The Meaning of the Surname "Colvin"
The name of COLVIN is said by some historians to be of ancient Anglo-Saxon origin and derived from one "Colvin" or "Colvinus," who was a "tenant-in-chief," of Devonshire, England, in the early eleventh century. It was first used as a personal or baptismal name by the sons of the before mentioned Colvin or Colvinus. Some insist, however, that the name is Scottish in origin. More recent scholarship[ points to a Norman origin derived from "de Colleville." Guillaume de Colleville and Gilbert de Colleville were both knights who served in William the Conqueror's invasion forces, thought it is not clear that these de Collevilles are related to the Colvins. At any rate, the names are closely associated. An American example may be found at Colvin's Mill in Virginia. The original mill was established by a Coleville in the 1700's, but the name was changed to "Colvin" sometime later. In the ancient British and early American records the name is found in the various forms of Colven, Colvine, Colvyne, Colwyne, Colwin, Colvan, and Colvin. The last mentioned spelling is the most generally used in American today.In England, the Colvins resided chiefly in Devon (the same area from which the Deatons came), but later settled in London before the beginning of the eighteenth century. Of this line, a certain Jane Colvin was married at St. James, Clerkenwell, in 1733 to Thomas Brewer.
Elsdon C. Smith, author of "New Dictionary of American and Family Names," reports that the name "Colvin is of Scottish and Irish descent and means "bold or great hero... The name also refers to one who came for Collerville in Normandy... a descendent of Ceolevine (ship, friend)."