Definition of "Melvin"

Melville always wrote his name Melvinus in Latin, and he is often called Melvin in English. Hence some have concluded that Melvin, and not Melville, was his proper name. But they are merely different modes of pronouncing the same family appellation.

1824 Thomas M'Crie, The Life of Andrew Melville, W. Blackwood (1824), page 416

And for some reason, they called me Pete. My mother, who probably dug up the name Melvin from some romantic novel about Englishmen drinking tea, cringed at the "Pete".

1976, Melvin Belli, My Life on Trial: An Autobiography, Morrow, page 21