2000
#118,236
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 136
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Steinley
A surname derived from the German word "stein" meaning stone, likely referring to someone who worked with stone.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 122 Americans carry the last name Steinley. That puts it at #152,339 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,809,462 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Steinley 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
122
1 in 2,809,462
Census rank
#152,339
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
106
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 106 bearers of the surname Steinley in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 152339th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Steinley, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.8%) and Hispanic (1.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Steinley
The surname Steinley is believed to have originated in Germany, where it first appeared sometime in the medieval period. It is derived from the German words "stein" meaning stone and "ley" meaning clearing or meadow, suggesting that the name may have referred to someone who lived near a stony meadow or clearing.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the town records of Aachen, Germany, from the 14th century, where a Henrich Steinley is mentioned as a landowner. The name also appears in various other German records and manuscripts from that time period, often spelled slightly differently as Steinleigh or Steinleye.
In the 16th century, a notable figure named Hans Steinley (1512-1578) was a prominent merchant and guild leader in the city of Nuremberg. His descendants went on to establish themselves as successful businessmen and civic leaders in the region.
Another early bearer of the name was Johann Steinley (1620-1683), a Lutheran theologian and author who served as a professor at the University of Leipzig. His most well-known work was a commentary on the Book of Psalms published in 1672.
As the name spread beyond Germany, it took on various regional spellings and variations. In England, for example, the name was sometimes rendered as Stanly or Standley, potentially due to the influence of place names like Stanley in Derbyshire.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Steinley name in England can be found in the parish records of St. Mary's Church in Bury St. Edmunds, where a William Steinley is listed as being married in 1628.
In the 18th century, a notable figure named Friedrich Steinley (1725-1801) was a German-born botanist and explorer who traveled extensively throughout Europe and Russia, documenting and cataloging various plant species.
As the name spread further afield, it also took root in other parts of the world, including the United States. One of the earliest recorded examples of the Steinley name in America was Jacob Steinley (1756-1832), a German immigrant who settled in Pennsylvania and fought in the Revolutionary War.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Steinley
Among Census respondents with the surname Steinley, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.8%) and Hispanic (1.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Steinley 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 Steinley surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White95.3% · 101
- Two or more races2.8% · 3
- Hispanic or Latino1.9% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Steinley
Steinley 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
#133,048
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 127
-9 bearers (-6.6%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 14,812 places
2020
#152,339
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 106
-21 bearers (-16.5%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 19,291 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #118,236 | 136 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #133,048 | 127 | 0.04 | -9 bearers (-6.6%) | Down 14,812 places |
| 2020 | #152,339 | 106 | 0.04 | -21 bearers (-16.5%) | Down 19,291 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 Steinley 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 | #133,048 | #152,339 | -14.5% |
| Count | 127 | 106 | -16.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -11.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Steinley bearers went from 127 to 106 (-16.5% change). The surname moved down 19,291 positions in the national ranking, going from #133,048 to #152,339.
FAQ
Steinley surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Steinley?
Name Census estimates that about 122 living Americans carry the surname Steinley. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,809,462 residents.
How common is Steinley?
Steinley ranks #152,339 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 106 people with the surname Steinley. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (122), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Steinley.
Has Steinley become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Steinley went from 127 recorded bearers to 106. That is a decrease of 21 (-16.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #133,048 to #152,339.
What does the Census say about the background of Steinley?
Among Census respondents with the surname Steinley, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.8%) and Hispanic (1.9%). 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 Steinley in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.3% (101 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Steinley appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (95.3%), Two or More Races (2.8%), Hispanic (1.9%). 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 Steinley (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 Steinley mean?
A surname derived from the German word "stein" meaning stone, likely referring to someone who worked with stone. 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 Steinley (0.04 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 last name Steinley?
See how many Americans have the surname Steinley on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.