NameCensus.

UK surname

Stephens

A patronymic surname derived from the Greek name Stephanos, meaning "crown" or "wreath," referring to the father's name.

In the 1881 census there were 16,575 people recorded with the Stephens surname, ranking it #232 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 21,402, ranked #277, down from #232 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Ystradyfodwg (incl. Rhigos), Bristol City: St Mary Redcliff and London parishes. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Cornwall, Forest of Dean and West Devon.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Stephens is 22,169 in 1999. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 29.1%.

1881 census count

16,575

Ranked #232

Modern count

21,402

2016, ranked #277

Peak year

1999

22,169 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Stephens had 16,575 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #232 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 21,402 in 2016, ranked #277.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 20,834 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Rural Amenity.

Stephens surname distribution map

The map shows where the Stephens surname is concentrated in each census or modern distribution year. Darker areas mean a stronger local concentration.

Distribution map

Stephens surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Stephens over time

The table below tracks recorded surname counts and rank from the 19th-century census years through the modern adult-register period.

Year Period Count Rank
1851 historical 12,370 #201
1861 historical 11,431 #214
1881 historical 16,575 #232
1891 historical 16,808 #242
1901 historical 19,528 #252
1911 historical 20,834 #213
1997 modern 21,137 #273
1998 modern 21,904 #276
1999 modern 22,169 #274
2000 modern 21,911 #278
2001 modern 21,405 #276
2002 modern 21,836 #277
2003 modern 21,230 #277
2004 modern 21,215 #275
2005 modern 20,720 #279
2006 modern 20,738 #279
2007 modern 20,885 #277
2008 modern 20,963 #278
2009 modern 21,514 #278
2010 modern 21,918 #278
2011 modern 21,622 #278
2012 modern 21,132 #277
2013 modern 21,742 #276
2014 modern 21,849 #277
2015 modern 21,601 #277
2016 modern 21,402 #277

Geography

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Where Stephens' are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Ystradyfodwg (incl. Rhigos), Bristol City: St Mary Redcliff, London parishes and Cardiff St John and St Mary. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Cornwall, Forest of Dean and West Devon. Treat these as concentration signals, not proof that every family line began there.

Some modern areas include a three-digit suffix, such as Leeds 110. The suffix is a small-area code, so it stays in the table while the prose uses the plain place name.

Top historical parishes

Rank Parish Area
1 Ystradyfodwg (incl. Rhigos) Glamorganshire
2 Bristol City: St Mary Redcliff Gloucestershire
3 London parishes London 1
4 London parishes London 3
5 Cardiff St John and St Mary Glamorganshire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Cornwall 073 Cornwall
2 Forest of Dean 005 Forest of Dean
3 Cornwall 043 Cornwall
4 West Devon 005 West Devon
5 Cornwall 027 Cornwall

Forenames

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First names often paired with Stephens

These lists show first names that appear often with the Stephens surname in historical and recent records.

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Stephens

Modern surname records can be compared with neighbourhood classifications. For Stephens, this points to the kinds of places where the surname is most concentrated today.

These neighbourhood labels describe areas, not individual people. They are useful because surnames often cluster through family history, migration, housing patterns and local work. A surname can be strongest in one type of neighbourhood even when people with that name live across the country.

The UK classification gives the national picture. The London classification is more specific to the capital, where housing, age profile, tenure and population mix can look quite different from the rest of the UK.

UK neighbourhood type

UK Output Area Classification

Supergroup

Suburbanites and Peri-Urbanities

Group

Rural Amenity

Nationally, the Stephens surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Rural Amenity, within Suburbanites and Peri-Urbanities. This does not mean every Stephens household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

This Group comprises older parents or retirees, with no resident dependent children, and with the lowest residential densities in this Supergroup. Predominantly UK-born, residents typically live in detached houses, although others do live in semi-detached and terraced properties. The level of multiple car ownership is the highest in this Supergroup. Most houses are owner occupied although social renting is also present. Many concentrations occur in high amenity rural locations, such as Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

Wider pattern

Pervasive throughout the UK, members of this Supergroup typically own (or are buying) their detached, semi-detached or terraced homes. They are also typically educated to A Level/Highers or degree level and work in skilled or professional occupations. Typically born in the UK, some families have children, although the median adult age is above 45 and some property has become under-occupied after children have left home. This Supergroup is pervasive not only in suburban locations, but also in neighbourhoods at or beyond the edge of cities that adjoin rural parts of the country.

