Stu
An affectionate shortened form of Stuart, an Anglo-Scottish surname turned given name.
Name Census estimates that about 46 living Americans carry the first name Stu. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Stu today is around 64 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Stu births was 1962 (13 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Stu. 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 Stu. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
46
~ 1 in 7,451,181 Americans
Peak year
1962
13 babies that year
Average age
64
years old
1964 SSA rank
#3,983
Tracked since 1958
Popularity
Stu: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Stu from the 1950s through to the 1960s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1960s, with 39 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Stu 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 Stu during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Stu
The name Stu is a diminutive form of the masculine given name Stuart, which has its origins in the Scottish clan name Stewart. The clan name is derived from the Anglo-Norman French word "estuard," meaning an overseer or administrator, and ultimately traces back to the Old English word "stiward," meaning a person who manages or guards a household.
The name Stuart gained prominence in Scotland during the medieval period, with the rise of the Stewart dynasty that ruled Scotland from the 14th to the 17th centuries. The first recorded use of the name dates back to the late 12th century, with references to a nobleman named Walter Fitzalan, who was given the hereditary title of High Steward of Scotland.
One of the earliest and most notable figures to bear the name Stuart was Robert II, who reigned as King of Scots from 1371 to 1390. He was the first monarch of the House of Stuart, which went on to produce several other Scottish kings, including James I (1394-1437), James IV (1473-1513), and Mary, Queen of Scots (1542-1587).
In the 17th century, the Stuart dynasty also claimed the throne of England, with James VI of Scotland becoming James I of England in 1603. This union of the Scottish and English crowns under the House of Stuart marked a significant period in British history, with the reign of monarchs such as Charles I (1600-1649) and Charles II (1630-1685).
While the name Stuart is more commonly associated with royalty and nobility, there have been several other notable figures throughout history who have borne the name or its diminutive form, Stu. These include Stuart Sutcliffe (1940-1962), an English artist and musician who was briefly a member of the Beatles; Stuart Pearce (born 1962), an English football player and manager; and Stu Ungar (1953-1998), an American professional poker player widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time.
Notable bearers
Famous people named Stu
People
Stu + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Stu 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
Stu: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Stu?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 46 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Stu 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 7,451,181 US residents.
Is Stu a common name?
We classify Stu as "Very Rare". It ranks above 53.1% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 55 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Stu most popular?
The single biggest year for Stu was 1962, when 13 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Stu is about 64 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Stu a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Stu 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.
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.