# Newell (surname)

Source: https://namelineage.com/surname/newell/  
Publisher: Name Lineage. Counts from the US Census Bureau; origin and etymology from Wiktionary; bearers from Wikidata. Data updated 2026-11-11.

A surname.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Origin | not recorded |
| Type | patronymic, formed from a father’s (or ancestor’s) given name |
| People in the US (2010 Census) | 32,909 |
| US rank (2010) | 1,064 of 162,253 |
| How often | about 1 in every 9,382 people |
| Change since 2000 | +5.1% (31,317 in 2000) |
| Pronunciation | /ˈnuːəl/, 2 syllables |
| Variant spellings | Newall |

## Etymology

Two main origins: * A variant of Neville or Noel. * Reduced Anglicized form of Irish Ó Tnúthghail (“descendant of Tnúthgal”), a personal name composed by the elements tnúth (“desire; envy”) + gal (“valor”).

## Who carries it

Share of people named Newell in the 2010 US Census by the Census's own race and ethnicity groups. The Census suppresses a share when the count behind it is small.

| Group | Share |
|---|---|
| White (not Hispanic) | 79% |
| Black (not Hispanic) | 15% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 2.4% |
| Asian and Pacific Islander | 0.6% |
| American Indian and Alaska Native | 0.8% |
| Two or more races | 1.9% |

## Where

Wikidata records people named Newell in the United States and the United Kingdom.

## People named Newell

- Gabe Newell, American computer programmer and businessman
- Mike Newell, British director and producer (born 1942)
- Allen Newell, American cognitive scientist (1927–1992)
- Alex Newell, American actor and singer (born 1992)
- Andrew Newell, American cross-country skier
- Asa Newell, American basketball player (born 2005)
- Pete Newell, American college men's basketball coach (1915–2008)
- Norman D. Newell, American paleontologist and curator at the American Museum of Natural History (1909–2005)
- David Newell, American actor (1905-1980)

## Similar surnames

Nowell, Neely, Neill, Neeley, Neel, Nell, Noell, Newhall, Neal, Noel, Noll, Neil.

## How to read these numbers

A Census count is people alive and counted in 2010, not births, and names occurring fewer than 100 times are not published at all. Ethnicity shares are the Census's own categories.