London neighbourhood type

London Output Area Classification

Supergroup

The Greater London Mix

Group

Social Rented Sector Professional Support Workers

Within London, Stephens is most associated with areas classed as Social Rented Sector Professional Support Workers, part of The Greater London Mix. This gives the surname a London-specific profile rather than forcing the capital into the same pattern as the rest of the country.

Read profile summary

Group profile

Mainly located in Inner London, these neighbourhoods retain a diverse employment structure, with some concentration in associated professional and technical occupations rather than skilled trades or construction. Social renting is more common and levels of homeownership are low. Many residents identify as Black. There is a lower than average rate of marriage or civil partnership, few that are very old (85 or over) and higher than average incidence of disability.

Wider London pattern

A Supergroup embodying London's diversity in many respects, apart from low numbers of residents identifying as of Bangladeshi, Indian, Pakistani or Other (non-Chinese) Asian ethnicity. There is lower than average prevalence of families with dependent children, while there are above average occurrences of never-married individuals and single-person households. The age distribution is skewed towards younger, single residents and couples without children, with many individuals identifying as of mixed or multiple ethnicity. Social rented or private rented housing is slightly more prevalent than average, and many residents live in flats. Individuals typically work in professional and associated roles in public administration, education or health rather than in elementary occupations in agriculture, energy, water, construction or manufacturing. Incidence of students is slightly below average. Individuals declaring no religion are more prevalent than average and non-use of English at home is below average.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Stephens is most concentrated in decile 5 for access to healthy assets and hazards. This places the surname near the middle of the scale.

Lower deciles point towards weaker access to healthy assets or stronger exposure to local hazards. Higher deciles point towards stronger access and fewer hazards.

5
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Stephens falls in decile 4 for neighbourhood deprivation. This puts the surname near the middle of the scale.

Decile 1 represents the more deprived end of the scale. Decile 10 represents the less deprived end.

4
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

The modern neighbourhood pattern for Stephens is most associated with a typical fixed broadband download band of 30-40 mbit/s.

The scale below places that band in context, from slower local download bands through to faster ones.

6
Slower band Faster band

Area snapshot

Ethnic group estimate

Most common ethnic group estimate
White - British

This describes the area pattern most associated with Stephens, not the ethnicity of every person with the surname.

Meaning and origin of Stephens

The surname Stephens is of English origin and derives from the Greek name Stephanos, meaning "crown" or "garland." It emerged as a surname in medieval England, often bestowed upon those who worked as stewards or crown-bearers, maintaining royal households or estates.

The earliest records of the name Stephens date back to the late 12th century, with mentions in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire and Lincolnshire. One of the earliest documented individuals with this surname was Walter Stephens, a landowner in Somerset mentioned in the Feet of Fines for 1196.

During the 13th century, the name Stephens appeared in various forms, including Stevenes, Stevenes, and Stephanes, reflecting regional pronunciation variations. The Hundred Rolls of 1273 record a William Stephene from Oxfordshire, while the Calendar of Inquisitions Post Mortem from 1300 mentions a John Stephenes from Kent.

The Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of landholdings in England compiled in 1086, does not directly mention the surname Stephens. However, it does record several individuals with the given name Stephanus or Stefanus, which likely contributed to the eventual development of the surname.

Notable historical figures with the surname Stephens include Sir John Stephens (c. 1561-1615), an English lawyer and Member of Parliament during the reign of Elizabeth I. Another prominent bearer was Jeremy Stephens (1592-1665), a Puritan minister and one of the founders of Harvard College in the Massachusetts Bay Colony.

In later centuries, the Stephens surname produced several distinguished individuals, such as Alexander Stephens (1812-1883), an American politician who served as the Vice President of the Confederate States during the American Civil War. Sir Leslie Stephens (1832-1904) was a notable English writer, critic, and the first editor of the Dictionary of National Biography.

Other notable individuals with this surname include Sir James Fitzjames Stephens (1829-1894), an English lawyer and legal philosopher, and Dame Georgina Stephens (1903-1995), an English actress and theater director who received widespread acclaim for her Shakespearean performances.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Stephens families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Stephens surname. Use the location tables for concentration, then the name and occupation tables for the people behind the surname.

