Stellen
A Dutch place name referring to raised ground or hills.
Name Census estimates that about 15 living Americans carry the first name Stellen. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Stellen today is around 4 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Stellen births was 2020 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Stellen. 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.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Stellen. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
15
~ 1 in 22,850,289 Americans
Peak year
2020
5 babies that year
Average age
4
years old
2024 SSA rank
#13,927
Tracked since 2020
Popularity
Stellen: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Stellen 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 Stellen during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 15 | 0 | 15 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Stellen
The name Stellen is believed to have originated from the Old German language, dating back to the medieval period around the 5th to 9th centuries AD. It is derived from the Germanic root word "stel," which means "to place" or "to set." This suggests that the name may have been associated with occupations or roles related to building, construction, or positioning of objects.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Stellen can be traced back to the 8th century, when a Germanic chieftain named Stellen was mentioned in the annals of the Frankish Kingdom. This historical record provides evidence that the name was in use during the Carolingian period in Western Europe.
In the 11th century, a Benedictine monk named Stellen von Reichenau was known for his scholarly works on astronomy and mathematics. He lived and worked at the Reichenau Abbey, located on an island in Lake Constance, which was a prominent center of learning during the High Middle Ages.
During the Renaissance period, a notable figure named Stellen Calderón (1540-1589) was a Spanish playwright and poet. He is renowned for his contributions to the Golden Age of Spanish literature and is considered one of the preeminent dramatists of his time.
In the 18th century, a German philosopher and mathematician named Stellen Leibniz (1646-1716) made significant contributions to the development of calculus and the binary number system. He is recognized as one of the most influential thinkers of the Age of Enlightenment.
Another historical figure with the name Stellen was Stellen Petersen (1876-1953), a Norwegian explorer and adventurer. He is best known for his expeditions to the Arctic regions, particularly his attempt to reach the North Pole in the early 20th century.
It is important to note that while the name Stellen has been present throughout history, it has not been widely popular or common across different cultures and regions. The examples provided represent some notable individuals who carried this name, but they are not an exhaustive list.
People
Stellen + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Stellen 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
Stellen: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Stellen?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 15 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Stellen 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 22,850,289 US residents.
Is Stellen a common name?
We classify Stellen as "Very Rare". It ranks above 35.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 15 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Stellen most popular?
The single biggest year for Stellen was 2020, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Stellen is about 4 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
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 Stellen in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Stellen a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Stellen in the SSA data are male. 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 Stellen still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Stellen 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 Stellen 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.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How common is the name Stellen?
For a quick modern take, check how many people share the name Stellen on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.