Melvin
Boy nameMelvin has been given to 247,075 babies in the U.S. since 1880. It peaked in 1928 and currently ranks #959 for boys (2025).
Meaning & origin /ˈmɛlvɪn/
Variant of the Scottish surname Melville, from a place name Malleville in Normandy, from Latin mala (“bad”) + Old French ville (“settlement”). * Used to Anglicize Mac Gille Beathain in Scotland and Ó Maoil Mhín in Ireland.
Origin: surnames
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Popularity over time births per year, 1880–2025
Total babies
247,075
Peak year
1928 (4,311 babies)
Rank in 2025
#959 for boys
First recorded
1880
10-year trend
▼ -33%
Gender split
1% girls / 99% boys
Famous people named Melvin
Melvin Calvin
American biochemist (1911–1997)
Melvin Schwartz
American experimental physicist (1932-2006)
Melvin Laird
20th-century American politician (1922–2016)
Mel Patton
American athletics competitor (1924-2014)
Notability data from Wikidata (CC0).
Names with a similar vibe
Same primary gender, peaked around the same years, and roughly as common as Melvin.
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