Forestier History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
France

The name Forestier has been included within French history since the early portion of the Middle Ages. This Languedoc name is derived from keeper of the king's forest. The surname Forestier was originally derived from the Old French word "foret," which means "forest."

Early Origins of the Forestier family

The surname Forestier was first found in Brittany, where this noble family held a family seat since ancient times.

Early History of the Forestier family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Forestier research. Another 178 words (13 lines of text) covering the years 1300, 1332 and 1393 are included under the topic Early Forestier History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Forestier Spelling Variations

There were a great number of spelling variations in French surnames. One reason for this was the wide variety of cultural influences present in France during the early development of the French language. The many spelling variations of the name include Forestier, Forestié, Forrestier, Forestiez, Foresttiers, Forresties, Forestierre, Forrestierre, Foresties, La Forestier, La Forestié, La Forrestier, La Foresttiers, La Forestiez, La Foresties, La Forestie, La Forresties, La Forestierre, La Forrestierre, De La Forestier, De La Forestiez, De La Forestié, De La Forrestier, De La Foresties, De La Forestie, De La Foresttiers, De La Forresties, De La Forestierre, De La Forrestierre, Laforestier, Laforrestier, Laforestiez, Laforestié, Laforesties, Laforestie, Laforesttiers, Laforresties, Laforestierre and many more.

Early Notables of the Forestier family

Notable amongst this name at this time was

Joseph Jean was the Viscount of Forestier and the Mayor of Fribourg

Forestier Ranking

In France, the name Forestier is the 450^th most popular surname with an estimated 9,627 people with that name. 1

Forestier migration to the United States +

In the 1700s, land incentives were finally given out by France to 2,000 migrants. Early marriage was encouraged in New France, and youths of 18 took fourteen-year-old girls for their wives. The fur trade was developed and attracted migrants, both noble and commoner from France. 15,000 explorers left Montreal in the late 17th and 18th centuries, leaving French names scattered across the continent. The search for the Northwest passage continued. Migration from France to New France or Quebec, as it was now more popularly called, continued until 1759. By 1675, there were 7000 French in Quebec. By the same year the Acadian presence in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island had reached 500. In the treaty of Utrecht, Acadia were ceded by France to Britain in 1713. In 1755, 10,000 French Acadians refused to take an oath of allegiance to England and were deported. They found refuge in Louisiana. Meanwhile, in Quebec, the French race flourished, founding in Lower Canada, one of the two great solitudes which became Canada. Many of this distinguished family name Forestier were prominent in social, cultural, religious and political affairs in France and New France. Amongst the settlers in North America with this distinguished name Forestier were

Forestier Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Mr. Forestier, who landed in Carolina in 1679 2
Louis Forestier, who landed in Carolina in 1679 2
Theophile Forestier, who arrived in Rhode Island in 1687 2
Charles Forestier, who arrived in New York in 1697 2

Forestier Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Louis Forestier, who settled in Louisiana in 1752
François Forestier, who settled in Louisiana in 1756

Contemporary Notables of the name Forestier (post 1700) +

Gaspard François Forestier, French Brigadier General during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars from 1789 to 1815 3
François Louis Forestier, French Brigadier General during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars from 1789 to 1815 4
Sir Amédée Forestier (1854-1930), Anglo-French artist and illustrator
Jean Forestier (b. 1930), former French cyclist active from 1953 to 1965
Frédéric Forestier (b. 1969), French director
Maxime Le Forestier (b. 1949), French singer
Yannick Forestier (b. 1982), French rugby union player
Hubert Forestier, French Director of the National School of Chemistry of Strasbourg, Knight of the Legion of Honour
Jacques Forestier (1890-1978), French internist, a pioneer in the field of rheumatology and silver medalist men's rugby player in the 1920 Summer Olympics
Raymond Forestier, Assistant Director General of the National Institute of Agricultural Economics, Officer of the Legion of Honour, Paris
... (Another 3 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Citations +

http://www.journaldesfemmes.com/nom-de-famille/nom/
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
Generals Who Served in the French Army during the Period 1789-1815. (Retrieved 2015, March 4) Gaspard Forestier. Retrieved from http://www.napoleon-series.org/research/c_frenchgenerals.html
Generals Who Served in the French Army during the Period 1789-1815. (Retrieved 2015, March 4) FranÃ§ois Forestier. Retrieved from http://www.napoleon-series.org/research/c_frenchgenerals.html