Top counties

Total is the county count. Frequency and index adjust for local population size, so they are better concentration signals. Cornwall leads with 2,348 Stephens' recorded in 1881 and an index of 12.79x.

County Total Index
Cornwall 2,348 12.79x
Middlesex 1,534 0.95x
Gloucestershire 1,403 4.41x
Devon 1,084 3.21x
Glamorgan 1,018 3.61x
Lancashire 819 0.43x
Surrey 676 0.86x
Worcestershire 529 2.50x
Kent 519 0.94x
Somerset 503 1.93x
Hampshire 501 1.51x
Staffordshire 500 0.91x
Monmouthshire 487 4.16x
Warwickshire 450 1.10x
Yorkshire 445 0.28x
Herefordshire 409 6.15x
Pembrokeshire 359 6.97x
Sussex 323 1.18x
Carmarthenshire 321 4.70x
Durham 208 0.43x
Radnorshire 188 14.37x
Montgomeryshire 154 4.15x
Essex 145 0.45x
Northumberland 133 0.55x
Wiltshire 131 0.91x
Cheshire 129 0.36x
Brecknockshire 121 3.73x
Shropshire 118 0.84x
Cardiganshire 110 2.78x
Berkshire 83 0.68x
Denbighshire 81 1.32x
Oxfordshire 72 0.72x
Cumberland 66 0.47x
Nottinghamshire 62 0.28x
Dorset 58 0.55x
Northamptonshire 56 0.37x
Derbyshire 46 0.18x
Channel Islands 42 0.87x
Lanarkshire 38 0.07x
Lincolnshire 33 0.13x
Hertfordshire 29 0.26x
Buckinghamshire 26 0.27x
Royal Navy 26 1.35x
Norfolk 24 0.10x
Suffolk 21 0.11x
Angus 19 0.13x
Midlothian 18 0.08x
Leicestershire 17 0.09x
Cambridgeshire 15 0.15x
Flintshire 15 0.34x
Renfrewshire 14 0.11x
Aberdeenshire 13 0.09x
Bedfordshire 12 0.14x
Caernarfonshire 11 0.17x
Merionethshire 6 0.20x
Perthshire 6 0.08x
Fife 5 0.05x
Roxburghshire 5 0.17x
Westmorland 5 0.14x
Dunbartonshire 4 0.09x
Huntingdonshire 4 0.12x
Kincardineshire 4 0.20x
Anglesey 3 0.10x
Isle of Man 3 0.10x
Argyllshire 2 0.04x
Ayrshire 1 0.01x
Inverness-shire 1 0.02x
Rutland 1 0.08x
West Lothian 1 0.04x
Wigtownshire 1 0.05x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Stoke Damerel in Devon leads with 205 Stephens' recorded in 1881 and an index of 8.68x.

Place Total Index
Stoke Damerel 205 8.68x
Islington London 155 0.99x
St Austell 147 23.43x
Aston 142 1.26x
Portsea 139 2.13x
Hackney London 130 1.43x
Birmingham 128 0.94x
Plymouth St Andrew 125 4.81x
St Pancras London 122 0.93x
Bristol St Philip Jacob 121 4.04x
Camberwell 113 1.09x
Liverpool 113 0.97x
Lambeth 111 0.79x
St Cleer 101 63.46x
Cheltenham 100 4.08x
Kensington London 95 1.05x
St Marylebone London 95 1.10x
Redruth 93 17.91x
Bedminster 87 3.55x
Liskeard 85 27.68x
Roath 85 6.63x
Swansea Town 85 3.67x
Leeds 84 0.93x
Deptford St Paul 79 1.85x
Paddington London 79 1.33x
Ystradyfodwg 78 3.15x
Merthyr Tydfil 77 2.84x
Plymouth Charles The 74 4.98x
Llanelly 73 4.74x
Cardiff St Mary 71 4.57x
West Bromwich 67 2.14x
Pembroke St Mary 64 9.65x
Bermondsey 62 1.28x
Everton 61 0.99x
Bodmin 58 19.10x
Brighton 57 1.03x
Calstock 56 15.56x
Roche 56 60.07x
St Columb Minor 56 36.34x
St Woollos 56 4.28x
Ledbury 54 23.65x
Toxteth Park 54 0.83x
Clase 53 5.05x
Camborne 51 6.74x
Hammersmith London 51 1.28x
Rodborough 50 32.56x
Battersea 48 0.80x
Bethnal Green London 48 0.68x
Chelsea London 48 0.98x
West Ham 48 0.68x
St George Hanover 47 2.22x
Bedwellty 45 2.17x
Feock 45 39.17x
Manchester 45 0.52x
Stroud 45 7.27x
Westbury On Severn East 45 6.26x
Mile End Old Town 44 1.72x
Ruabon 44 5.23x
Stoke Upon Trent 44 0.76x
Tavistock 44 11.45x
East Stonehouse 43 6.47x
Ross 43 16.26x
Tottenham 43 1.67x
St Columb Major 42 27.57x
Walsall Foreign 42 1.49x
West Derby 42 0.75x
Wolverhampton 42 1.00x
Whitchurch 41 26.86x
Marytavy 40 80.45x
South Hamlet 40 20.33x
Trevethin 40 3.61x
Shoreditch London 39 0.55x
St Agnes 39 15.17x
Greenwich 38 1.47x
Kings Norton 37 1.95x
Madron Penzance 37 5.54x
Breage 36 21.49x
Michaelstone Super Avon 36 11.78x
Wellington 36 10.17x
West Looe 36 74.49x

