The title Earl of Stair was created in the Peerage of Scotland in 1703 for John Dalrymple. The name comes from the hamlet of Stair, the ancestral home of the Dalrymple family who settled there in the 12th century. To facilitate the original title, in 1653 James Dalrymple, 1st Viscount Stair, had a portion of Ochiltree severed so as to create the Parish of Stair.

John Dalrymple was a member of the Scottish Parliament; he actively supported William III's claim to the throne. He also served as Secretary of State for Scotland, but was forced to resign after he authorised the massacre of Glencoe. In 1703, after he had returned to the Scottish Parliament, he was given an Earldom.

Other titles held by the Earls of Stair are: Viscount of Stair (created 1690), Viscount Dalrymple (1703), Lord Glenluce and Stranraer (1690), Lord Newliston (1703) and Baron Oxenfoord (1841). All titles are in the Peerage of Scotland, except for the barony, which is in the Peerage of the United Kingdom.

Earls of Stair (1703)

• John Dalrymple, 1st Earl of Stair (1648-1707)
• John Dalrymple, 2nd Earl of Stair (1679-1747)
• James Dalrymple, 3rd Earl of Stair (d. 1760)
• William Dalrymple-Crichton, 4th Earl of Stair (1699-1769)
• John Dalrymple, 5th Earl of Stair (d. 1789)
• John Dalrymple, 6th Earl of Stair (1749-1821)
• John William Henry Dalrymple, 7th Earl of Stair (1784-1840)
• John Hamilton Dalrymple, 8th Earl of Stair (1771-1853)
• North Hamilton Dalrymple, 9th Earl of Stair (1776-1864)
• John Hamilton Dalrymple, 10th Earl of Stair (1819-1903)
• John Hew North Henry Hamilton Dalrymple, 11th Earl of Stair (1848-1914)
• John James Dalrymple, 12th Earl of Stair (1879-1961)
• John Aymer Dalrymple, 13th Earl of Stair (1906-1996)
• John David James Dalrymple, 14th Earl of Stair (b. 1961)