Meaning and background
The story behind Alvin
Alvin is an established English given name, but its older history is less simple than many baby-name summaries suggest. The reference traces medieval Alvin to any of three Old English names: Ælfwine, Æðelwine or Ealdwine. Their initial elements do not all mean the same thing. The modern name is also familiar through Alvin and the Chipmunks, which is a cultural association rather than evidence for the original derivation.
- Pronunciation
- English /ˈæl.vɪn/. Source
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About Alvin
Recorded as a dog’s name
Alvin appears in 8 dog licence records in the 2026 New York City dataset.
How to read this count
These records cover New York City and may count the same dog in more than one licence period. They are not a national popularity ranking.
Pronunciation and rhythm
/ælvɪn/
US English sound sequence, converted from the CMU dictionary. Stress marks are shown separately.
Stress on the first syllable in the recorded US readings.
View dictionary notation
/ælvɪn/ · primary stress on syllable 1AE1 L V IH0 N
These are US dictionary readings. Personal, regional and other language pronunciations may differ.
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Sources and research notes (2)
- New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene NYC Dog Licensing Dataset — extract_year 2026 — Dog licence periods, not unique dogs; NYC only. No owner-level fields retrieved.
- Carnegie Mellon University / CMU Sphinx maintainers CMU US English Pronouncing Dictionary — US English dictionary readings; not owner-specific or exhaustive multilingual pronunciation
References support the individual facts shown. A source link does not mean the entire profile has been verified.