# Wells (first name)

Source: https://namelineage.com/first-name/wells/  
Publisher: Name Lineage. US counts from the Social Security Administration; England and Wales counts from the Office for National Statistics; meaning and etymology from Wiktionary. Data updated 2026-11-11.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Usually given to | boys |
| Origin | English |
| Meaning | “spring” |
| Pronunciation | /wɛlz/, 1 syllable |
| Nicknames | none recorded |
| Variant spellings | Wels |
| US babies named this | 7,164 since 1880 |
| Boys / girls in the US | 6,989 / 175 (2% girls) |
| Babies in England and Wales | 7, 1996 to 2025 |

## Etymology

From Old English wella, genitive plural of well (“spring”), in reference to a residence near a group of springs. The original use of the genitive case here would've indicated origin. The -s ending of the modern form would be added later on upon reanalysis after the breakdown of the case system (outside of pronouns) that occurred in the development of English.

## What it means

Wells is grouped under water.

## Popularity

The last 15 years of each series. A year is missing when too few babies were given the name for the agency to publish it: five in the US, three in England and Wales.

### United States, girls

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 6 | 16,884 |
| 2011 | 5 | 19,444 |
| 2013 | 6 | 16,425 |
| 2014 | 7 | 14,488 |
| 2015 | 7 | 14,405 |
| 2016 | 12 | 9,394 |
| 2017 | 10 | 10,652 |
| 2018 | 13 | 8,583 |
| 2019 | 18 | 6,688 |
| 2020 | 10 | 10,209 |
| 2021 | 17 | 6,950 |
| 2022 | 15 | 7,608 |
| 2023 | 18 | 6,662 |
| 2024 | 12 | 8,919 |
| 2025 | 14 | 7,865 |

### United States, boys

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 37 | 3,110 |
| 2012 | 51 | 2,485 |
| 2013 | 60 | 2,203 |
| 2014 | 88 | 1,727 |
| 2015 | 89 | 1,739 |
| 2016 | 124 | 1,418 |
| 2017 | 233 | 916 |
| 2018 | 327 | 731 |
| 2019 | 432 | 628 |
| 2020 | 521 | 546 |
| 2021 | 621 | 482 |
| 2022 | 659 | 469 |
| 2023 | 696 | 447 |
| 2024 | 869 | 378 |
| 2025 | 944 | 347 |

### England and Wales, boys

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 4 | 4,107 |
| 2024 | 3 | 5,119 |

## People named Wells

- Junior Wells, American Chicago blues vocalist, harmonica player, and recording artist (1934–1998)
- Wells Coates, Canadian architect (1895–1958)
- Phil Woods, American jazz alto saxophonist, clarinetist, bandleader, and composer (1931–2015)
- Andrew VanWyngarden, American musician (born 1983)

## How to read these numbers

A count is babies registered with that name in that year, not people alive now, so a name common a century ago can have a large total and few recent births.