Alvin

What Alvin means

Means “elf + friend”

From Old English Ælfwine, made up of ælf (“elf”) +‎ wine (“friend”).

Source: Wiktionary, “Alvin” (revision 93486873), CC BY-SA 4.0. Quoted from the etymology; we don’t write our own.

How popular is Alvin?

US: Falling: down from #601 in 2015. England & Wales: Falling: down from #753 in 2015.

Biggest US share so far: 1927, when 2,883 boys got the name (#66 that year). First in the US records in 1880.

How common

• About 1 in 5,810 baby boys in the US in 2025
• About 1 in 8,240 baby boys in England and Wales in 2025

“1 in N” divides by all listed births for that sex. The US list leaves out names given to fewer than 5 babies, and the UK lists leave out names given to 2 or fewer, so the real figure is a little rarer than shown.

Where in the US

Most popular in PA (0.42 per 1,000 boys), MO (0.4 per 1,000 boys), IA (0.36 per 1,000 boys) in 2025.

SSA state data, 2025. Share of all listed boys born in each state.

US vs UK

Alvin is #838 in the US and #934 in England & Wales (2025).

Same sex as this page (boys). SSA (US), ONS (England and Wales), NRS (Scotland).

Boy or girl?

In 2025, 99.9+% of US babies named Alvin were boys.

Counts below the publishing threshold (US 5, UK 3) are not included.

How to say it

IPA from Wiktionary.

Other spellings parents chose in 2025

• Elvin102 US · 16 E&W
• Olvin21 US

Names that sound the same and differ by a letter or two, with baby counts for the same sex. US and E&W counts.

If you like Alvin

Boys

• Edward#224“wealth, riches + ward, guard”^*
• Edgar#486“rich + spear”^*
• Harold#991“army + ruler, authority”^*
• Edwin#398Editor’s note Peaked in the US in 1922, with 3,827 babies; 798 in 2025
• Trey#883Editor’s note Peaked in the US in 1999, with 1,798 babies; 269 in 2025
• Alfred#840“elf + counsel”^*

For a sister

• April#542“the month of the goddess Venus”^*
• Amber#520“ambergris”^*
• Holly#416“wood, clearing, meadow”^*
• Angel#546Editor’s note Peaked in the US in 2002, with 3,100 babies; 551 in 2025
• Destiny#635Editor’s note Cooling off in the US: #186 in 2015, #635 in 2025
• Raven#404Editor’s note Up from #486 in 2015 to #404 in 2025 in the US

Picked from the US top 1,000 in 2025: names Wiktionary also files under English, whose US popularity since 1990 rose and fell most like Alvin’s. Rank is US 2025.