Alvin is a male given name in several cultures.
In the Balkans, it is popular among Bosniaks in the former Yugoslav nations, as well as among Albanians. The name is a variation of Elvin, another name commonly used within these groups. Its popularity among these communities is likely due to its similarity to Aldin, a name also shared by many in the region.
Etymology Alvin was introduced in the 19th century based on surnames that were in turn derived from the Old English names Æthelwine and Ealdwine. The names mean "noble friend" and "old friend" respectively.
The corresponding German name is Alwin, which continues the Old High German names Albwin and Adalwin.
Notable people with the given name Alvin Abundo (born 1992), Filipino basketball player Alvin Achenbaum (1925–2016), American businessman Alvin Ackerley, Great Britain and England international rugby league footballer Alvin Adams (1804–1877), early 19th-century American businessman Alvin P. Adams Jr. (1942–2015), American diplomat Alvin P. Adams Sr., American aviation executive Alvin Aguilar (born 1974), Filipino martial artist Alvin Ailey (1931–1989), African-American choreographer and activist Alvin Alcorn (1912–2003), American jazz trumpeter Alvin Alden (1818–1882), American businessman and politician Alvin L. Alm (1937–2000), American environmental regulator Alvin Alvarez (born 1989), American actor Alvin T. Amaral (1927–2014), American politician Alvin Eli Amason, American painter Alvin Anson (born 1962), Filipino actor Alvin Anthons (born 1976), Malaysian entertainer Alvin Arrondel (born 1993), French professional footballer Alvin Ashley (born 1969), American football player Alvin O. Austin (born 1942), American academic administrator Alvin Aubert (1930–2014), American poet and scholar Alvin Avinesh (born 1982), Fijian footballer Alvin Bailey (born 1990), American football player Alvin Baldus (1926–2017), American politician Alvin Baltrop (1948–2004), American photographer A. B. Barber (1883–1961), United States Army officer Alvin L. Barry (1931–2001), President of Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod (1992–2001) Alvin Batiste (1932–2007), American jazz clarinetist Alvin Bell (1901–1968), American football and basketball player and football official Alvin Gladstone Bennett (1918–2004), Jamaican writer Alvin Morell Bentley (1918–1969), American politician Alvin Bernard, Dominican politician Alvin Blount (born 1965), American gridiron football player Alvin Boretz (1919–2010), American screenwriter Alvin Botes (born 1973), South African politician Alvin J. Boutte (1929–2012), American banker and businessman Alvin Bowen (born 1983), American football player Alvin Bowman, American academic administrator Alvin Bragg (born 1973), American lawyer and politician Alvin Bronson (1783–1881), American politician Alvin Bronstein (1928–2015), American lawyer Alvin Brooks (basketball, born 1959) (born 1959), American basketball player and coach Alvin Brooks III (born 1979), American basketball player and coach Alvin Brown (disambiguation), multiple people Alvin Bubb (born 1980), Grenada international footballer Alvin Bullock (1906–1993), Canadian politician Alvin Burke, Jr. (born 1973), birth name of Hassan Hamin Assad, better known as Montel Vontavious Porter (MVP) Alvin Burroughs (c. 1911–1950), American jazz musician Alvin C. Bush (1924–2017), American politician Alvin Bush (1893–1959), American politician Alvin Cailan (born 1983), American chef and YouTuber Alvin Andrew Callender (1893–1918), American pursuit pilot and a flying ace in World War I Alvin B. Cardwell (1902–1992), American experimental physicist Alvin P. Carey (1916–1944), United States Army Medal of Honor recipient Alvin Carlsson (1891–1972), Swedish diver A. P. Carter (1891–1960), American singer-songwriter Alvin Cash (1939–1999), American actor and singer Alvin Cassel, American lawyer Alvin Ceccoli (born 1974), Australian