Lewin
Originally a medieval personal-name surname meaning “dear friend,” from Old English Leofwine.
The #6,653 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 60,681 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Lewin is usually a surname formed from a medieval given name, not directly from a place or occupation. The main English source is Old English Leofwine, made from leof meaning “dear” and wine meaning “friend.” In later use the name was shortened and reshaped into forms such as Lewin and Levin, and in some cases it was also understood as “son of Lewin” or “son of Lewis.”
History
The name appears in medieval records as a personal name and then as a hereditary surname. English surname writers often connect it with the Old English Leofwine, a name borne by early medieval landholders and other prominent men. In later centuries the spelling Lewin spread in England, while related forms such as Levin and Lewison/Lewinson also developed.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Some 19th-century surname books explicitly gloss Lewin as a descendant of the old name Leofwine, “the dear friend.”
From the historical record
“Cecilia Je (ale) Cmker, co. Line, Ibid. Lewin Crawcoor & Col, upheUltrtrs: 'Londoq Diredory. Morria CnwcDor, inJutand and nOir KKktrx ibid.”
— A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with special American instances