Edwina

Edwina is the female form of Edwin. Edwin, in turn, is a very old Anglo-Saxon personal name originally rendered as Eadwine, from the Olde English elements “ead” meaning “prosperity, riches” and “wine” meaning “friend.”  In other words, Edwina means “prosperous friend.”  The ancient name Eadwine was most famously borne by a 7th century King of Northumbria (a medieval pagan kingdom of the Angles in what is now northern England and parts of Scotland).  King Eadwine converted to Christianity in 627 and was subsequently slain in the Battle of Hatfield Chase by opposing pagan forces.  This unfortunate outcome led to Edwin being venerated as a martyr and a saint in the Roman Catholic Church – it also served to popularize his name.  In fact, Edwin is one of the few Olde English masculine names to survive the aftermath of the Norman Conquest of 1066. The female variation of this name, Edwina, was not coined until much later in the 19th century.