Irwin is an English name of Germanic origin, derived from the Old Norse elements 'eyrr' meaning 'eagle' and 'wini' meaning 'friend'. This suggests that someone named Irwin might be considered a "friend like an eagle". It has been associated with notable figures such as Sir David Attenborough's father, Richard Frederick Attenborough, who was known as "Dick" Irwin.
Irwin was quite popular in 1918 with 5 births, but it wasn't until seven years later that its popularity grew further with another 7 births in 1925. Overall, Irwin has seen a total of 12 children born with this name across these two years.