Find out how popular the last name Sells is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Sells.

Sells, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Sells surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Sells in America

Sells is the 4110th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Sells surname appeared 8,633 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 3 people would have the surname Sells.

We can also compare 2010 data for Sells to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Sells

The surname SELLS originated in England during the medieval period. It is derived from the Old English word 'sellan', which means 'to sell' or 'to give'. The name likely referred to someone who worked as a merchant or trader.

The earliest recorded instance of the name SELLS dates back to the 13th century in the county of Yorkshire. In 1275, a man named Roger Sells was mentioned in the Hundred Rolls, an important census record from that time.

In the 14th century, the name appeared in various forms such as Selle, Selles, and Sellys. These variations were common due to the inconsistent spelling practices of the era. One notable example is John Selles, who was recorded in the Gloucestershire Subsidy Rolls of 1327.

The SELLS surname has connections to several place names in England, including Sells Green in Worcestershire and Sells Park in Hertfordshire. These locations may have derived their names from individuals bearing the SELLS surname who once lived or owned land there.

Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the SELLS surname. One of the earliest was Sir John Sells (1520-1588), an English landowner and Member of Parliament during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I.

Another prominent figure was William Sells (1684-1745), a British architect and surveyor who designed several churches and country houses in the early 18th century.

In the 19th century, Isaac Sells (1802-1889) was a prominent American businessman and philanthropist who co-founded the Sells Brothers Circus, one of the earliest and most successful circuses in the United States.

John Sells (1847-1920) was a Canadian politician and lawyer who served as a Member of Parliament and was appointed to the Senate of Canada in 1917.

One of the most famous individuals with the SELLS surname was Curt Sells (1923-2008), an American actor and stuntman who appeared in numerous films and television shows throughout the 20th century.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Sells

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Sells.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Sells was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Sells has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Sells was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Sells, please contact us.

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!