Colin

In England, the name arose as a medieval diminutive of Col, a pet form of Nicholas. A separate northern lineage derives from Cailean, an older Gaelic name translating to young pup. American records first noted the name in 1880, where it sat quietly before expanding across the country in the late twentieth century.

A Colin tends to be pictured in a rain jacket, arriving precisely three minutes before a meeting starts. The name sits squarely in the mid-2000s, suggesting youth soccer tournaments played on turf fields and Saturday mornings sound-tracked by indie rock playlists. With an average age of twenty-seven, it reads like a lab partner who brought spare dry-erase markers. The name's primary occupational hazard is receiving emails addressed to an uninvited second l.