Diminutive of Rawlings, from Ralph via Norman French Raoul, meaning wolf counsel.
Rawlin is a medieval English name of considerable historical pedigree, functioning as a diminutive and variant of Raulin, itself derived from the Old Germanic Raoul and ultimately from Hrōðland — the compound of "hrōð" (fame) and "land" (territory). That root name, Roland, belongs to one of the great heroic figures of Western literature: the paladin Roland of Charlemagne's court, immortalized in the eleventh-century French epic "La Chanson de Roland," whose death at Roncevaux Pass became a defining legend of medieval chivalry.
In England during the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, Rawlin and its variants Rawlings and Rawlinson circulated widely as both given names and patronymic surnames. English parish records from the medieval period show Rawlin appearing with some regularity, indicating it was a living, practical name rather than merely a literary invention. The surname Rawlings, carried today by millions, is essentially a fossilized patronymic meaning "son of Rawlin."
The name fell into disuse as a given name for several centuries, surviving mainly in family surnames, but its revival in the contemporary era fits perfectly into the broader renaissance of medieval English names — alongside Rowan, Rafferty, and Roderick — that parents now favor for their robust consonants and pre-modern character. Rawlin carries the ring of the tournament ground and the manuscript room simultaneously, a name that feels both rugged and educated.