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Wells (name)

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Wells
Origin
Word/nameEnglish
Meaning"spring"
Region of originEngland
Other names
Variant form(s)Well, Welman, Welles, Wellman and Wellsman

Wells is a surname of English origin, but is occasionally used as a given name too. It derives from occupation, location, and topography. The occupational name (i.e. "Wellman") derives from the person responsible for a village's spring. The locational name (i.e. "Well") derives from the pre-7th century "wælla" ("spring"). The topographical name (i.e. "Attewell") derives from living near a spring. The oldest public record is found in 1177 in the county of Norfolk. Variations of Wells include Well, Welman, Welles, Wellman and Wellsman.[1][2] At the time of the British Census of 1881 Wells Surname at Forebears,[3] its relative frequency was highest in Berkshire (3.2 times the British average), followed by Leicestershire, Oxfordshire, Kinross-shire, Huntingdonshire, Kent, Sussex, Lincolnshire, Dumfriesshire and Bedfordshire. People with the name include:

Surname

A

B

C

D

E

F

  • Fay Gillis Wells (1908–2002), pioneer aviator, journalist and broadcaster
  • Frank Wells (1932–1994), American entertainment businessman

G

H

I

  • Ida B. Wells (1862–1931), African American civil rights leader
  • Ima Wells (1936–2014), American educator and politician
  • Ira K. Wells (1871–1934), American lawyer and federal judge

J

K

  • Keith Wells (1962–1994), convicted and executed murderer
  • Kent Wells (born 1967), American football player
  • Kerry Anne Wells, Miss Australia and Miss Universe, 1972
  • Killian Wells, American pop music artist and entrepreneur
  • Kip Wells (born Robert Wells, 1977), American baseball player
  • Kitty Wells (born Ellen Muriel Deason, 1919–2012), American country music singer
  • Kristin Wells, the secret identity of the 1981 version of DC Comics Superwoman

L

  • L. M. Wells (1862–1923), American actor of the silent era
  • Lawrence Wells (1860–1938), Australian explorer
  • Lee Wells (born 1971), American artist, curator, technology and art consultant
  • Lemuel H. Wells (1841–1936), first Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Spokane
  • Leo Wells (1917–2006), American baseball player
  • Lesley B. Wells (born 1937), U.S. federal judge
  • Linton Wells (1893–1976), American foreign correspondent, world traveller and pioneer broadcaster
  • Lloyd C. A. Wells (1924–2005), American sports photographer and civil rights advocate
  • Lloyd Wells (born c. mid-1940s), American jazz guitarist
  • Lynn Wells, American civil rights activist during the 1960s

M

N

O

P

R

S

T

V

W

Z

  • Zach Wells (born Zachary Stephen Wells, 1981), American soccer goalkeeper
  • Zachariah Wells (born 1976), Canadian poet, critic, essayist and editor
  • Zeb Wells, American comic book writer

First name

  • Wells A. Hutchins (1818–1895), U.S. Representative from Ohio
  • Wells Coates (1895–1958), Canadian-born English architect, designer and writer
  • Wells Goodykoontz (1872–1944), American politician from West Virginia
  • Wells Spicer (1831–1887?), American journalist, prospector, politician, lawyer and judge
  • Wells Thompson (born 1983), American soccer player
  • Wells Tower (born 1973), American writer of short stories and non-fiction
  • Wells Twombly (1935–1977), American sportswriter and author

Other parts of name

See also

References

  1. ^ "Surname: Wells". surnamedb.com. Retrieved 2008-04-09. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  2. ^ "Wells Family Crest and Name History". houseofnames.com. 9 April 2008. Retrieved 2008-04-09. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  3. ^ "Wells Surname Meaning, Origins & Distribution". forebears.io.