NameCensus.

UK surname

Wells

An occupational surname referring to someone who lived near, or worked with, a well or spring.

In the 1881 census there were 24,900 people recorded with the Wells surname, ranking it #134 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 33,345, ranked #157, down from #134 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to London parishes, St Pancras and Lambeth. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include New Forest, Lincoln and North Kesteven.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Wells is 35,066 in 1999. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 33.9%.

1881 census count

24,900

Ranked #134

Modern count

33,345

2016, ranked #157

Peak year

1999

35,066 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Wells had 24,900 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #134 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 33,345 in 2016, ranked #157.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 33,435 in 1911.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Rural Amenity.

Wells surname distribution map

The map shows where the Wells surname is concentrated in each census or modern distribution year. Darker areas mean a stronger local concentration.

Distribution map

Wells surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Wells over time

The table below tracks recorded surname counts and rank from the 19th-century census years through the modern adult-register period.

Year Period Count Rank
1851 historical 16,548 #130
1861 historical 15,375 #144
1881 historical 24,900 #134
1891 historical 27,028 #126
1901 historical 30,583 #133
1911 historical 33,435 #111
1997 modern 33,884 #145
1998 modern 34,892 #146
1999 modern 35,066 #147
2000 modern 34,921 #149
2001 modern 34,158 #148
2002 modern 34,676 #151
2003 modern 33,656 #151
2004 modern 33,631 #151
2005 modern 32,798 #153
2006 modern 32,649 #154
2007 modern 32,814 #154
2008 modern 32,972 #155
2009 modern 33,531 #155
2010 modern 34,210 #156
2011 modern 33,760 #156
2012 modern 33,068 #157
2013 modern 33,840 #156
2014 modern 34,000 #157
2015 modern 33,551 #157
2016 modern 33,345 #157

Geography

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Where Wells' are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around London parishes, St Pancras, Lambeth and Leicester St Margaret and Bishop's Fee, Leicester All Saints, Blackfriars. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to New Forest, Lincoln and North Kesteven. Treat these as concentration signals, not proof that every family line began there.

Some modern areas include a three-digit suffix, such as Leeds 110. The suffix is a small-area code, so it stays in the table while the prose uses the plain place name.

Top historical parishes

Rank Parish Area
1 London parishes London 1
2 London parishes London 3
3 St Pancras London (North Districts)
4 Lambeth London (South Districts)
5 Leicester St Margaret and Bishop's Fee, Leicester All Saints, Blackfriars Leicestershire

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 New Forest 011 New Forest
2 Lincoln 004 Lincoln
3 North Kesteven 007 North Kesteven
4 New Forest 013 New Forest
5 North Kesteven 003 North Kesteven

Forenames

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First names often paired with Wells

These lists show first names that appear often with the Wells surname in historical and recent records.

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Wells

Modern surname records can be compared with neighbourhood classifications. For Wells, this points to the kinds of places where the surname is most concentrated today.

These neighbourhood labels describe areas, not individual people. They are useful because surnames often cluster through family history, migration, housing patterns and local work. A surname can be strongest in one type of neighbourhood even when people with that name live across the country.

The UK classification gives the national picture. The London classification is more specific to the capital, where housing, age profile, tenure and population mix can look quite different from the rest of the UK.

UK neighbourhood type

UK Output Area Classification

Supergroup

Suburbanites and Peri-Urbanities

Group

Rural Amenity

Nationally, the Wells surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Rural Amenity, within Suburbanites and Peri-Urbanities. This does not mean every Wells household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

This Group comprises older parents or retirees, with no resident dependent children, and with the lowest residential densities in this Supergroup. Predominantly UK-born, residents typically live in detached houses, although others do live in semi-detached and terraced properties. The level of multiple car ownership is the highest in this Supergroup. Most houses are owner occupied although social renting is also present. Many concentrations occur in high amenity rural locations, such as Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

Wider pattern

Pervasive throughout the UK, members of this Supergroup typically own (or are buying) their detached, semi-detached or terraced homes. They are also typically educated to A Level/Highers or degree level and work in skilled or professional occupations. Typically born in the UK, some families have children, although the median adult age is above 45 and some property has become under-occupied after children have left home. This Supergroup is pervasive not only in suburban locations, but also in neighbourhoods at or beyond the edge of cities that adjoin rural parts of the country.

