Maxwell is a Scottish surname, a habitational name derived from a location near Melrose, in Roxburghshire, Scotland. This name was first recorded in 1144, as Mackeswell, meaning "Mack's spring (or stream)" (from the Old English well[a]). The surname Maxwell is also common in Ulster, where it has, in some cases, been adopted as alternate form of the Irish surname Miskell.^[1] The surname Maxwell is represented in Scottish Gaelic as MacSuail.

• Ally Maxwell (born 1965), Scottish football goalkeeper
• Andrew Maxwell (born 1974), Irish stand-up comedian
• Anna Maxwell (1851–1929), American nurse
• Augustus Maxwell (1820–1903), American politician
• Bernadine Maxwell (died 1988), All-American Girls Professional Baseball League player
• Bill Maxwell (1882–1917), Australian rules footballer
• Billy Maxwell (1929–2021), American golfer
• Brendon Maxwell (born 1991), American ice hockey player
• Brian Maxwell (1953–2004), Canadian athlete and founder of PowerBar
• Brookie Maxwell (1956–2015), American artist
• Bruce Maxwell (born 1990), American baseball player
• Byron Maxwell (born 1988), American football player
• Carmen Maxwell (1902–1987), American animator
• Catherine Maxwell Stuart, 21st Lady of Traquair (born 1964), Scottish landowner and businesswoman
• Cedric Maxwell (born 1955), American basketball player
• Celia Maxwell, American infectious disease physician and academic administrator
• Charles Maxwell (disambiguation), several people
• Charlie Maxwell (born 1927), American baseball player
• Chenoa Maxwell (born 1969), American actress and photographer
• Chris Maxwell, several people
• Christine Maxwell (born 1950), British Internet content pioneer and educator
• Col Maxwell (1917–2001), Australian rugby player
• Colin Maxwell (politician) (1943-2018), politician in Saskatchewan, Canada
• Constantia Maxwell (1886–1962), Irish historian
• Corty Maxwell (1851–1925), American professional baseball umpire
• David Maxwell (disambiguation), several people
• Devonnsha Maxwell (born 1999), American football player
• Duncan Maxwell (1892–1969), Australian doctor and army officer
• Edward Maxwell (1867–1923), Canadian architect.
• Edwin Maxwell (actor) (1886–1948), Irish actor
• Edwin Maxwell, American lawyer, judge, and politician
• Elisabeth Maxwell (1921–2013), Anglo-French historian
• Elizabeth Maxwell, American voice actress
• Elsa Maxwell (1883–1963), American gossip columnist and socialite
• Enola Maxwell (1919–2003), American civil rights activist, minister, and community leader
• Frank Maxwell (1916–2004), American actor
• Gavin Maxwell (1914–1969), Scottish naturalist
• George Maxwell (disambiguation), several people
• Gerald Maxwell (1895-1959), British First World War flying ace
• Ghislaine Maxwell (born 1961), British former socialite and convicted sex offender
• Gilbert Maxwell (1910–1979) American poet, actor, and author
• Glenn Maxwell (born 1988), Australian professional cricketer
• Graham Maxwell, American theologian
• Glenn Maxwell (born 1988), Australian cricketer
• Henry Maxwell, 7th Baron Farnham (1799–1868), Irish politician
• Howard Maxwell (born 1949), American politician
• Hu Maxwell (1860–1927), American writer
• Hugh Maxwell (1787–1873), New York County District Attorney and Collector of the Port of New York
• Ian Maxwell (disambiguation), several people
• Isabel Maxwell (born 1950), French entrepreneur
• Jackie Maxwell (born 1956), Canadian theatre director
• James Maxwell (disambiguation), several people
• Jan Maxwell (1956–2018), American actress
• Jason Maxwell (born 1972), American former professional baseball player
• Jenny Maxwell (1941–1981), American actress
• Jim Maxwell (commentator) (born 1950), Australian sports commentator