Top female names

These are the female first names most often recorded with the Stephens surname in 1881. Names are not merged, so initials, variant spellings and transcription quirks can appear as separate rows.

Name Count
Mary 1,156
Elizabeth 728
Sarah 452
Jane 355
Ann 353
Eliza 285
Ellen 255
Annie 228
Emma 204
Alice 197
Emily 191
Margaret 150
Hannah 146
Martha 134
Maria 106
Harriet 105
Florence 99
Louisa 99
Catherine 95
Fanny 95
Caroline 93
Anne 92
Edith 88
Charlotte 87
Ada 84
Frances 78
Clara 74
Susan 72
Kate 66
Amelia 64
Lucy 55
Matilda 50
Grace 48
Elizth. 45
Bessie 44
Jessie 44
Harriett 39
Selina 38
Esther 37
Laura 37
Agnes 36
Rachel 36
Rebecca 36
Sophia 36
Ethel 34
Rose 34
Gertrude 32
Minnie 32
Julia 29
Amy 28

Top male names

These are the male first names most often recorded with the Stephens surname in 1881. Names are not merged, so initials, variant spellings and transcription quirks can appear as separate rows.

Name Count
William 1,115
John 948
Thomas 623
James 522
George 459
Henry 396
Charles 291
Joseph 239
Richard 225
Edward 210
David 153
Robert 152
Frederick 141
Alfred 139
Samuel 137
Albert 111
Arthur 102
Walter 92
Edwin 73
Harry 68
Ernest 64
Wm. 50
Francis 47
Frank 45
Herbert 45
Benjamin 43
Daniel 43
Thos. 41
Stephen 31
Fred 30
Evan 27
Fredrick 26
Edmund 24
Andrew 23
Peter 21
Isaac 19
Sidney 19
Tom 19
Fredk. 17
Alexander 16
Geo. 16
Hugh 16
Lewis 15
Willie 15
Edgar 14
Willm. 14
Jacob 13
Nicholas 13
Patrick 13
Sydney 13

Top occupations

Occupational titles are kept as recorded and later transcribed, so related jobs, spelling variants and mistakes stay separate. Scholar was the census term for a child in education. That means the other rows often tell you more about adult work in Stephens households.

FAQ

Stephens surname: questions and answers

How common was the Stephens surname in 1881?

In 1881, 16,575 people were recorded with the Stephens surname. That placed it at #232 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Stephens surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 21,402 in 2016. That gives Stephens a modern rank of #277.

What does the Stephens surname mean?

A patronymic surname derived from the Greek name Stephanos, meaning "crown" or "wreath," referring to the father's name.

What does the Stephens map show?

The map shows local surname concentration for the selected year. Darker areas have a stronger concentration of Stephens bearers relative to the surrounding population.

What records is this surname page based on?

The historical counts come from census surname records. The modern counts and neighbourhood summaries come from later surname distribution records. Counts are recorded bearers in those records, not a live estimate of everyone with the name today.