London neighbourhood type

London Output Area Classification

Supergroup

Older Residents in Owner-Occupied Suburbs

Group

London Fringe

Within London, Wells is most associated with areas classed as London Fringe, part of Older Residents in Owner-Occupied Suburbs. This gives the surname a London-specific profile rather than forcing the capital into the same pattern as the rest of the country.

Read profile summary

Group profile

Predominantly located in neighbourhoods on the outskirts of Greater London, residents of these neighbourhoods typically have their highest qualifications below degree (Level 4) level, with those still in work engaged in skilled trades and occupations in distribution, hotels and restaurants. There is low ethnic diversity in these neighbourhoods and high levels of Christian religious affiliation. Detached or terraced houses predominate, often with spare rooms.

Wider London pattern

The age distribution of these neighbourhoods is skewed towards the middle-aged and old, although few residents live alone or in communal establishments and numbers of dependent children are around average. Owner occupation is the norm, as is residence in detached or semi-detached houses. Residential densities are low and many households have spare rooms. Most residents were born in the UK and, aside from some identifying as members of Chinese or Indian ethnicities, identify as White. Mixed ethnicity households are rare. Incidence of married couples is higher than average and few individuals have never been married. A large proportion of individuals still in employment work in administrative and secretarial occupations, or in the construction industry. Few residents are students, and many households own more than one car.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Wells is most concentrated in decile 5 for access to healthy assets and hazards. This places the surname near the middle of the scale.

Lower deciles point towards weaker access to healthy assets or stronger exposure to local hazards. Higher deciles point towards stronger access and fewer hazards.

5
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Wells falls in decile 6 for neighbourhood deprivation. This puts the surname near the middle of the scale.

Decile 1 represents the more deprived end of the scale. Decile 10 represents the less deprived end.

6
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

The modern neighbourhood pattern for Wells is most associated with a typical fixed broadband download band of 30-40 mbit/s.

The scale below places that band in context, from slower local download bands through to faster ones.

6
Slower band Faster band

Area snapshot

Ethnic group estimate

Most common ethnic group estimate
White - British

This describes the area pattern most associated with Wells, not the ethnicity of every person with the surname.

Meaning and origin of Wells

The surname Wells is of English origin and dates back to the Middle Ages. It is a topographical name, derived from the Old English word 'wielle', meaning a spring or stream. The name was originally given to someone who lived near a well or natural spring.

In its earliest forms, the name was recorded as 'atte Welle' or 'at Welle' in the 13th century. This suggests that the name originally referred to someone who lived near a specific well or water source. Over time, the 'atte' or 'at' was dropped, and the name became simply Wells.

The surname can be traced back to various parts of England, including Somerset, Gloucestershire, and Kent. It is particularly prevalent in areas with an abundance of natural springs and wells, which were important sources of water for communities in earlier times.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Wells appears in the Hundred Rolls of 1273, where a Robert atte Welle is mentioned in Oxfordshire. The Domesday Book of 1086 also contains references to places with the name 'Welle', such as Wells in Somerset, which may have been the origin of some early bearers of the surname.

Notable individuals with the surname Wells throughout history include:

1. Samuel Wells (1614-1675), an English Congregational minister and one of the founders of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. 2. William Charles Wells (1757-1817), an American physician and scientist known for his contributions to the study of dew and the discovery of the Wells-Gye effect. 3. Herbert George Wells (1866-1946), the renowned English writer and pioneer of science fiction, best known for works like "The Time Machine" and "The War of the Worlds". 4. Ida B. Wells (1862-1931), an African American investigative journalist and civil rights activist who played a pivotal role in the anti-lynching movement. 5. Orson Welles (1915-1985), the American actor, director, and writer, famous for his innovative work in film, including masterpieces like "Citizen Kane" and "The Magnificent Ambersons".

The surname Wells has also been associated with various place names throughout England, such as Wells-next-the-Sea in Norfolk and Wells in Somerset, which was formerly known as Welle or Wells-by-the-Sea.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Wells families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Wells surname. Use the location tables for concentration, then the name and occupation tables for the people behind the surname.

Top counties

Total is the county count. Frequency and index adjust for local population size, so they are better concentration signals. Middlesex leads with 3,983 Wells' recorded in 1881 and an index of 1.64x.

