar Latin spoken in the former provinces of the Roman Empire that provided ...
) * ''Estêvão'' (
Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...
) * ''Esteve'' (
Catalan Catalan may refer to: Catalonia From, or related to Catalonia: * Catalan language, a Romance language * Catalans, an ethnic group formed by the people from, or with origins in, Northern or southern Catalonia Places * 13178 Catalan, asteroid #1 ...
) * ''Estevo'' ( Galician) * ''
Étienne Étienne, a French analog of Stephen or Steven, is a masculine given name. An archaic variant of the name, prevalent up to the mid-17th century, is Estienne. Étienne, Etienne, Ettiene or Ettienne may refer to: People Scientists and inventors ...
'' (" Estienne" is an archaic spelling), '' Stéphan'', ''
Stéphane Stéphane is a male French given name an equivalent of Stephen/Steven. Notable people with this given name include: * Stéphane Adam (born 1969), French footballer *Stéphane Agbre Dasse (born 1989), Burkinabé football player *Stéphane Allagnon, ...
'', ''
Stéphen Stéphen is a French masculine given name. It may refer to: * Stéphen Boyer (born 1996), French volleyball player * Stéphen Chauvet (1885–1950), French writer *Stéphen Drouin (born 1984), French footballer * Stéphen Liégeard (1830–1925), F ...
'', ''Stéfane'', ''Stéphanne'' (
French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
) * ''İstefanos'', ''Stefan'' ( Turkish) * ''İstfan'', ''Stepan'' (
Azeri Azerbaijanis (; az, Azərbaycanlılar, ), Azeris ( az, Azərilər, ), or Azerbaijani Turks ( az, Azərbaycan Türkləri, ) are a Turkic people living mainly in northwestern Iran and the Republic of Azerbaijan. They are the second-most nume ...
) * ''
István István () is a Hungarian language equivalent of the name Stephen or Stefan. It may refer to: People with the given name Nobles, palatines and judges royal * Stephen I of Hungary (c. 975–1038), last grand prince of the Hungarians and first ...
'', ''Stefán, Csépán'' ( Hungarian) * ''Stefan'', ''Shtjefën'', ''Fan'', ''Sven'' (
Albanian language Albanian ( endonym: or ) is an Indo-European language and an independent branch of that family of languages. It is spoken by the Albanians in the Balkans and by the Albanian diaspora, which is generally concentrated in the Americas, Eur ...
) * '' Staffan'', ''Stefan'', ''
Sven Sven (in Danish language, Danish and Norwegian language, Norwegian, also Svend and also in Norwegian most commonly Svein) is a Scandinavian first name which is also used in the Low Countries and German-speaking countries. The name itself is Old ...
'' (
Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...
) * ''Steabhán'', ''Stíofán'', ''Stiofán'' (
Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...
) * ''
Stefán Stefán is a common first name in Iceland. According to Icelandic custom, people are generally referred to by first and middle names and patronyms are used if disambiguation is required. ''Stefán'' is the Icelandic version of the Greek name Step ...
'' ( Icelandic) * ''Stefano'' (
Esperanto Esperanto ( or ) is the world's most widely spoken constructed international auxiliary language. Created by the Warsaw-based ophthalmologist L. L. Zamenhof in 1887, it was intended to be a universal second language for international communic ...
) * '' Stefano'' (
Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...
) * ''
Ștefan Ștefan is the Romanian form of Stephen, used as both a given name and a surname. For the English version, see Stefan. Some better known people with the name Ștefan are listed below. For a comprehensive list see . Notable persons with that name ...
'', with the diminutives ''Ștefănel'', ''Ștefăniță'', ''Ștefănuț'' (
Romanian Romanian may refer to: *anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Romania ** Romanians, an ethnic group **Romanian language, a Romance language ***Romanian dialects, variants of the Romanian language **Romanian cuisine, traditiona ...
) * ''Štefan'' ( Slovak) * ''Štefan'' ( Slovene) * ''Stefan'', ''Stefaan'', ''Stefans'', ''Steven'', ''Stephan'' (
Afrikaans Afrikaans (, ) is a West Germanic language that evolved in the Dutch Cape Colony from the Dutch vernacular of Holland proper (i.e., the Hollandic dialect) used by Dutch, French, and German settlers and their enslaved people. Afrikaans gr ...
,
Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...
) * ''Stefan'', ''Stephan'', ''Steffen'' (
German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...
) * ''Stefan'', ''Szczepan'' ( Polish) * ''Steffan'', ''Stifyn'', ''Stîfyn'' (
Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peopl ...
) * ''Steffen'' (
Norwegian Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to: *Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe * Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway * Demographics of Norway *The Norwegian language, including ...
) * ''Steffen'', ''Stephen'', ''Stefan'', ''Stephan'' ( Danish) * ''Štěpán'' (
Czech Czech may refer to: * Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe ** Czech language ** Czechs, the people of the area ** Czech culture ** Czech cuisine * One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus' Places * Czech, ...
) * ''Stefanus'', '' Stephanus'' (
Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through ...
) * ''Stefans'', ''Stepans'', ''Stepons'', ''Stīvens'' ( Latvian) * ''
Steponas Steponas (shortened as Stepas) is a Lithuanian masculine given name. It is a cognate of the English language name Stephen, and may refer to: *Steponas Babrauskas (born 1984), a Lithuanian professional basketball player * Steponas Darašius (1896– ...
'', ''Stepas'' ( Lithuanian) * ''Stefan'', ''Steven'' ( Breton) * ''Stiefnu'' ( Maltese) * ''Stìobhan, Stìophan, Stèaphan'' (
Scottish Gaelic Scottish Gaelic ( gd, Gàidhlig ), also known as Scots Gaelic and Gaelic, is a Goidelic language (in the Celtic branch of the Indo-European language family) native to the Gaels of Scotland. As a Goidelic language, Scottish Gaelic, as well as ...
) * '' Stjepan, Stipan, Stipe, Stipo, Stipa, Štef'', ''Stevko'', ''Stevo'' ( Croatian) * ''Tapani'', ''Teppana'', ''Teppo'' (
Finnish Finnish may refer to: * Something or someone from, or related to Finland * Culture of Finland * Finnish people or Finns, the primary ethnic group in Finland * Finnish language, the national language of the Finnish people * Finnish cuisine See also ...
) * ''Tehvan'' (
Estonian Estonian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Estonia, a country in the Baltic region in northern Europe * Estonians, people from Estonia, or of Estonian descent * Estonian language * Estonian cuisine * Estonian culture See also * ...
) * ''Steffen'', ''Sven'' (
Norwegian Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to: *Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe * Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway * Demographics of Norway *The Norwegian language, including ...
) *ⲥⲧⲉⲫⲁⲛⲟⲥ (''Step(h)anos''), ⲥⲧⲉⲫⲁⲛⲉ (''Step(h)ana''), ⲥⲉⲧⲉⲡⲫⲉⲛ (''Sedephen'') ( Coptic) * סטיבן (''Stiven''), סטפן (''stefan''); (
Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...
) * Στέφανος (''Stephanos'', ''Stefanos'', ''Stephanas'', ''Stepfan'', ''Stephano'', ''Stephanus'';
Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...
) * Степан (''Stepan,'' the most common;
Ukrainian Ukrainian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Ukraine * Something relating to Ukrainians, an East Slavic people from Eastern Europe * Something relating to demographics of Ukraine in terms of demography and population of Ukraine * So ...
), Стефан (''Stefan'') * 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 Serbian may refer to: * someone or something related to Serbia, a country in Southeastern Europe * someone or something related to the Serbs, a South Slavic people * Serbian language * Serbian names See also * * * Old Serbian (disambiguation ...
) * Стефан/Stefan, Стеван/Stevan, Шћепан/Šćepan ( Montenegrin) * Стефан/Stefan, Стеван/Stevan, Стево/Stevo, Стефо/Stefo, Стефче/Stefche (
Macedonian Macedonian most often refers to someone or something from or related to Macedonia. Macedonian(s) may specifically refer to: People Modern * Macedonians (ethnic group), a nation and a South Slavic ethnic group primarily associated with North Ma ...
) * Степан/''Stepan'', Stepa, Stepane, Stepanya, Stepka, Stipan (
Russian Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including: *Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...
) * Сцяпан/''Sciapan'' ( Belarusian) * Ычтапан/Içtapan (
Tatar The Tatars ()Tatar
in the Collins English Dictionary
is an umbrella term for different
) * ''İstfan, Stepan'' (
Azeri Azerbaijanis (; az, Azərbaycanlılar, ), Azeris ( az, Azərilər, ), or Azerbaijani Turks ( az, Azərbaycan Türkləri, ) are a Turkic people living mainly in northwestern Iran and the Republic of Azerbaijan. They are the second-most nume ...
) * ''Steffeni, Stefani, Stiifaat'' ( Greenlandic) * እስጢፋኖስ (''Estefanos'';
Amharic Amharic ( or ; (Amharic: ), ', ) is an Ethiopian Semitic language, which is a subgrouping within the Semitic branch of the Afroasiatic languages. It is spoken as a first language by the Amharas, and also serves as a lingua franca for all oth ...
)


