2000
#3,295
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,978
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.70
Uncommon Last name
Stine
A surname of German origin, derived from the Middle High German word "stein," meaning "stone" or "rock."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 10,812 Americans carry the last name Stine. That puts it at #3,668 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 3.15 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 31,701 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Stine 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
11K
1 in 31,701
Census rank
#3,668
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
3.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
9.4K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 9,429 bearers of the surname Stine in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 3.15 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 3668th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Stine, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (2.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Stine
The surname STINE is believed to have originated in Germany, where it can be traced back to the 9th century. It is derived from the German word "stein," meaning "stone" or "rock," suggesting that the name was originally an occupational name for someone who worked with stone, such as a stonemason or quarry worker.
In the early Middle Ages, the name STINE was found primarily in the regions of Bavaria and Saxony, where many towns and villages had names that incorporated the word "stein," such as Steinbach, Steinfeld, or Steinheim. As people began to adopt hereditary surnames, those living in or near these places often took on the name STINE.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name STINE can be found in the Codex Traditionum Monasterii Reichenau, a medieval manuscript from the 9th century that lists the names of people who donated land or property to the Reichenau Abbey in present-day Germany. The name appears in various spellings, including "Steini," "Steino," and "Steinen."
During the 12th and 13th centuries, the name STINE began to spread throughout the German-speaking regions of Europe, and it can be found in various historical records and documents from that time period. For example, a man named Johannes Steine is mentioned in the Codex Eberhardi, a chronicle of the city of Mainz, in the year 1259.
Notable individuals with the surname STINE throughout history include:
1. Friedrich Stein (1818-1885), a German politician and member of the Prussian House of Representatives.
2. Gertrude Stein (1874-1946), an American novelist, poet, and art collector, known for her experimental writing style and as a pioneer of Modernist literature.
3. Johann Stein (1757-1831), a German piano maker and the inventor of the "German action" for pianos, which was a significant advancement in piano technology.
4. Clarence Stein (1882-1975), an American architect and urban planner who was a proponent of the "garden city" movement and designed several planned communities in the United States.
5. Edith Stein (1891-1942), a German Jewish philosopher who converted to Catholicism and became a Carmelite nun. She was canonized as a saint by the Catholic Church in 1998.
While the surname STINE has its roots in Germany, it has since become a common name in other parts of the world, particularly in the United States, where many German immigrants settled in the 19th and early 20th centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Stine
Among Census respondents with the surname Stine, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (2.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Stine 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 Stine surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.7% · 8,649
- Two or more races3.3% · 312
- Hispanic or Latino2.7% · 253
- Black or African American1.1% · 105
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 71
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 39
Timeline
Historical Census data for Stine
Stine 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
#3,573
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,979
+1 bearers (+0.0%)
Per 100,000 3.38
Rank movement Down 278 places
2020
#3,668
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,429
-550 bearers (-5.5%)
Per 100,000 3.15
Rank movement Down 95 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,295 | 9,978 | 3.70 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #3,573 | 9,979 | 3.38 | +1 bearers (+0.0%) | Down 278 places |
| 2020 | #3,668 | 9,429 | 3.15 | -550 bearers (-5.5%) | Down 95 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 Stine 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 | #3,573 | #3,668 | -2.7% |
| Count | 9,979 | 9,429 | -5.5% |
| Per 100K | 3.38 | 3.15 | -6.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Stine bearers went from 9,979 to 9,429 (-5.5% change). The surname moved down 95 positions in the national ranking, going from #3,573 to #3,668.
FAQ
Stine surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Stine?
Name Census estimates that about 10,812 living Americans carry the surname Stine. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 31,701 residents.
How common is Stine?
Stine ranks #3,668 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 3.15 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 9,429 people with the surname Stine. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (10,812), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 3.15 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 3.15 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Stine.
Has Stine become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Stine went from 9,979 recorded bearers to 9,429. That is a decrease of 550 (-5.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #3,573 to #3,668.
What does the Census say about the background of Stine?
Among Census respondents with the surname Stine, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (2.7%). 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?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Stine in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.7% (8,649 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Stine appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.7%), Two or More Races (3.3%), Hispanic (2.7%). 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 Stine (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 Stine mean?
A surname of German origin, derived from the Middle High German word "stein," meaning "stone" or "rock." 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 Stine (3.15 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 common is the surname Stine?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how common the surname Stine is at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.