Kelvin (given name)

Not to be confused with Kevin.

Kelvin is a masculine given name, ultimately derived from the title of William Thomson, 1st Baron Kelvin, who received a baronage named for the River Kelvin (the river flowing past the University of Glasgow) in 1892. Isolated use of "Kelvin" as a given name is recorded in England in the 1920s,^[1] and the name rises in popularity in the United States around 1950, according to the authors of the Oxford Dictionary of First Names possibly by association with the similar-sounding Kevin, which surged in popularity at about the same time, and maybe further influenced by Calvin and Melvin.^[1] In the United States the name peaked in popularity at rank 209 in 1961 and has declined steadily since, dropping to rank 726 as of 2016.^[2]

People with the given name

In arts and entertainment

• Kelvin Fletcher, English actor
• Kelvin Gosnell, British comics editor
• Kelvin Harrison Jr., American actor
• Kelvin Holly, American guitarist
• Kelvin Mercer, American DJ
• Kelvin Sng, Singaporean film director
• Kelvin Tan Wei Lian, Singaporean singer

In politics

• Kelvin Davis, New Zealand Member of Parliament
• Kelvin Goertzen, Canadian politician
• Kelvin Hopkins, British Labour MP
• Kelvin Ogilvie, Canadian chemist and senator
• Kelvin Thomson, Australian politician

In sports

Football (soccer)

• Kelvin Clarke, English former footballer
• Kelvin Davis, English footballer
• Kelvin Etuhu, Nigerian footballer
• Kelvin Jack, Trinidadian footballer
• Kelvin Langmead, English footballer
• Kelvin Lomax, English footballer
• Kelvin Mateus de Oliveira, Brazilian footballer
• Kelvin Wilson, English footballer

American football

• Kelvin Anderson, retired American football player
• Kelvin Benjamin, American football player
• Kelvin Bryant, American football player
• Kelvin Harmon, American football player
• Kelvin Hayden, American football player
• Kelvin Joseph (born 1999), American football player
• Kelvin Kinney, American football player
• Kelvin Kirk, American football player
• Kelvin Korver, American football player
• Kelvin Smith, American football player

Australian rules football

• Kelvin Matthews, former Australian rules footballer
• Kelvin Moore, former Australian rules footballer
• Kelvin W. Moore, former Australian rules footballer
• Kelvin Templeton, former Australian rules footballer

Basketball

• Kelvin Cato, American basketball player
• Kelvin dela Peña, Filipino-Canadian basketball player
• Kelvin Ransey, American basketball player
• Kelvin Sampson, American basketball coach
• Kelvin Scarborough, American basketball player
• Kelvin Upshaw, American basketball player

Other sports

• Kelvin Batey, English competitive BMW racer
• Kelvin Burt, British auto racing driver
• Kelvin Davis, American boxer
• Kelvin Gastelum, American mixed martial artist
• Kelvin Kiptum, Kenyan long-distance runner
• Kelvin Jiménez, Dominican baseball player

In other fields

• Kelvin Droegemeier, American meteorologist and government advisor
• Kelvin Holdsworth, Scottish clergyman
• Kelvin Kent (disambiguation), multiple people
• Kelvin Lancaster, American academic
• Kelvin MacKenzie, British media executive
• Kelvin Malone, American spree killer
• Kelvin Martin, American criminal
• Kelvin Ogilvie, Canadian chemist and senator

Fictional characters

• Kelvin Carpenter, fictional character in the television show EastEnders
• Kelvin Gemstone, fictional character in the television show The Righteous Gemstones
• Kelvin Joe Inman, secondary character on the ABC television drama Lost

References

1. A Dictionary of First Names. Oxford University Press (2007) s.v. "Kelvin".
2. behindthename.com