A streaming engine employed in a digital data processor specifies a fixed read only data stream defined by plural nested loops. An address generator produces address of data elements. A steam head register stores data elements next to be supplied to functional units for use as operands. Upon a stream break instruction specifying one of the nested loops, the stream engine ends a current iteration of the loop. If the specified loop was not the outermost loop, the streaming engine begins an iteration of a next outer loop. If the specified loop was the outermost nested loop, the streaming engine ends the stream. The streaming engine places a vector of data elements in order in lanes within a stream head register. A stream break instruction is operable upon a vector break.