Cardwell
A surname most likely from a Norman place-name, originally meaning someone from a settlement called Cardeville or a similar village name.
The #3,037 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 26,185 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The name is usually explained as a locational surname from a Norman French place-name, commonly given as de Cardeville. In that analysis, the second element is the French place-name ending -ville, meaning a town or settlement, while the first element is uncertain and may be an earlier personal name or local feature-name. The English surname form shows the usual reduction of -ville to -well in later spelling and pronunciation.
History
Bardsley and Barber both treat Cardwell as a Norman-imported surname and connect it with forms like Cardeville. The name is rare in England and appears in scattered records, with later bearers found in London and other English counties. It is also present in North America, where the modern US census shows a small but established population.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
English surnames ending in -well sometimes preserve older Norman place-name spellings rather than referring to an actual spring or well.
From the historical record
“Hancbsitcr, 1 ; Cdne, i. CardwelL— Local, <de Carde- ville.' Thia surname seems to be of Norman eitraction. The suffix •titOt is commonly turned into-iMtf ; cf. Boswell and Bosville.”
— A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with special American instances