Stephen is a surname of English, Scottish,[1] and German origin. It is a reasonably common surname. The German variant is thought to have originated from the German-speaking world as (Von) Stephan.[citation needed]
Pronunciation | Stee-ven |
---|---|
Origin | |
Region of origin | English, Scottish and German |
Other names | |
Variant form(s) | Stephenson, Stevens, Stephens, Fitzstephen |
Stephen is the 3,845th most common surname in the USA.[2]
MacStèaphain (Scottish Gaelic) Stephen is a sept of the clan MacTavish.[3] It is believed that Stephens from North East Scotland (Morayshire, Banffshire, and Aberdeenshire) south of the Moray Firth are descended from a Viking named Tarben whose longship landed in Banffshire in the late 10th century CE. His name was Christianized to Stephen.[citation needed]
Notable people with the surname
edit- Stephen (Australian legal family), a prominent legal dynasty, includes
- Sir Alfred Stephen (1802–1894), Chief Justice of New South Wales
- Sir Colin Stephen (1872–1937), lawyer and horse racing administrator
- George Milner Stephen (1812–1894), Australian politician and faith healer
- Harold Stephen MLA (1841–1889), Australian politician
- Sir Henry Stephen (Matthew Henry Stephen 1828–1920), Puisne Judge in New South Wales
- James Wilberforce Stephen (1822–1881), judge of the Victorian Supreme Court
- Montagu Stephen MLA (1827–1872), solicitor and politician
- Septimus Alfred Stephen MLC (1842–1901), solicitor and politician
- A. G. Stephen (1862–1924), Hong Kong banker
- Caroline Emelia Stephen (1834–1909), British philanthropist and writer on Quakerism
- C. M. Stephen (1918–1984), Indian politician
- Elizabeth Willisson Stephen (1856-1925), American author
- George Stephen, 1st Baron Mount Stephen, Canadian businessman, financier, philanthropist
- George A. Stephen (c.1922–1993), American inventor and entrepreneur
- Harry Lushington Stephen, judge, alderman, writer
- Hugh R. Stephen (1913–2002), mayor of Victoria, BC, Canada
- James Stephen (disambiguation), several people
- James Stephen (architect) (1858–1938), American architect
- James Stephen (British politician) (1758–1832), British abolitionist lawyer and Member of Parliament
- Sir James Stephen (civil servant) (1789–1859), British under-secretary for the colonies, 1836–1847
- Sir James Fitzjames Stephen (1829–1894), British judge and anti-libertarian writer
- James Kenneth Stephen (1859–1892), English poet
- Jimmy Stephen (1922–2012), footballer
- Julia Stephen (1846–1895), English art model, wife of Leslie
- Leslie Stephen, English author, critic, historian, biographer, mountaineer, husband of Julia
- Marcus Stephen (born 1969), President of Nauru (2007–2011)
- Nicol Stephen, Scottish politician
- Ninian Stephen (1923–2017), Australian judge and Governor-General of Australia
- Norman Stephen (1865–1948), Scottish schoolmaster and cricketer
- Pamela Helen Stephen (1964–2021), English opera singer
- Patrick John Stephen (1864–1938), Methodist minister in Sydney, Australia
- Shamar Stephen, American football player
- Susan Stephen, English actor
- W. S. E. Stephen (died c. 1973), philatelist
See also
edit- Stephen, given name
References
edit- ^ Hanks, P; Coates, R; McClure, P, eds. (2016). The Oxford Dictionary of Family Names in Britain and Ireland. Vol. 4. Oxford: Oxford University Press. pp. 2547–2548. ISBN 978-0-19-879884-2.
- ^ Behind the Name: Search Results
- ^ "Associated Family Names – (Septs) – Clan MacTavish".