footballer Alvin Duke Chandler (1902–1987), Rear Admiral of the United States Alvin Chau (born 1989), Macanese businessman and criminal Alvin Childress (1907–1986), American actor Alvin J. Clasen (1892–1971), American politician Alvin Langdon Coburn (1882–1966), American photographer Alvin Aaron Coffey Sr. (1822–1902) African American pioneer, miner, and farmer in California; who was formerly enslaved Alvin Colina (born 1981), Venezuelan baseball player Alvin Colt (1916–2008), American costume designer Alvin Cooperman (1923–2006), American television producer Alvin Coox (1924–1999), American military historian and author Alvin Corneal (born 1937), Trinidad and Tobago footballer and cricketer Alvin Robert Cornelius (1903–1991), Pakistani judge Alvin Crowder (1899–1972), American baseball player Alvin H. Culver (1873–1955), American football player and coach Alvin Curling (born 1939), Jamaican-born Canadian politician Alvin Curran (born 1938), American musician and composer Alvin Daniel (born 1969), Trinidad and Tobago sprinter Alvin Daniels (born 1994), French Guianan professional footballer Alvin Dark (1922–2014), Major League Baseball player and manager Alvin Darling (born 1948), American gospel musician Alvin Davis (born 1960), Major League Baseball player Alvin J. DeGrow (1926–2016), American politician Alvin Deutsch (1932–2021), American lawyer Alvin Devane (1923–2012), American singer and police lieutenant Alvin Dewey (1912–1987), American police officer Alvin Swen Dixon (born 1993), Liberian footballer Alvin E. Dodd (1883–1951), American consulting engineer Alvin Joseph Downing (c. 1916–2000), American jazz musician Alvin Drew (born 1962), American astronaut Alvin Dueck, American psychologist and theologian Alvin Duncan (1913–2009), Canadian historian Alvin Duskin (1931–2021), American educator, entrepreneur and activist Alvin R. Dyer (1903–1977), American Mormon leader Alvin Eisenman (1921–2013), American graphic designer Alvin Elchico (born 1974), Filipino broadcast journalist Alvin Endt (1933–2016), American politician Alvin Epstein (1925–2018), American actor Alvin Etler (1913–1973), American composer and musician Alvin Evans (1845–1906), American politician Alvin Feldman (1927–1981), American airline executive and mechanical engineer Alvin S. Felzenberg, American historian Alvin Fielder (1935–2019), American jazz drummer Alvin Fisher (1893–1937), Canadian ice hockey player Alvin Fortes (born 1994), Cape Verdean footballer Alvin Francisco (born 1987), Filipino radiologist and media personality Alvin Frankenberg (1923–2011), American lawyer Alvin T. Fuller (1878–1958), American businessman and politician Alvin Gajadhur (born 1973), Polish politician, statesman, chemical engineer, and educator Alvin Ganzer (1911–2009), American film director Alvin Garcia (born 1946), Filipino politician and lawyer Alvin Gardiner (born 1951), Australian tennis player Alvin Garrett (born 1956), American football player Alvin Gentry (born 1954), American basketball player and coach Alvin Gipson (1914–1987), American baseball player Alvin Gittins (1922–1981), English painter Alvin Goldfarb, American academic Alvin Goldman (1938–2024), American philosopher Alvin Gouldner (1920–1980), American sociologist and activist Alvin Edwin Graham, Canadian politician Alvin C. Graves (1909–1965), American nuclear physicist A. C. Greene (1923–2002), American journalist and politician Alvin Greene (born 1977), American political candidate Alvin Greenidge (born 1956), West Indian cricketer Alvin F. Grospiron (1916–1985), American labor leader Alvin Abdul Halim (born 1998), Indonesian footballer Alvin Hall (disambiguation), multiple people Alvin Hamilton (1912–2004), Canadian politician Alvin A. Handrich (1892–1981), American farmer, businessman and politician Alvin Hansen (1887–1975), American economist Alvin F. Harlow (1875–1963), American writer and biographer Alvin Harper (born 