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Maxwell as a Baby Name. Meaning and Origin of Maxwell

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The baby name Maxwell is a Male name , 2 syllables long and is pronounced /ˈmækswəl/ (MAKS-wəl).

Maxwell is Scottish in Origin.

Gender: Male
Syllables: 2.0
Origin: Scottish
Pronunciation: /ˈmækswəl/ (MAKS-wəl)

What is the meaning of the name Maxwell ?

The baby name Maxwell is a Male name , 2 syllables long and is pronounced /ˈmækswəl/ (MAKS-wəl).

Maxwell is Scottish in Origin.

Maxwell is a Scottish surname-turned-given name drawn from a place near Kelso in Roxburghshire. Its elements combine the Old Norse personal name Maccus with Old English wella, “spring/stream,” yielding the sense “Maccus’s stream or well.” Because the first element looks like Latin max (“great”), some modern glosses say “great stream,” but the historical derivation is Scandinavian + Anglo-Saxon.

As a hereditary surname it belonged to a powerful Border family and later to notable bearers such as physicist James Clerk Maxwell, helping the name migrate into first-name use in the 19th century across Britain and North America. Today it remains a steady favorite in the English-speaking world, chiefly for boys but sometimes used unisex. Common short forms include Max, Wells, Mac/Mack, and Maxie; modern spellings like Maxwel or Maxxwell appear. Related choices include Max, Maximilian, and Magnus.

Maxwell has the following similar or variant Names

Maxwell – Popularity by country

Based on birth registration data from national statistics agencies.

