Wes is the short form of Wesley and Weston, and through Wesley it means "western meadow", from the Old English west and leah; Wesley itself honors John Wesley, the founder of Methodism. Filmmaker Wes Anderson and actor Wes Bentley show how the clipped form works on its own. Wes ranked number 3296 in the United States in 2000, entered the top 1000 in 2019 and reached number 716 in 2025, its best rank so far.