Variant of Evelyn, from the Norman French surname Aveline, possibly meaning wished-for child.
Evelin is one of several spelling variants of Evelyn, a name with a pleasingly tangled history. Evelyn began as an English surname, itself derived from the Norman French given name Aveline — a diminutive of Ava, which traces to the Germanic element avi, of uncertain meaning but possibly connected to the word for "bird" or simply to a shortened form of longer Germanic compound names. The surname Evelyn was eventually recycled as a given name in the classic English tradition of honoring family names, and for centuries it was used for both boys and girls.
The novelist Evelyn Waugh is perhaps the most famous male bearer, a reminder of the name's former gender ambiguity. On the female side, Evelyn has been borne by figures ranging from Evelyn Nesbit, the celebrated American model at the center of a sensational Gilded Age murder trial, to Evelyn Waugh's contemporary Evelyn Gardner (his first wife, whom friends called "She-Evelyn" to distinguish the pair). The variant spelling Evelin, more common in Central and Eastern European countries — particularly in Germany, Hungary, and across Scandinavia — strips away the final letter and gives the name a sleeker, more Continental silhouette.
Evelyn enjoyed a long Edwardian vogue, faded through much of the late twentieth century, and has roared back to prominence in the twenty-first century, consistently ranking among the top names in the United States and Britain. The Evelin spelling, meanwhile, appeals to parents who want the sound and warmth of the classic while distinguishing it slightly — or who come from European traditions where that form is native. Both versions share the same essential character: graceful, literary, and possessed of an old-soul elegance.