Country Gender Year Rank Born of
Ireland Boys 2025 #1 — 836
FJ 0 #6 1 374
BW 0 #19 1 960
ET Boys 0 #27 1 678
ID 0 #39 1 2,238
GH Boys 0 #47 1,242 8,138
MO 0 #52 1 2,706
New Zealand Boys 2010 #72 56 99
BW Boys 0 #74 80 4,685
JP 0 #77 1 4,057
MV Boys 0 #79 1 3,375
CN 0 #83 4 3,857
JM 0 #89 5 3,714
GH 0 #94 188 5,396
TW 0 #102 2 4,523
PH 0 #110 1 5,607
GR 0 #135 1 3,911
Switzerland Boys 2024 #136 2 1,769
BN Boys 0 #137 3 6,332
PA 0 #138 1 3,797
BW Girls 0 #150 2 4,216
Canada Boys 2024 #151 175 2,588
CR 0 #165 1 5,526
HU Boys 0 #172 3 3,954
United States Boys 2024 #173 2,021 7,044
ZA Boys 0 #174 3,681 25,619
PR Boys 0 #177 2 2,508
MT Boys 0 #179 1 4,064
Sweden Boys 2022 #180 3 1,509
AE 0 #187 1 10,220
RU 0 #194 1 3,641
NG 0 #197 69 5,926
NG Boys 0 #206 2,502 16,906
NA Boys 0 #212 24 6,830
PL 0 #212 1 2,600
JM Boys 0 #214 59 6,876
LU Boys 0 #219 2 4,970
BG Boys 0 #220 1 3,850
MO Boys 0 #232 3 5,842
TW Boys 0 #232 10 7,111
NA Girls 0 #234 4 7,146
BD 0 #238 4 5,992
EC Boys 0 #243 4 3,322
AO Boys 0 #248 2 5,568
PT 0 #250 1 4,161
HR Boys 0 #259 1 3,997
GR Boys 0 #266 8 6,912
AF Boys 0 #274 1 3,535
Canada Girls 2020 #275 9 2,919
SG 0 #280 3 11,010
IL 0 #282 1 6,291
CN Boys 0 #285 35 9,639
KZ Boys 0 #295 2 6,578
JP Boys 0 #297 7 7,909
CZ Boys 0 #301 5 6,530
GH Girls 0 #303 22 6,973
SA 0 #311 2 10,560
MY 0 #318 13 12,352
DK Boys 0 #326 7 7,401
PE 0 #327 3 6,350
MU Boys 0 #328 30 8,477
KZ Girls 0 #332 1 5,862
BR 0 #333 13 5,969
PL Boys 0 #339 2 6,459
QA Girls 0 #343 1 15,378
ZA 0 #344 104 14,421
HK 0 #354 4 8,483
CM Boys 0 #364 205 12,054
BR Boys 0 #366 535 12,213
PH Boys 0 #366 18 11,440
PT Boys 0 #373 9 7,951
France Boys 2021 #375 13 2,865
JO Boys 0 #389 1 7,057
YE 0 #397 2 8,639
BD Girls 0 #406 1 8,413
UY Boys 0 #413 1 5,922
CL 0 #434 1 6,867
PA Boys 0 #443 39 9,305
MX 0 #444 2 8,339
CR Boys 0 #449 39 10,188
SD Boys 0 #459 8 10,523
GT Boys 0 #463 12 7,625
AR Boys 0 #479 5 7,628
HK Boys 0 #486 42 12,905
RU Boys 0 #490 16 12,621
LY 0 #506 30 12,703
CO 0 #507 4 7,768
PA Girls 0 #518 1 9,861
GT Girls 0 #541 1 7,500
BH 0 #543 11 17,937
PS Girls 0 #545 3 10,981
BD Boys 0 #553 24 10,045
PS Boys 0 #554 8 10,655
CM Girls 0 #558 3 11,671
IR Boys 0 #559 7 10,162
KW Girls 0 #560 2 19,177
CR Girls 0 #572 2 11,342
BO Boys 0 #575 18 9,244
AE Girls 0 #596 2 20,968
IL Boys 0 #619 7 10,983
Finland Boys 2026 #630 53 3,552
SG Girls 0 #632 1 18,916
CL Boys 0 #645 21 13,390
IL Girls 0 #645 1 11,648
HK Girls 0 #650 1 16,104
IN Girls 0 #654 1 13,121
QA Boys 0 #657 51 18,093
NG Girls 0 #664 124 15,093
SG Boys 0 #676 22 17,960
LB 0 #690 1 13,263
IQ Boys 0 #694 4 13,071
IT 0 #704 11 4,183
KW Boys 0 #739 31 18,755
SY 0 #762 6 11,684
MY Boys 0 #771 355 25,439
PE Boys 0 #805 74 14,506
OM Boys 0 #855 27 17,948
TN 0 #861 5 13,765
CO Boys 0 #868 53 15,656
EG Boys 0 #872 15 15,035
NL Boys 0 #878 74 5,873
United States Girls 2024 #889 28 8,487
Spain Boys 0 #892 39 5,610
Germany Boys 0 #900 53 5,697
CL Girls 0 #915 1 14,098
MX Boys 0 #957 26 16,355
IN Boys 0 #976 26 16,750
MY Girls 0 #983 12 24,821
BR Girls 0 #991 2 12,708
EG Girls 0 #1,009 1 14,742
SA Girls 0 #1,009 6 25,931
AE Boys 0 #1,016 77 22,615
ZA Girls 0 #1,065 77 25,928
MA 0 #1,108 21 20,986
CO Girls 0 #1,152 1 16,140
DZ 0 #1,153 24 20,130
TR 0 #1,200 12 19,440
MX Girls 0 #1,267 1 17,781
IT Boys 0 #1,276 196 10,046
SA Boys 0 #1,534 81 28,008

Maxwell is popular in 82 countries — most recent births per country:

Scotland, United Kingdom
Canada
France
Ireland
United States

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People also ask about Maxwell

Maxwell is predominantly a boy's name.
Maxwell is a 2 syllable name, pronounced /ˈmækswəl/ (MAKS-wəl).
Common nicknames and spelling variations include Max, Maxie, Maxx, Mack and Makswell.
Across languages, Maxwell has these equivalents: Maccus (Old Norse/Old English root), Max (diminutive).
Yes, very popular — Maxwell ranked #1 in Ireland in 2025, and appears in official birth registries across 10 countries.
Maxwell ranks highest in Ireland (#1 in 2025).
Maxwell's popularity is holding steady. It moved from #1 in 2015 to #1 in 2025 in Ireland.