Stephaine
From the French feminine form of the Latin name Stephanus, meaning "crown" or "garland".
Name Census estimates that about 3,790 living Americans carry the first name Stephaine. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Stephaine today is around 46 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Stephaine births was 1983 (195 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Stephaine. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
People living today
3.8K
~ 1 in 90,437 Americans
Peak year
1983
195 babies that year
Average age
46
years old
2019 SSA rank
#17,656
Tracked since 1949
Census
Stephaine in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 2,238 people with the first name Stephaine, which placed it at #6,968 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#6,968
National first-name rank
People counted
2.2K
2,238 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.7
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
52.1% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Stephaine
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Stephaine is White at 52.1%. The next largest groups are Black (24.1%) and Hispanic (17.1%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Stephaine described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Stephaine at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White52.1% · 1,165
- Black or African American24.1% · 540
- Hispanic or Latino17.1% · 383
- Two or more races3.5% · 78
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.1% · 46
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.2% · 26
Popularity
Stephaine: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Stephaine from the 1940s through to the 2010s, spanning 8 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1980s, with 1,454 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1980s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Stephaine by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Stephaine during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Stephaines live
The SSA's state-level files cover 28 states and territories. California, New York, Texas recorded the most babies named Stephaine, while Washington, Arizona, Arkansas recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 72 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Stephaine
The name Stephaine is a variant spelling of the name Stephanie, which has its origins in the Greek language. The name is derived from the Greek word "stephanos," meaning "crown" or "wreath." It was originally a masculine name in ancient Greece, but over time, it transitioned to become a popular feminine name.
During the early Christian era, the name gained significance as it was associated with the Greek word "stephanos," which was used to describe the martyr's crown or the crown of eternal life. This association likely contributed to the name's popularity among early Christians.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Stephaine can be found in the writings of the 5th-century historian Procopius of Caesarea, who mentioned a woman named Stephaine in his work "De Bello Gothico" (Gothic War).
In the Middle Ages, the name Stephaine was used across various parts of Europe, including France, Italy, and England. One notable figure bearing this name was Stephaine de Beauharnais (1789-1860), the adopted daughter of Napoleon Bonaparte and his first wife, Josephine.
During the Renaissance period, the name Stephaine gained further popularity, particularly in France and Italy. One famous bearer of the name was Stephaine de Lestrange (1573-1645), a French noblewoman and author known for her literary works and her involvement in the Fronde, a series of civil wars in France.
In the 17th century, the name Stephaine was also used in England, as evidenced by the existence of Stephaine Fox (1624-1648), who was the daughter of Sir Edward Fox and the wife of Sir John Dyke.
Another notable figure with the name Stephaine was Stephaine de Longchamp (1619-1701), a French playwright and novelist who was part of the literary circle of the influential salons in Paris during the reign of Louis XIV.
In the 19th century, the name Stephaine continued to be used across various parts of Europe, including France, Germany, and Russia. One noteworthy bearer of the name was Stephaine Mallarmé (1842-1898), a French poet and a key figure in the Symbolist movement.
While the name Stephaine has been used throughout history, it has remained a relatively uncommon variant of the name Stephanie. However, its connection to the Greek concept of the crown or wreath, as well as its association with early Christian martyrs, has contributed to its enduring appeal and cultural significance over the centuries.
People
Stephaine + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Stephaine as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with S
Other first names starting with S with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Stephaine: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Stephaine?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 3,790 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Stephaine going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 90,437 US residents.
Is Stephaine a common name?
We classify Stephaine as "Rare". It ranks above 95.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 4,165 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Stephaine most popular?
The single biggest year for Stephaine was 1983, when 195 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Stephaine is about 46 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Stephaine in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 2,238 people with the name Stephaine, or 0.74 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #6,968 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Stephaine in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Stephaine?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Stephaine appears almost entirely female. Of the 2,246 people counted with this name, 99.7% were female and only a very small share were male. The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Stephaine?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Stephaine is White at 52.1%. The next largest groups are Black (24.1%) and Hispanic (17.1%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Stephaine most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Stephaine in the 2020 Census, accounting for 52.1% (1,165 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Stephaine in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Stephaine a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Stephaine in the SSA data are female. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Stephaine still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Stephaine in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Stephaine can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
How many people have Stephaine as a first name?
For a quick modern take, check how many people have the name Stephaine on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.