Male name
Stephen
8,933 births (England and Wales, 1996–2025), peaking in 1996. Expression number: 33.
Origin
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).From Wiktionary, entry “Stephen”, text under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Do you know a Stephen?
Send them the page about their name.
How many babies received it
From the official birth registers.
In England and Wales
Peak in 1996: 1,122 births. 8,933 births from 1996 to 2025. A name given mostly in the 1990s. At its peak, it ranked 60th among boys' names in 1996. It is still given: 308 births from 2021 to 2025.
Source: Office for National Statistics, Baby names in England and Wales, Open Government Licence v3.0.
In the United States
Peak in 1952: 23,082 births. 867,669 births from 1880 to 2025. A name given steadily, decade after decade, from the 1940s to the 1980s. At its peak, it ranked 19th among boys' names in 1949. It is still given: 4,474 births from 2021 to 2025.
Source: Social Security Administration, Popular Baby Names, public domain.
In Ireland
Peak in 1983: 1,116 births. 26,368 births from 1964 to 2025. A name given mostly in the 1960s, 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. At its peak, it ranked 4th among boys' names in 1983. It is still given: 110 births from 2021 to 2025.
Source: Central Statistics Office, Irish Babies' Names, CC BY 4.0.
Elsewhere in the world
The name in the birth records of the 10 countries we track. The period covered varies from country to country.
| Country | Births | Period | Best rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| France | 6,615 | 1900–2025 | — |
| Switzerland | 853* | 1915–2025 | — |
| Quebec | 599 | 1980–2025 | — |
* These are the people living in the country, counted by year of birth, not the number of births.
Source: INSEE, Fichier des prénoms, Etalab Open Licence 2.0; Federal Statistical Office, First names of the population by year of birth, free use with attribution; Retraite Québec, Banque de prénoms, CC BY 4.0.
The numbers of the name
Each letter has a value: A = 1, B = 2… I = 9, then J = 1 again (Pythagorean method). We add them up, then reduce to a single digit, except 11, 22 and 33.
■ vowel · ■ consonant
Expression
All the letters: talents, the way you act.
33
the guide, self-giving (master number)
1 + 2 + 5 + 7 + 8 + 5 + 5 = 33
Soul
The vowels: what drives you deep down.
1
initiative, independence, beginnings
5 + 5 = 10 → 1
Personality
The consonants: what others notice first.
5
freedom, change, movement
1 + 2 + 7 + 8 + 5 = 23 → 5
- Digits missing from the name
- 3, 4, 6, 9
- Most frequent digit
- 5 · freedom, change, movement
The meaning of the numbers comes from numerological tradition; it isn't a measure of your personality. A full portrait needs your first and middle names, your last name at birth, and your date of birth. How we calculate
Your name and theirs
The number of each name, and the number of the bond, which comes from adding them together. A symbolic game: what your two names say together, to be read as a metaphor, not as a verdict on your relationship.