• Jim Maxwell (American football) (born 1981), American football linebacker
• Jimmy Maxwell (bandleader) (born 1953), musician and bandleader
• Jimmy Maxwell (footballer) (1889–1916), Irish footballer
• Jimmy Maxwell (trumpeter) (1917–2002), American trumpeter
• John Maxwell (disambiguation), several people
• Joseph Maxwell (disambiguation), several people
• Justin Maxwell (born 1983), American baseball outfielder
• Katherine Clerk Maxwell (1824–1886), Scottish physical scientist
• Kenneth R. Maxwell (born 1941) British historian
• Kelly Maxwell (softball), American softball player
• Kevin Maxwell (born 1959), British businessman
• Laureen Maxwell (born 2002), French high jumper
• Lilly Maxwell, the first woman to vote in Britain (1867)
• Lois Maxwell (1927–2007), Canadian actress
• Lucien Maxwell (1818–1875), American mountain man, rancher, scout, and farmer
• Luke Maxwell, English footballer
• Lukita Maxwell, Indonesian-born American actress
• Marcus Maxwell (born 1983), American football player
• Marilyn Maxwell (1921–1972), American actress
• Murray Maxwell (1775–1831), British Royal Navy officer
• Neal A. Maxwell (1926–2004), American religious leader
• Nicholas Maxwell (born 1937), philosopher at UCL
• Paul Maxwell (1921–1991), Canadian actor working in Britain
• Perriton Maxwell (1868-1947), American author, editor and illustrator
• Reid Maxwell (born 2007), Canadian Paralympic swimmer
• Reginald Maxwell (disambiguation), multiple people
• Robert Maxwell (disambiguation), several people
• Roberta Maxwell (born 1941), Canadian actress
• Robin Maxwell (author) (born 1948), American writer
• Ronald F. Maxwell (born 1947), American film director and writer
• Russell Maxwell, American general
• Sammie Maxwell (born 2001), New Zealand cyclist
• Scott Maxwell (born 1964), Canadian racing driver
• Scott Maxwell (engineer) (born 1971), American engineer
• Steamer Maxwell (1890–1975), Canadian ice hockey player
• Stella Maxwell (born 1990), Belgian model
• Stephen Maxwell (1942–2012), Scottish nationalist
• Steve Maxwell (born 1952), American fitness coach
• Steve Maxwell (soccer) (1965–2024), Australian professional soccer player
• Stewart Maxwell (born 1963), Scottish politician
• Tony Maxwell, American drummer and choreographer
• Vernon Maxwell (born 1965), American basketball player
• W. B. Maxwell (William Babington Maxwell, 1866–1938), British novelist
• W. Henry Maxwell (1935–2010), American politician
• William Maxwell (disambiguation), multiple people
• Willie Maxwell, birth name of American rapper Fetty Wap
• Zerlina Maxwell (born 1981), American television personality and writer

• Bob Maxwell (Coronation Street), fictional character in the British soap opera
• Bobby Maxwell (character), fictional character from the 1976 American film The Enforcer
• Chrissa Maxwell, American Girl character, "Girl of the Year" for 2009
• Duo Maxwell, in the anime Mobile Suit Gundam Wing
• Maxwell Edison, in the Beatles song Maxwell's Silver Hammer
• Enrico Maxwell, in the manga franchise Hellsing
• Jane Maxwell, in the role-playing video game Wild Arms 3
• Johnny Maxwell, fictional character in Terry Pratchett's novels
• Nicole "Nikki" Maxwell, character in the Dork Diaries book series
• Peter Maxwell, character in The Vampire Diaries
• Peter Maxwell, in Clifford Simak's novel The Goblin Reservation
• Maxwell Smart, title character of the Get Smart comedy spy media franchise
• Maxwell Sheffield, character in American sitcom The Nanny

• Maxwell baronets, created in the Baronetage of Nova Scotia in 1627

Surname list

This page lists people with the surname Maxwell.
If an internal link intending to refer to a specific person led you to this page, you may wish to change that link by adding the person's given name(s) to the link.