2000
#6,547
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,774
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.77
Rare Last name
Steffens
A patronymic surname derived from the given name Stephen, meaning "crown" or "wreath" in Greek.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,456 Americans carry the last name Steffens. That puts it at #6,810 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.59 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 62,822 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Steffens 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
5.5K
1 in 62,822
Census rank
#6,810
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,758 bearers of the surname Steffens in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.59 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6810th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Steffens, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (3.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Steffens
The surname Steffens has its origins in Germany, where it emerged in the Middle Ages. It is derived from the Germanic personal name Stefan, which itself comes from the Greek name Stephanos, meaning "crown" or "wreath." The name likely referred to someone who worked as a crown-maker or a person associated with coronations.
In its earliest recorded forms, the name appeared as Stephanus, Stephani, and Steffen in various German regions. Some of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in medieval German records, including the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae and the Monumenta Germaniae Historica.
The Steffens surname began to spread across Europe as people migrated and settled in different regions. By the 16th and 17th centuries, it had become well-established in various parts of Germany, as well as in the Netherlands and Scandinavia.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the Steffens surname was Johann Steffens, a German theologian and philosopher who lived from 1573 to 1630. Another notable figure was Henrich Steffens, a German philosopher and naturalist who was born in 1773 and died in 1845.
In the Netherlands, the name Steffens is closely associated with the city of Leiden, where it can be traced back to the 16th century. One of the most famous Dutch individuals with this surname was Petrus Steffens, a renowned mathematician and astronomer who lived from 1592 to 1662.
The Steffens surname also has a long history in Scandinavia, particularly in Denmark and Norway. One of the most notable Scandinavian figures with this name was Henrik Steffens, a Danish poet and philosopher who was born in 1773 and died in 1845. He was a key figure in the Danish Golden Age of literature and philosophy.
In more recent times, the name Steffens has been carried by several notable individuals, including the American anthropologist Lincoln Steffens (1866-1936), the German writer and philosopher Rudolf Steffens (1897-1977), and the American businessman and philanthropist Charles F. Steffens (1898-1978).
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Steffens
Among Census respondents with the surname Steffens, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (3.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Steffens 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 Steffens surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.1% · 4,382
- Two or more races3.3% · 159
- Hispanic or Latino3.3% · 156
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 35
- Black or African American0.3% · 16
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 10
Timeline
Historical Census data for Steffens
Steffens 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
#6,818
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,947
+173 bearers (+3.6%)
Per 100,000 1.68
Rank movement Down 271 places
2020
#6,810
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,758
-189 bearers (-3.8%)
Per 100,000 1.59
Rank movement Up 8 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #6,547 | 4,774 | 1.77 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,818 | 4,947 | 1.68 | +173 bearers (+3.6%) | Down 271 places |
| 2020 | #6,810 | 4,758 | 1.59 | -189 bearers (-3.8%) | Up 8 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 Steffens 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 | #6,818 | #6,810 | 0.1% |
| Count | 4,947 | 4,758 | -3.8% |
| Per 100K | 1.68 | 1.59 | -5.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Steffens bearers went from 4,947 to 4,758 (-3.8% change). The surname moved up 8 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,818 to #6,810.
FAQ
Steffens surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Steffens?
Name Census estimates that about 5,456 living Americans carry the surname Steffens. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 62,822 residents.
How common is Steffens?
Steffens ranks #6,810 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.59 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 4,758 people with the surname Steffens. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,456), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.59 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.59 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Steffens.
Has Steffens become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Steffens went from 4,947 recorded bearers to 4,758. That is a decrease of 189 (-3.8%). In the national ranking it rose from #6,818 to #6,810.
What does the Census say about the background of Steffens?
Among Census respondents with the surname Steffens, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (3.3%). 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?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Steffens in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.1% (4,382 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Steffens appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.1%), Two or More Races (3.3%), Hispanic (3.3%). 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 Steffens (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 Steffens mean?
A patronymic surname derived from the given name Stephen, meaning "crown" or "wreath" in Greek. 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 Steffens (1.59 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 Americans have the surname Steffens?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.