Wendell (name)

Wendell is an alternate spelling of Wendel, a surname of Germanic origin. It is also a masculine given name in the United States, often given to commemorate poet Oliver Wendell Holmes (1809–1894) or his son Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. (1841–1935), a famous justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. Wendell was the maiden name of Sarah Holmes, mother of Oliver Wendell Holmes.[1]

Since about 1970 Wendell is a common given name in Brazil,[2] where it has been borne by famous footballers. In the United States the popularity of the name peaked around 1940, then declined steadily after 1960.[3]

Notable people with the name Wendell include:

## Given name

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* Wendell Alexis (born 1964), American basketball player
* Wendell R. Anderson (1933–2016), American politician and ice hockey player
* Wendell Berry (born 1934), American novelist, poet, essayist and farmer
* Wendell Nascimento Borges (born 1993), Brazilian footballer
* Wendell Brown, American computer scientist, entrepreneur, and inventor
* Wendell Bryant (born 1980), American football player
* Wendell Butcher (1914–1988), American football player
* Wendell Burton (1947–2017), American actor and singer
* Wendell Carter Jr. (born 1999), American basketball player
* Wendell Ford (1924–2015), American politician
* Wendell James Franklin (1916–1994) African-American film executive
* Wendell Johnson (1906–1965), American psychologist and author
* Wendell Lawrence (born 1967), Bahamian triple jumper
* Wendell Lucena Ramalho (1947–2022), Brazilian football goalkeeper and coach
* Wendell Moore (footballer) (born 1964), Trinidadian footballer
* Wendell Moore Jr. (born 2001), American basketball player
* Wendell F. Moore (1918–1969), American engineer and inventor
* Wendell H. Murphy, American politician
* Wendell Cushing Neville (1870–1930), American major general, Medal of Honor recipient and Commandant of the United States Marine Corps
* Wendell Phillips (1811–1884), American abolitionist and activist
* Wendell Phillips (archaeologist) (1921–1975), American archaeologist and oil magnate
* Wendell Pierce (born 1963), American actor
* Wendell Pritchett, American lawyer, legal scholar, professor and university administrator
* Wendell Ramos (born 1978), Filipino actor
* Wendell Sailor (born 1974), Australian dual-code rugby international
* Wendell Scott (1921–1990), American NASCAR driver, first African-American driver and team owner to compete and win in all divisions of NASCAR
* Wendell Smith (sportswriter) (1914–1972), African-American sportswriter
* Wendell Meredith Stanley (1904–1971), American Nobel Prize-winning biochemist and virologist
* Wendell Craig Williams, American politician, former Assistant United States Attorney and Marine Corps colonel
* Wendell Willkie (1892–1944), American Republican Party nominee for the 1940 US presidential election

## Surname

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* Barrett Wendell (1855–1921), American academic
* David Wendell, American associate professor
* Howard Wendell (1908–1975), American actor
* James Wendell ( 1890–1958), American 1912 Olympic silver medalist in the 110 m hurdles
* James A. Wendell (1869–1922), New York State Comptroller 1921–1922
* Krissy Wendell (born 1981), American ice hockey player
* Marty Wendell (1926–2012), American football player
* Nathan D. Wendell (1835–1886), New York State Treasurer 1880–1881
* Oliver Wendell (1845–1912), American astronomer
* Percy Langdon Wendell (1889–1932), American college football player and coach of college football and basketball
* Sarah Wendell, American writer and blogger
* Turk Wendell (born 1967), American former baseball relief pitcher

## Fictional characters

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* Wendell Borton, a recurring character on the television series The Simpsons
* Wendel "Wen" Gifford, in the young adult novel Lemonade Mouth
* Mr. Wendell Hall, a character in the 1995 American coming-of-age teen comedy movie Clueless
* Wendell, from the cartoon series Mike, Lu, and Og
* Wendell Fidget, a recurring character on the television series Sofia the First
* Wendell Bray, one of the interns of Temperance Brennan from the series Bones
* Prince Wendell, one of the main characters in a miniseries The 10th Kingdom
* Oliver Wendell Jones, one of the main characters in the comic strip Bloom County
* Wendell, a main character in the Netflix movie Wendell and Wild
* Agent Wendell Pleakley, a main character in the Lilo & Stitch franchise; his first name was changed from "Wendy" in the franchise's animated continuity to "Wendell" for the 2025 live-action Lilo & Stitch film

## See also

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* Wendel (name)

## References

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1. ^ "Wendell", Behind the Name
2. ^ "Wendell: Popularity in Brazil by decade", Behind the Name
3. ^ "Wendell: Popularity in the United States", Behind the Name

Name list

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