Given name & surname
Stefan
“crowned with garland”
Stefan is a variant of Stephen. One Greek interpretation is “crowned with garland.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
Stefan is a variant of Stephen. One Greek interpretation is “crowned with garland.”
Explained through its name family
Where it comes from
Stefan is a variant of Stephen. An origin associated with Stephen is Greek.
Explained through its name family
How it developed
In German usage, Stefan developed from Stephanus.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1910. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Stefan through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 21,237
- 21,195 boys · 42 girls
- Most popular year
- 1991
- 725 babies
- 2025
- 219
- #1,023 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −12%
- Easing
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 219 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 1,023 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 12.4% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for boys was 719 in 1991. In 2025, New York had the largest reported state-level birth count for boys with this name (24). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 23,384 as a first name in 2020; 2,549 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Stefan’s family of names
In German usage, Stefan has a diminutive in STEF. Stefan shares a linguistic root with Stephen. In German usage, Stefan has a conventional equivalent in the English form Steven.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
Stefan has relatives in 38 languages.
53 related names in 38 languages. Point at a dot, or tab to the map and use the arrow keys.
Nicknames & forms 16
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Spellings & scripts 3
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 55
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
- StevenEnglish
- EstebanSpanish, Catalan
- SteveEnglish
- StefanoItalian, Esperanto
- Etienneequivalent
- Stefaniafeminine form
- Stivenequivalent
- Stefanosalso known as · Swedish, Finnish
Show 47 moreShow fewer
- Stefonequivalent
- Stevanequivalent
- Stefenequivalent
- Steffanequivalent
- Estefanequivalent
- SitiveniTongan
- Stefaneequivalent
- Stephaneequivalent
- Stafanequivalent
- Steeveequivalent
- EsteveCatalan
- Stjepanequivalent
- Estevoequivalent
- Stefansen“son of” surname · Norwegian Bokmål
- Штефанderivative · Russian, rsk
- СтепанRussian, Ukrainian
- Στέφανοςsource · Greek, gr
- StéphaneFrench
- Szczepandoublet · Polish
- ŠtěpánCzech
- Stevoequivalent
- Tapaniequivalent
- Steponasequivalent
- Stéphanequivalent
- IstvánHungarian
- İstefanosTurkish
- StiobhanScots
- ŠtefanSlovak, Czech
- ȘtefanRomanian
- EstevãoPortuguese
- EstêvãoPortuguese
- StefansLatvian
- Stephanusroot · Latin
- Stefáncognate · Icelandic
- StiofanIrish
- SteafánIrish
- KepanoHawaiian
- EstienneFrench
- ÉtienneFrench
- СтэфанBelarusian
- EstepanBasque
- EztebeBasque
- Atianabe
- EstebánSpanish
- StefanusLatin
- إصتفانArabic
- Polandbase name
See also 1
Names our sources mention alongside this one. They are related in story or meaning, not forms of this name.
People named Stefan
- Stefan ZweigAustrian writer (1881–1942)
- Stefan BanachPolish mathematician (1892–1945)
- Stefan Helldirector at the Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry in Göttingen, Germanyborn 1962
- Stefan EdbergSwedish tennis playerborn 1966
- Stefan GeorgeGerman poet, editor, and translator (1868–1933)
- Stefan de VrijDutch association football player (born 1992)
- Stefan Dušanemperor of Serbia 1331–13551308–1355
- Stefan KießlingGerman association football playerborn 1984
- Stefan ŻeromskiPolish writer (1864-1925)
Characters named Stefan: Stefan Salvatore (The Vampire Diaries universe).
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Appears in
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If you love Stefan, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
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