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

Welles, 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 Welles surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Welles in America

Welles is the 19291st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Welles surname appeared 1,404 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Welles.

We can also compare 2010 data for Welles 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 Welles

The surname Welles originated in England, first appearing in records dating back to the 12th century. It is derived from the Old English words "welle" and "wiell," meaning a well or spring of water. Many places in England were named after wells, such as Welles in Norfolk, and this surname likely originated from a person who lived near or was associated with such a location.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Welles can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, which was a comprehensive survey of landowners and property holders in England and parts of Wales. This suggests that the name had already been established by the time of the Norman conquest in 1066.

In the 13th century, a notable individual with the surname Welles was Adam de Welles, who was the Lord Chancellor of England from 1265 to 1268 during the reign of King Henry III. Another early bearer of the name was John Welles, who was a member of the English Parliament in 1301 and represented Somerset.

During the Wars of the Roses in the 15th century, a prominent figure named Sir Robert Welles led the Lincolnshire Rebellion against King Edward IV in 1470. Although the rebellion was ultimately crushed, Sir Robert Welles played a significant role in this historical event.

In the 16th century, a renowned playwright named John Welles was born in England around 1530. He is known for his plays "The Old Wives Tale" and "The Pardoneres Tale," which were published in 1595.

Another noteworthy individual with the surname Welles was Gideon Welles, who was born in 1802 in Connecticut, United States. He served as the Secretary of the Navy under President Abraham Lincoln during the American Civil War from 1861 to 1869.

Orson Welles, the acclaimed American actor, director, and writer, was born in 1915 in Wisconsin. He is best known for his groundbreaking film "Citizen Kane" and for his iconic voice work in radio and television.

Throughout history, the surname Welles has also been associated with various place names, such as Welles in Somerset, Welles in Lincolnshire, and Welles in Norfolk, all of which were likely named after natural wells or springs in those areas.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Welles

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

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 Welles 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 Welles 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 Welles was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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