Kerwin
A masculine name derived from the Welsh word "cerwyn," meaning "great friend."
Name Census estimates that about 2,025 living Americans carry the first name Kerwin. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Kerwin today is around 48 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Kerwin births was 1959 (89 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Kerwin. 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
2.0K
~ 1 in 169,261 Americans
Peak year
1959
89 babies that year
Average age
48
years old
2024 SSA rank
#7,031
Tracked since 1913
Popularity
Kerwin: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Kerwin from the 1910s through to the 2020s, spanning 12 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1960s, with 559 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1960s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Kerwin 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 Kerwin during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Kerwins live
The SSA's state-level files cover 10 states and territories. New York, California, Texas recorded the most babies named Kerwin, while New Jersey, Missouri, Pennsylvania recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 40 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Kerwin
The name Kerwin has its origins in the Old English language, stemming from the ancient Anglo-Saxon tribes that settled in Britain after the fall of the Roman Empire. It is believed to have derived from the combination of two Old English words: "cyr," meaning "return," and "wine," meaning "friend" or "companion." Thus, the name Kerwin could be interpreted as "a loyal friend who returns" or "a faithful companion."
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Kerwin can be traced back to the Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of land ownership and taxation commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. In this historic document, a person named Kerwin is listed as a landowner in the county of Lincolnshire, indicating that the name was already in use during the late 11th century.
Throughout the Middle Ages, the name Kerwin was relatively uncommon but appeared sporadically in various historical records. One notable figure was Kerwin de Burgh, a Norman knight who fought alongside King Richard I during the Third Crusade in the late 12th century.
In the 16th century, a variant spelling of the name, Kerwyn, was found in the writings of the English poet and playwright William Shakespeare. In his play "The Tempest," one of the minor characters is referred to as "Master Kerwyn," though little is known about the significance of this reference.
During the Renaissance period, a German astronomer named Kerwin Hartmann (1535-1609) gained recognition for his observations and calculations related to the movements of celestial bodies. His work contributed to the advancement of astronomy and the understanding of the solar system.
Another prominent figure bearing the name Kerwin was Sir Kerwin Granville (1667-1735), an English politician and Member of Parliament who served as the Speaker of the House of Commons from 1714 to 1722. He played a significant role in the political affairs of the time and was known for his impartial leadership during parliamentary sessions.
In more recent times, one of the most notable individuals with the name Kerwin was Kerwin Mathews (1924-2007), an American actor best known for his portrayal of the title character in the 1957 science fiction film "The Incredible Shrinking Man." His performance in this iconic movie became a cultural touchstone and cemented his place in the annals of Hollywood history.
People
Kerwin + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Kerwin as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with K
Other first names starting with K with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Kerwin: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Kerwin?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 2,025 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Kerwin 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 169,261 US residents.
Is Kerwin a common name?
We classify Kerwin as "Rare". It ranks above 93.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 2,465 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Kerwin most popular?
The single biggest year for Kerwin was 1959, when 89 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Kerwin is about 48 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Kerwin a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Kerwin 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.