County Total Index
Middlesex 3,983 1.64x
Surrey 2,264 1.91x
Kent 2,180 2.63x
Yorkshire 2,124 0.88x
Lancashire 1,200 0.42x
Sussex 1,048 2.56x
Lincolnshire 972 2.50x
Hampshire 851 1.71x
Leicestershire 804 2.98x
Norfolk 798 2.14x
Warwickshire 730 1.19x
Nottinghamshire 595 1.82x
Berkshire 578 3.17x
Suffolk 541 1.83x
Essex 527 1.10x
Hertfordshire 474 2.83x
Oxfordshire 440 2.93x
Northamptonshire 365 1.60x
Staffordshire 329 0.40x
Wiltshire 328 1.53x
Derbyshire 319 0.84x
Worcestershire 309 0.97x
Bedfordshire 285 2.26x
Gloucestershire 270 0.57x
Durham 260 0.36x
Cambridgeshire 235 1.53x
Buckinghamshire 226 1.54x
Somerset 189 0.48x
Cheshire 140 0.26x
Midlothian 135 0.41x
Devon 134 0.26x
Dumfriesshire 128 2.38x
Cumberland 116 0.55x
Lanarkshire 115 0.15x
Dorset 104 0.65x
Northumberland 100 0.28x
Glamorgan 91 0.22x
Monmouthshire 75 0.43x
Perthshire 60 0.55x
Westmorland 60 1.12x
Huntingdonshire 58 1.20x
Cornwall 31 0.11x
Pembrokeshire 28 0.36x
Royal Navy 28 0.97x
Shropshire 27 0.13x
Kinross-shire 18 2.93x
Kirkcudbrightshire 17 0.48x
Aberdeenshire 16 0.07x
Ayrshire 16 0.09x
Herefordshire 16 0.16x
Denbighshire 15 0.16x
Channel Islands 14 0.19x
Stirlingshire 14 0.16x
Carmarthenshire 13 0.13x
Angus 12 0.05x
Renfrewshire 12 0.06x
Brecknockshire 10 0.21x
Inverness-shire 10 0.14x
Banffshire 9 0.18x
Caernarfonshire 9 0.09x
Anglesey 8 0.19x
Dunbartonshire 8 0.12x
West Lothian 8 0.22x
Morayshire 7 0.19x
Rutland 6 0.34x
Roxburghshire 5 0.11x
Wigtownshire 4 0.12x
Fife 3 0.02x
Argyllshire 2 0.03x
Flintshire 2 0.03x
Merionethshire 2 0.05x
Berwickshire 1 0.03x
Cardiganshire 1 0.02x
East Lothian 1 0.03x
Isle of Man 1 0.02x
Peeblesshire 1 0.09x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Islington London in Middlesex leads with 484 Wells' recorded in 1881 and an index of 2.05x.

Place Total Index
Islington London 484 2.05x
Lambeth 344 1.62x
St Pancras London 297 1.52x
Leicester St Margaret 283 4.31x
Brighton 270 3.27x
Camberwell 265 1.71x
Aston 237 1.40x
Hackney London 237 1.74x
Kensington London 216 1.60x
Newington 210 2.34x
Portsea 182 1.86x
Birmingham 181 0.89x
Nottingham St Mary 178 2.10x
St Marylebone London 177 1.36x
Croydon 172 2.62x
Bethnal Green London 163 1.54x
Shoreditch London 163 1.55x
Leeds 162 1.19x
Mile End Old Town 150 3.91x
Hammersmith London 142 2.37x
Deptford St Paul 132 2.06x
Bermondsey 128 1.77x
Paddington London 122 1.37x
Tonbridge 121 4.05x
Sheffield 118 1.54x
West Ham 116 1.10x
Battersea 115 1.29x
Chatham 112 4.91x
Holy Trinity 112 1.93x
Chelsea London 109 1.49x
Clerkenwell London 109 1.90x
Poplar London 103 2.25x
St George Hanover 102 3.22x
Greenwich 100 2.58x
Kingston On Thames 96 3.37x
Fulham London 91 2.58x
Rotherhithe 88 2.93x
Lewisham 87 1.97x
Sculcoates 83 2.17x
Bow London 75 2.42x
Bowling 75 3.14x
Toxteth Park 75 0.77x
Great Yarmouth 74 2.39x
Gillingham 71 4.15x
Brightside Bierlow 67 1.42x
Manchester 67 0.52x
Tottenham 66 1.71x
East Dereham 65 13.77x
Liverpool 65 0.37x
Bradford 63 1.08x
Edinburgh St Cuthberts 63 0.48x
Farnham 61 6.62x
Bushey 59 14.79x
Willesden 59 2.58x
Bromley 57 4.51x
Woolwich 57 1.86x
Bromley London 56 1.05x
Rothwell 56 24.39x
Brasted 55 51.17x
Heigham 55 2.74x
Plumstead 54 1.95x
Biggleswade 53 12.86x
Southwark St George Martyr 53 1.08x
Great Grimsby 52 2.11x
Bury St Edmunds St James 51 6.45x
Bray 49 9.14x
Brenchley 48 16.17x
Everton 48 0.52x
Kings Norton 48 1.69x
Boston 47 3.99x
Margate St John Baptist 47 3.10x
St Luke London 47 1.21x
Broadwater 46 4.89x
Keighley 46 1.79x
Ecclesall Bierlow 45 0.92x
Twickenham 45 4.32x
Whetstone 45 45.61x
Reading St Mary 44 3.01x
Acton 43 3.02x
Oldham 43 0.46x