People with the name

*
List of people with given name Stephen This is a list of people with the given name Stephen or Steven: Saints * Saint Stephen (died c. 35), with the title of Protomartyr (lit. "first martyr") due to his distinct fate among the early Christians * Stephen, one of the pair of Christian ...
* Stephen (surname), including a list of people with the surname


Popularity

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 name was ranked 201 in the United States in 2009, according to the Social Security Administration.Popular Baby Names
Social Security Online
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 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 eighth and tenth 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.Table
Top 100 boys' and girls' names, Scotland, 2008, showing changes since 2007
, in

'', General Register Office, Scotland, 2009.
In the United States, the spelling "Stephen" reached its peak of popularity between 1949 and 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.Popular baby names
U.S. Social Security Administration, 2009.
The spelling "Steven" reached its peak during 1955–1961, when it was the tenth 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.


See also

* *
Stevens (surname) Stevens as an English-language surname was brought to England after the Norman Conquest and means 'son of Steven'. This surname may refer to: Arts and entertainment Literature * Barry Stevens (therapist) (1902–1985), writer, Gestalt therapist * ...
* Stephens (surname) * Stephenson (surname) * Stevenson (surname) *
Helen Steven Helen Steven (19 October 1942 – 12 April 2016) was a Scottish Quaker peace activist and one of the founders of the Scottish Centre for Nonviolence. Her opposition to the nuclear submarine base in Scotland was recognised with the Gandhi Inter ...
(1942-2016), Scottish pacifist


References

{{Authority control Given names of Greek language origin English masculine given names Bulgarian masculine given names German masculine given names