Fun Facts About the Name Burwell
- 167 babies named Burwell: U.S. records list 167 babies given the name Burwell from 1880 through 2025.
What Does the Name Burwell Mean?
Burwell is an English habitational name meaning "spring by the fort" or "stream by the fort." It comes from Old English burh, "fort" or "fortified place," and wella, "spring" or "stream." The literal sense is topographical: a spring or stream near a fortification. The name was originally a place name, referring to settlements such as Burwell in Cambridgeshire and Burwell in Lincolnshire. As a surname, it belongs to the class of English names taken from the place where a person lived or held land. The given name Burwell is a transferred use of the surname rather than a separate Old English personal name.
Burwell Name History & Origins
The surname Burwell comes from one or more English places called Burwell. The Cambridgeshire village of Burwell is recorded in Domesday Book in 1086. There is also a Burwell in Lincolnshire. Both are old settlements whose names were formed in the Old English period, before the Norman Conquest. The place name combines burh, "fort" or "fortified place," with wella, "spring" or "stream," so it describes a spring or stream near a fortification.
During the Middle Ages, English surnames became hereditary, and people from these villages took the name Burwell as a surname. The surname is associated with eastern England, especially Cambridgeshire and Lincolnshire. As a given name, Burwell is a later transferred use of that surname. It appears in colonial and early American records, particularly in Virginia, where the Bassett family used it in the 18th century. Burwell Bassett (1734 - 1793) and his son Burwell Bassett Jr. (1764 - 1841) are examples. The name has remained uncommon as a first name and is still more often found as a surname.
How Popular is the Name Burwell?
Burwell has historically been an exceptionally rare given name in the United States, remaining well outside the national mainstream. It saw its highest recorded annual births in 1918. Its best rank was #2,175 in 1918.
U.S. name popularity from 1880-2025, based on SSA data. Rank shows how the name compares with other names - lower numbers mean greater popularity. Births shows how many babies received the name each year.
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1958 | #3,586 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1955 | #3,946 | 5 | 0.0002% |
| 1952 | #3,805 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1949 | #3,060 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1944 | #3,492 | 5 | 0.0004% |
| 1941 | #3,565 | 5 | 0.0004% |
| 1940 | #3,176 | 6 | 0.0005% |
| 1939 | #3,548 | 5 | 0.0005% |
| 1937 | #3,595 | 5 | 0.0005% |
| 1934 | #3,737 | 5 | 0.0005% |
| 1933 | #2,776 | 8 | 0.0008% |
| 1932 | #3,418 | 6 | 0.0006% |
| 1930 | #3,325 | 7 | 0.0006% |
| 1928 | #3,760 | 6 | 0.0005% |
| 1927 | #3,834 | 6 | 0.0005% |
| 1925 | #4,286 | 5 | 0.0004% |
| 1924 | #3,934 | 6 | 0.0005% |
| 1922 | #3,918 | 6 | 0.0006% |
| 1921 | #3,568 | 7 | 0.0006% |
| 1920 | #3,253 | 8 | 0.0008% |
| 1919 | #2,279 | 13 | 0.0013% |
| 1918 | #2,175 | 14 | 0.0014% |
| 1917 | #2,988 | 8 | 0.0009% |
| 1916 | #2,961 | 8 | 0.0009% |
| 1913 | #2,883 | 5 | 0.0010% |
Name popularity over more than a century, based on Social Security Administration data. Gaps in the chart indicate years when the name does not appear in the published records.
Most Popular Boy Names That Start with B
How the Name Burwell Shapes Your Personality and Life?
You can go to great heights and equally great depths. You are emotional and fixed in your opinions. You are hospitable, sentimental, often psychic, sometimes moody. You are ruled by love and the lack of it and feel a need to be encouraged and appreciated. Emergencies may raise your intuitive abilities in order to resolve conflict or situation. You become very creative under the pressure, and have quite original ideas to make the best out of it.
Creative and outgoing, you are always looking for an opportunity to show your abilities, especially before audience. You are very flexible and like to feel appreciated. You are looking for chances to mix with others socially and to communicate your ideas. You like to talk and can easily relate to different cultures and concepts. The biggest challenge for you is uncertainty. Easily getting bored, you can move from one job to another, switch projects and lovers. The high creative force can lead you either to happiness or unhappiness. If you understand your goals, if you can make major decisions in life and follow it directly and straight up without worry and uncertainty, you are able to achieve great heights.
✦ Burwell's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Burwell's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.