Jewell Family History

English (of Breton or Cornish origin): from a Celtic personal name, Old Breton Iudicael, composed of elements meaning ‘lord’ + ‘generous’, ‘bountiful’, which was borne by a 7th-century saint, a king of Brittany who abdicated and spent the last part of his life in a monastery. Forms of this name are found in medieval records not only in Devon and Cornwall, where they are of native origin, but also in East Anglia and even Yorkshire, whither they were imported by Bretons after the Norman Conquest.

Source: Dictionary of American Family Names ©2013, Oxford University Press