Edwyn
A masculine name of English origin meaning "rich friend".
Name Census estimates that about 662 living Americans carry the first name Edwyn. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Edwyn today is around 21 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Edwyn births was 2006 (49 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Edwyn. 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
662
~ 1 in 517,756 Americans
Peak year
2006
49 babies that year
Average age
21
years old
2024 SSA rank
#5,091
Tracked since 1917
Popularity
Edwyn: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Edwyn from the 1910s through to the 2020s, spanning 12 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 278 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2000s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Edwyn 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 Edwyn during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Edwyns live
The SSA's state-level files cover 5 states and territories. California, Texas, Georgia recorded the most babies named Edwyn, while New York, Illinois, Georgia recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 17 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Edwyn
The name Edwyn has its origins in the Old English language, derived from the elements "ead" meaning prosperity or fortune, and "wine" meaning friend. It was a popular name among the Anglo-Saxons in England during the medieval period, often bestowed upon male children with the hope that they would grow to be prosperous companions.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where an individual named Edwine is listed as a landowner in Warwickshire. The name also appears in various medieval chronicles and manuscripts, suggesting its widespread use among the nobility and gentry of the time.
Historically, the name Edwyn has been associated with several notable figures. In the 7th century, Saint Edwyn was a prince of Northumbria who later became a monk and is venerated as a saint in the Catholic Church. Another prominent bearer of the name was Edwyn, Lord of Stretton, a Norman nobleman who fought alongside William the Conqueror during the Norman conquest of England in 1066.
In the realm of literature, Edwyn makes an appearance in the epic poem "Beowulf," where he is mentioned as a warrior in the service of King Hrothgar. Additionally, the name is featured in Sir Walter Scott's novel "Ivanhoe," where Edwyn is a character who plays a supporting role in the story.
Fast-forwarding to more recent times, Edwyn Bevan (1870-1943) was a British scholar and author known for his works on early Christianity and the history of the Near East. Sir Edwyn Hoskyns (1892-1937) was a distinguished British biblical scholar and theologian who made significant contributions to the study of the New Testament.
Another notable figure was Edwyn Collins (born 1959), a Scottish singer-songwriter and guitarist, best known for his hit songs "A Girl Like You" and "Rip It Up." Edwyn Stephen Merrill (1878-1946) was an American botanist and taxonomist who specialized in the study of tropical American plants, particularly those found in Mexico and Central America.
People
Edwyn + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Edwyn as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with E
Other first names starting with E with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Edwyn: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Edwyn?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 662 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Edwyn 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 517,756 US residents.
Is Edwyn a common name?
We classify Edwyn as "Very Rare". It ranks above 87.1% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 708 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Edwyn most popular?
The single biggest year for Edwyn was 2006, when 49 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Edwyn is about 21 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Edwyn a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Edwyn 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.
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.