Colvin
Meaning "with excellent mind", a name of English origin.
Name Census estimates that about 710 living Americans carry the first name Colvin. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Colvin today is around 33 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Colvin births was 2007 (26 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Colvin. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
People living today
710
~ 1 in 482,753 Americans
Peak year
2007
26 babies that year
Average age
33
years old
2024 SSA rank
#8,422
Tracked since 1899
Census
Colvin in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 740 people with the first name Colvin, which placed it at #15,509 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#15,509
National first-name rank
People counted
740
740 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.2
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
58.8% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Colvin
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Colvin is White at 58.8%. The next largest groups are Black (26.1%) and Hispanic (5.4%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Colvin described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Colvin at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White58.8% · 435
- Black or African American26.1% · 193
- Hispanic or Latino5.4% · 40
- Two or more races5.3% · 39
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.6% · 19
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.9% · 14
Popularity
Colvin: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Colvin from the 1890s through to the 2020s, spanning 13 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 174 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2010s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Colvin by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Colvin during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Colvins live
Origin
Meaning and history of Colvin
The name Colvin has its origins in Scotland and is derived from a Gaelic surname meaning "calf's meadow" or "calf's valley." It is believed to have emerged in the 13th century as a variant of the surname Colville or Coleville.
One of the earliest recorded uses of the name Colvin dates back to the 14th century, when a knight named Colvin de Colville fought in the Scottish Wars of Independence against the English. His name is mentioned in various historical chronicles from that era.
In the 16th century, Colvin was a relatively common given name among Scottish families, particularly in the Lowlands region. It was often used as a way to honor family connections or pay tribute to notable ancestors.
One of the most famous individuals with the name Colvin was Colvin Smith, a renowned Scottish philosopher and theologian who lived from 1629 to 1701. He was a prominent figure in the Church of Scotland and authored several influential works on theology and ethics.
Another notable bearer of the name was Colvin MacGregor (1736-1803), a Scottish Jacobite who played a significant role in the Jacobite risings of the 18th century. He was a skilled military strategist and led several uprisings against the British government.
In the 19th century, Colvin Baird (1811-1887) was a prominent Scottish businessman and philanthropist who made his fortune in the textile industry. He was known for his support of various charitable causes and educational institutions in Scotland.
Moving into the 20th century, Colvin Willock (1901-1978) was a Scottish artist and sculptor who gained recognition for his avant-garde works and experimental techniques. He was a member of the Royal Scottish Academy and is considered a significant figure in Scottish modern art.
Another notable individual was Colvin Corrie (1921-2008), a Scottish politician and Member of Parliament for Bute and North Ayrshire from 1959 to 1987. He was a vocal advocate for Scottish independence and played a significant role in the Scottish National Party.
While the name Colvin has Scottish roots, it has gained recognition and usage in various parts of the world, particularly in English-speaking countries with historical ties to Scotland.
People
Colvin + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Colvin as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with C
Other first names starting with C with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Colvin: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Colvin?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 710 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Colvin going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 482,753 US residents.
Is Colvin a common name?
We classify Colvin as "Very Rare". It ranks above 87.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,035 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Colvin most popular?
The single biggest year for Colvin was 2007, when 26 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Colvin is about 33 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Colvin in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 740 people with the name Colvin, or 0.25 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #15,509 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Colvin in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Colvin?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Colvin leans strongly male. 713 people counted with this name were male (97.0%), compared with 22 female bearers (3.0%). The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Colvin?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Colvin is White at 58.8%. The next largest groups are Black (26.1%) and Hispanic (5.4%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Colvin most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Colvin in the 2020 Census, accounting for 58.8% (435 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Colvin in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Colvin a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Colvin in the SSA data are male. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Colvin still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Colvin in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Colvin can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
How many people have the name Colvin?
For a quick modern take, check how many Americans are named Colvin on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.