Parent’s name
Nelson surname meaning
Son of Nell/Nele (often a pet form of Elias) in English; also Americanized Nilsson / Nielsen.
Confidence: Likely. The main story is well supported; some details of the deeper root are less certain.
The short story
Nelson usually means "Nell’s son" or "Nele’s son" in English, with Nell/Nele often a medieval pet form of Elias (and sometimes overlapping with Neil). That makes it a parent's-name surname on the English path.
In the United States the same spelling also covers Americanized Swedish Nilsson and Danish/Norwegian Nielsen—"Nils’s son." Two routes, one Census line. Either way you are looking at a patronymic, not a place-name or a craft. The short family gloss is what matters for this catalog.
Also seen as: Nilsson, Nielsen, Neilson
Sources used
- Geneanet/DAFN 2022: Nelson — English patronymic from Nell/Nele; Americanized Nilsson/Nielsen
- Ancestry surname meaning for Nelson (same dual English/Scandinavian account)
- Names2020_LastNames_RaceHispanic_Top1000.xlsx (2020 Census)