2000
#13,036
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,156
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.80
Rare Last name
Santistevan
A Spanish surname derived from the place name San Esteban, meaning "Saint Stephen."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,329 Americans carry the last name Santistevan. That puts it at #14,190 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.68 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 147,168 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Santistevan surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
Bearers in the US
2.3K
1 in 147,168
Census rank
#14,190
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,031 bearers of the surname Santistevan in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.68 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 14190th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Santistevan, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 79.5%. The next largest groups are White (17.2%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Santistevan
The surname Santistevan originates from Spain, with its roots tracing back to the medieval period, specifically the Reconquista era when the Christian kingdoms of the Iberian Peninsula were engaged in a protracted struggle to reclaim territories from the Moors.
The name is believed to have derived from the Spanish phrase "Santo Esteban," which translates to "Saint Stephen," likely honoring the first Christian martyr. It may have been adopted as a surname by individuals residing in or near a town or village named after the saint.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Santistevan surname can be found in historical documents from the 13th century, particularly in regions such as Aragon and Castile. In these documents, variations in spelling, including "Santiesteban" and "Sancti Stephani," were common, reflecting the linguistic and orthographic conventions of the time.
In the 15th century, during the reign of the Catholic Monarchs, Ferdinand and Isabella, the Santistevan family played a notable role in the reconquest of Granada, the last Moorish stronghold in Spain. Juan de Santistevan, a military commander, was among those who contributed to the eventual fall of Granada in 1492.
Another prominent figure bearing the Santistevan surname was Pedro de Santistevan, a Spanish explorer who accompanied Francisco Vázquez de Coronado on his expedition to the southwestern regions of present-day United States in the 16th century. Santistevan played a significant role in the exploration and documentation of these territories.
In the realm of literature, the Spanish playwright and poet Lope de Vega, born in 1562, included characters with the surname Santistevan in some of his works, reflecting the presence and recognition of this name within Spanish society during the Golden Age.
The Santistevan surname later spread beyond Spain's borders, carried by individuals who migrated to the Americas, particularly to regions that were part of the Spanish colonial empire. In present-day Mexico and parts of the southwestern United States, the name Santistevan can be traced back to these early Spanish settlers.
Throughout history, the Santistevan surname has been associated with various notable individuals, including Manuela Santistevan, a 19th-century Mexican artist renowned for her work in the casta painting genre, depicting racial mixtures in colonial Mexico.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Santistevan
Among Census respondents with the surname Santistevan, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 79.5%. The next largest groups are White (17.2%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Santistevan bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Santistevan surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino79.5% · 1,615
- White17.2% · 350
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.7% · 34
- Two or more races0.9% · 18
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 8
- Black or African American0.3% · 6
Timeline
Historical Census data for Santistevan
Santistevan appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#12,031
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,595
+439 bearers (+20.4%)
Per 100,000 0.88
Rank movement Up 1,005 places
2020
#14,190
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,031
-564 bearers (-21.7%)
Per 100,000 0.68
Rank movement Down 2,159 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #13,036 | 2,156 | 0.80 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #12,031 | 2,595 | 0.88 | +439 bearers (+20.4%) | Up 1,005 places |
| 2020 | #14,190 | 2,031 | 0.68 | -564 bearers (-21.7%) | Down 2,159 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Santistevan surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #12,031 | #14,190 | -17.9% |
| Count | 2,595 | 2,031 | -21.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.88 | 0.68 | -22.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Santistevan bearers went from 2,595 to 2,031 (-21.7% change). The surname moved down 2,159 positions in the national ranking, going from #12,031 to #14,190.
FAQ
Santistevan surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Santistevan?
Name Census estimates that about 2,329 living Americans carry the surname Santistevan. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 147,168 residents.
How common is Santistevan?
Santistevan ranks #14,190 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.68 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,031 people with the surname Santistevan. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,329), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.68 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.68 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Santistevan.
Has Santistevan become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Santistevan went from 2,595 recorded bearers to 2,031. That is a decrease of 564 (-21.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #12,031 to #14,190.
What does the Census say about the background of Santistevan?
Among Census respondents with the surname Santistevan, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 79.5%. The next largest groups are White (17.2%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.7%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
Hispanic is the largest self-reported group for the surname Santistevan in the 2020 Census, accounting for 79.5% (1,615 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Santistevan appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (79.5%), White (17.2%), American Indian/Alaska Native (1.7%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Santistevan (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Santistevan mean?
A Spanish surname derived from the place name San Esteban, meaning "Saint Stephen." The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Santistevan (0.68 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many people have the surname Santistevan?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.