Updated May 24, 2023 Share: Boy name origins & meanings Celtic : Chief Boy name variations Malvin Melvyn Mel Mal How Popular Is The Name Melvin Family name origins & meanings Scottish : Anglicized form of Gaelic Mac Gille Bheathain (see McIlwaine).Scottish : variant of Melville 1.Irish : Anglicized form of Gaelic Ó Maoil Mhín ‘descendant of the devotee of Maoilmhín’, a personal name meaning ‘gentle chieftain’.