1967), American football player Alvin Harrison (born 1974), American Olympic gold medal runner Alvin Hart (disambiguation), multiple people Alvin Hawkins (1821–1905), American judge Alvin Hayes, American jazz musician Alvin Haymond (1942–2024), American football player Alvin Haynes (born 1968), Barbadian triple jumper Alvin Heaps (1919–1986), American labor union leader Alvin Heggs (born 1967), American basketball player Alvin Hellerstein (born 1933), American federal judge Alvin Henderson (American football) (born 2006), American football player Alvin Henry, Trinidad and Tobago sprinter Alvin Tobias Hert (1865–1921), American politician Alvin Hewlett (born 1937), Canadian politician Alvin O. Hofstad (1905–1962), American farmer and politician Alvin Hollingsworth (1928–2000), American painter and comic book artist Alvin Holmes (1939–2020), American politician Alvin Holsey, United States Navy admiral Alvin P. Hovey (1821–1891), American Civil War general, Indiana supreme court justice, congressman, and governor of Indiana Alvin Howard, American cricketer Alvin Huang, Chinese-American architect Alvin Hung, creator of GoAnimate Alvin Hudson (born 1976), Canadian soccer player Alvin Ing (1932–2021), American singer and actor Alvin Jacklick (born 1949), Marshallese politician Alvin Jackson (disambiguation), multiple people Alvin C. Jacobs Jr. (born 1974), American documentary photographer Alvin Jaeger (born 1943), American politician Alvin James, Jamaican-American soccer player Alvin Jemmott (1906–?), Guyanese cricketer Alvin Johnson (disambiguation), multiple people Alvin M. Johnston (1914–1998), American test pilot Alvin Nathaniel Joiner, better known by his stage name Xzibit (born 1974), American rapper and actor Alvin Jones (disambiguation), multiple people Alvin M. Josephy Jr. (1915–2005), American journalist and civil rights activist Alvin Kahle (1909–1986), American politician Alvin Kallicharran (born 1949), West Indian cricketer Alvin Kamara (born 1995), American football player Alvin Karadža (born 1984), Bosnian-Herzegovinian footballer Alvin Karpis (1907–1979), noted American criminal and "public enemy" Alvin Katz (born 1936), American politician Alvin Ratz Kaufman (1885–1979), Canadian industrialist and birth control advocate Alvin Kelly (disambiguation), multiple people Alvin Olin King (1890–1958), American politician Alvin Kirkland, American rugby league and gridiron player Alvin Paul Kitchin (1908–1983), American politician Alvin Klein (c. 1938–2009), American journalist and theater critic Alvin Kletsch (1861–1941), American football coach Alvin Kraenzlein (1876–1928), American athlete, four-time gold medalist at the 1900 Paris Olympics Alvin Krenzler (1921–2010), American judge A. B. Krongard (born 1936), executive director of the CIA Alvin Boyd Kuhn (1880–1963), American religious scholar Alvin H. Kukuk (1937–2017), American politician Alvin La Feuille (born 1978), West Indies cricketer Alvin Landy, American bridge player Alvin Law, Canadian motivational speaker and radio broadcaster Alvin Lee (comics) (born 1980), Canadian comic book artist Alvin Lee, born Graham Barnes (1944–2013), English guitarist and singer Alvin Leung (born 1961), Canadian chef and television personality Alvin Levin, American writer Alvin Lewis (disambiguation), multiple people Alvin Liberman (1917–2000), American linguist Alvin Libin (born 1931), Canadian businessman and philanthropist Alvin Lie (born 1961), Indonesian politician Alvin Francis Lindsay (1882–1957), American politician Alvin Loftes (1890–1971), American cyclist Alvin Loucks (1895–1973), American football player and coach Alvin D. Loving (1935–2005), African-American abstract expressionist painter Alvin Lucier (1931–2021), American composer Alvin Luedecke (1910–1998), United States Air Force general Alvin Lustig (1915–1955), American graphic and interior designer Alvin Maccornell (born 1993), Liberian footballer