Fun Facts About the Name Welles
- 480 babies named Welles: U.S. records list 480 babies given the name Welles from 1880 through 2025. Even 10 girls received the name Welles - about 1 girl for every 47 boys.
What Does the Name Welles Mean?
Welles is an English surname used as a given name, and it is a variant spelling of Wells. It comes from Old English wella or wielle, meaning "spring, stream, or fountain," with the plural or genitive ending -s; the literal sense is "springs" or "streams." As a topographic surname, it described someone who lived by springs or streams. As a habitational surname, it described someone from a place named Wells, such as Wells in Somerset, whose name also comes from the springs there. The well in this name is the water source, not the adverb well.
Welles Name History & Origins
The surname Welles developed in medieval England, where surnames often recorded where a person lived or came from. Topographic names like Wells and Welles identified people who lived near springs or streams; habitational forms identified people who came from a village or town called Wells. The city of Wells in Somerset is named for the springs that rise there, and it is one of the places that gave rise to the surname. Spelling was not fixed in the Middle Ages, so Wells, Welles, and other variants appeared. English colonists brought the surname to North America, and it has also been used there as a given name. Orson Welles, the American actor and director, is the best-known modern bearer of the surname, but Welles as a given name is a transferred surname rather than an inherited Old English personal name.
How Popular is the Name Welles?
Welles 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 2021. Its best rank was #2,437 in 2021.
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 | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | #17,373 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2019 | #17,832 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #2,985 | 42 | 0.0025% |
| 2024 | #3,583 | 32 | 0.0019% |
| 2023 | #3,699 | 31 | 0.0018% |
| 2022 | #2,955 | 43 | 0.0025% |
| 2021 | #2,437 | 56 | 0.0032% |
| 2020 | #3,407 | 33 | 0.0019% |
| 2019 | #3,048 | 40 | 0.0022% |
| 2018 | #2,705 | 46 | 0.0025% |
| 2017 | #2,714 | 46 | 0.0025% |
| 2016 | #3,520 | 32 | 0.0017% |
| 2015 | #5,047 | 19 | 0.0010% |
| 2014 | #5,978 | 15 | 0.0008% |
| 2013 | #8,072 | 10 | 0.0005% |
| 2012 | #8,113 | 10 | 0.0005% |
| 2010 | #14,150 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1917 | #4,581 | 5 | 0.0005% |
| 1915 | #4,377 | 5 | 0.0006% |
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.
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How the Name Welles Shapes Your Personality and Life?
To express itself, you must follow the divine law of love. You have great persistence and hate to give up. You are a good mixer, charming, magnetic and intuitive. The spirituality is the key to success. You have an eventful, exciting life. You are versatile and have the ability to learn easily.
Dependable, very down-to-earth and well grounded, you are always looking for meaningful work, a career where you can take pride in your work and do the best job you are capable of. Your prime desire is to build protected and secure environment at home and at work. You can be very persuasive in achieving goals and gaining objectives. You can be very detailed and well-organized and possess great organizational skills. At times you may appear too stubborn and overly critical to others, but your practical approach to life and productivity makes you one of the most beneficent members of community.
✦ Welles's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Welles's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.