Wells surname meaning

Wells is a topographic surname for someone who lived beside a spring or water source, or a habitational name from one of the many places called Wells. The plural can reflect a landscape with several springs rather than a literal family occupation. Medieval spellings include Well, Welle, and Welles, and those forms could arise independently in different counties. A Wells family in the United States therefore needs records before it can be tied to a particular English village. The geographic core is nevertheless clear: the surname points to wells or springs. Place is the secure catalog type, with high confidence in that broad meaning.