Baby Name of the Day: Swithun

The baby name Swithun comes from a medieval legend, and a modern superstition, too. 

Thanks to Paul for suggesting our Baby Name of the Day.

WHAT DOES THE NAME SWITHUN MEAN?

In simplest terms, Swithun or Swithin is the name of a saint. 

Back in the 9th century, Swithun was a bishop from Wessex, England, serving in the court of King Egbert. 

Like many Old English choices, the baby name Swithun faded post-Norman invasion. Sources link the name an Old English word for strong – swith – and possibly a word meaning bear or bear cub. Some tie the name to swifan – the source of our words swivel and swift. But that last one is probably folk etymology. 

But the etymological origin of the name Swithun is probably the least important part of the story. 

SAINT SWITHIN’S DAY

Over the years, the saint became associated with many a miracle. But before that, Swithun served as a cleric at in the royal court. He tutored future rulers of Wessex.

But we remember him for something a little different: the ability to predict the weather. as well as the weather. If it rains on July 15 – St. Swithun’s Day – grab your umbrella, and keep it close for forty days: For forty days it will remain; St Swithun’s day, if thou be fair; For forty days ’twill rain no more

Theories abound for the rhyme’s origins. One possibility: despite holding the lofty office of Bishop of Winchester, Swithin requested a simple burial outside the church, “where the sweet rain of heaven may fall upon my grave.”

Interestingly enough, it’s not a bad predictor. The position of the jet stream in mid-July tends to bring six weeks’ of rainy (or dry) weather to the British Isles every summer. 

Throughout Europe, other cultures attributed predictive powers to other saints with midsummer feasts. It may be an old pagan custom dressed up in Christian clothing, one that actually does reflect lived experience.

Or not, because the prediction has never literally come true. 

Still, as old school rhymes go, it’s a real charmer – quirkier than even Rufus or Dashiell.

SWITHIN WELLS

Believe it or not, there’s a second Saint Swithin, from the 16th century.

It suggests that Swithin remained in use as a boy’s name over the centuries, almost certainly thanks to the first saint. (Or perhaps to boys born on his feast day.)

Swithin Wells was a Roman Catholic of some means during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. Catholics persecution hit a fever pitch. Wells and his family did their best to shelter Catholic priests, and shuffle them from safehouse to safehouse. 

After authorities discovered his efforts, the crown executed Wells.

Pope Paul VI officially canonized Saint Swithin in 1970, one of the Forty Martyrs of England and Wales.

As far as we’re aware, this second saint by the same name never predicted the weather.

ST. SWITHUN’S DAY IN POP CULTURE

You’ll also sometimes hear St. Swithun’s Day used to refer to a day that will never come, like “the 12th of Never.”

But typically the name Swithin or Swithun refers to the saint. References include:

• In the 19th century, Eliza Hutchinson Gutch was a contributor to Notes and Queries, a journal of English language and literature, under the pseudonym St. Swithin.
• Virginia Woolf’s 1941 Between the Acts– a play-within-a-play – includes a character named Lucy Swithin praying for clear skies.
• During the 1950s, Richard Gordon penned a series of novels about medical student Simon Sparrow and his work at fictional St. Swithin’s Hospital in London. The 1954 film adaptation, Doctor in the House, made Dirk Bogarde a star. A successful television show followed in the late 60s and ran for years.
• References to the saint’s day abound in American television, too, from M.A.S.H. to the Simpsons to the Sopranos.
• Ellis Peter’s Brother Cadfael mystery novels mention St. Swithun, as does the kind-of-sort-of medieval movie A Knight’s Tale.

More recently, July 15th becomes a key plot point in the David Nicholls novel turned movie, turned Netflix series, One Day. 

In The Dark Knight Rises, there’s an orphanage named after St. Swithun. 

SURNAME NAME

While Swithin is almost exclusively a first name, there is a similar surname.

Surname Swithenbanc or Swithinbank is typically given a Scandinavian origin. According to these accounts, variations including Swinbank ultimately mean “hill slope cleared by burning land.” Or similar. 

So it doesn’t seem to be related to the first name or share the same meaning of Swithun … but it’s always possible there’s an undiscovered link.

HOW POPULAR IS THE NAME SWITHUN?

Swithin doesn’t sound like the kind of name you’d hear in America circa 2025, and the numbers bear that out.

Even with modern names like Sebastian and Theo and Sutton trending, Swithun stands out.

Looking at the data for baby boy names since 1880:

• The name Swithun has never been given to even five boys in a single year.
• The same is true for Swithin.

And yet, it absolutely was a given name. Nancy lists it in her data set of popular male names in England, 1560 to 1621. It appears on plenty of name websites. And we can’t quit Swithin, thanks to the rhyme.

INTRIGUING and STORIED SWITHIN

Either spelling leads to a name that has a story to tell. It sounds old school, and there aren’t any obvious nicknames to easily update Swithun/Swithin.

But for the right family, this could be the offbeat, unexpected, perfect choice for a son.

What do you think of the baby name Swithun?

First published on October 14, 2009, this post was revised on July 14, 2025.