Top female names

These are the female first names most often recorded with the Wells surname in 1881. Names are not merged, so initials, variant spellings and transcription quirks can appear as separate rows.

Name Count
Mary 1,447
Elizabeth 919
Sarah 881
Eliza 442
Emma 421
Ann 416
Jane 411
Annie 382
Ellen 371
Alice 369
Emily 359
Louisa 226
Hannah 207
Martha 192
Charlotte 184
Ada 173
Caroline 171
Harriet 169
Fanny 164
Florence 160
Maria 160
Edith 158
Kate 124
Frances 120
Margaret 118
Clara 116
Lucy 114
Susan 107
Catherine 106
Harriett 104
Rose 97
Agnes 92
Anne 86
Amy 76
Amelia 69
Sophia 66
Rebecca 64
Esther 63
Matilda 60
Jessie 54
Julia 54
Lydia 51
Minnie 51
Anna 49
Beatrice 48
Elizth. 48
Gertrude 47
Ethel 46
Susannah 45
Isabella 41

Top male names

These are the male first names most often recorded with the Wells surname in 1881. Names are not merged, so initials, variant spellings and transcription quirks can appear as separate rows.

Name Count
William 1,565
John 1,167
George 1,023
Thomas 752
James 709
Henry 586
Charles 550
Joseph 393
Alfred 367
Edward 312
Frederick 282
Arthur 272
Robert 236
Walter 229
Richard 189
Albert 184
Harry 180
Samuel 162
Herbert 123
Frank 117
Ernest 102
Benjamin 68
Francis 67
David 62
Wm. 59
Edwin 54
Fred 44
Percy 41
Stephen 41
Fredk. 40
Geo. 39
Thos. 37
Daniel 35
Edmund 33
Sidney 33
Fredrick 29
Isaac 27
Chas. 26
Jesse 26
Matthew 24
Tom 24
Horace 22
Mark 20
Christopher 19
Lewis 19
Philip 19
Willm. 18
Abraham 17
Andrew 17
Willie 16

Top occupations

Occupational titles are kept as recorded and later transcribed, so related jobs, spelling variants and mistakes stay separate. Scholar was the census term for a child in education. That means the other rows often tell you more about adult work in Wells households.

FAQ

Wells surname: questions and answers

How common was the Wells surname in 1881?

In 1881, 24,900 people were recorded with the Wells surname. That placed it at #134 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Wells surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 33,345 in 2016. That gives Wells a modern rank of #157.

What does the Wells surname mean?

An occupational surname referring to someone who lived near, or worked with, a well or spring.

What does the Wells map show?

The map shows local surname concentration for the selected year. Darker areas have a stronger concentration of Wells bearers relative to the surrounding population.

What records is this surname page based on?

The historical counts come from census surname records. The modern counts and neighbourhood summaries come from later surname distribution records. Counts are recorded bearers in those records, not a live estimate of everyone with the name today.