What’s in a name? The surname Kettlewell is of Anglo-Saxon origin, and is a locational name from a place in North Yorkshire (formerly the West Riding of Yorkshire). Originally it was recorded as “Chetelewelle” (or Cheteleuuelle) in the Domesday Book of 1086, as “Keteluella” in Yorkshire Charters, dated 1173, and as “Ketelwell” in the 1222 Feet of Fines for that county.