Stefano

Stefano is the Italian form of the masculine given name Στέφανος (Stefanos, Stephen). The name is of Greek origin, Στέφανος, meaning a person who made a significant achievement and has been crowned. In Orthodox Christianity the achievement is in the realm of virtues, αρετές, therefore the name signifies a person who had triumphed over passions and gained the relevant virtues. In Italian, the stress falls usually on the first syllable, [ˈsteːfano] (an exception is the Apulian surname Stefano, [steˈfaːno]); in English, it is often mistakenly placed on the second, /stəˈfɑːnoʊ/.