Forest
A surname usually meaning someone who lived by or worked in a forest, though in some cases it may come from a specific place-name.
The #6,661 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 60,825 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The surname Forest comes most often from residence near a forest, or from a place actually called Forest. The word ultimately goes back to Latin forestis, meaning woodland or unenclosed land, and entered English through Old French. Historical sources also show related spellings like Forrest, and some bearers may have taken the name from local places in England, such as Forest-named settlements in counties like Durham and Brecon.
History
Lower explicitly treats Forest/Forrest as a residence-based surname, while also noting that Forest is the name of places in several counties. In England the name appears in medieval records, and later spellings often doubled the final consonant as Forrest. The related form Forester developed as a job-name for an officer charged with protecting forest game and timber.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
The name is especially close to the medieval legal idea of a royal forest, which was not just woodland but land regulated for hunting and game preservation.
From the historical record
“shire. FOREST, FORREST. From residence in one. Forest is, however, the specific name of i:>laces in cos. Durham, Brecon, &c. FORESTER. FORRESTER. " An officer made by letters patent under the great seal, and sworn to preserve vert and venison in the forest ; and to attend upon the wild beasts within his bailiwick…”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United Kingdom