Foster Surname

Meaning and origin of the surname Foster

Occupational surname with multiple origins: a contraction of forester ('keeper of a royal forest'), foster-parent / nurse (from Old English fōster, 'nourishment'), or a maker of shears/scissors (Old French forcetier).

Historically and linguistically, Foster belongs to the English and Germanic family of surnames. It is conventionally pronounced "FOSS-tər".

United States Census frequency and ranking

In the official 2010 United States Census, Foster was recorded 227,764 times, ranking as the 99th most common surname in the nation.

This represents an incidence rate of approximately 77.21 bearers per 100,000 Americans, or roughly 1 out of every 1,295 residents.

Race and ethnicity distribution

According to official decennial Census genealogy microdata, individuals bearing the surname Fosterreported the following racial and ethnic affiliations in the 2010 US Census:

Source: US Census Bureau, 2010 Census Surnames Data. Percentages may not sum to exactly 100% due to independent rounding or suppression of small cell counts for privacy protection.

History of the surname Foster

Foster encompasses several convergent occupational derivations rooted in medieval English and Anglo-Norman society. Its most common origin is an apheresis of forester (Middle English forester, contracted in vernacular speech into foster), designating a gamekeeper, warden, or royal officer charged with patrolling manorial woodlands and hunting chases. Secondarily, it stems from Old English fōstre or fōster-fæder ('fosterer', 'nourisher', or 'guardian'), denoting one entrusted with raising or nursing another's child. A third, less common origin is from Old French forcetier, a craftsman who manufactured shears or scissors.

Early medieval documentation reflects widespread recording of the occupational name, such as Durand le Forester in the Pipe Rolls of Nottinghamshire in 1130 and Robert le Fostier in the Assize Rolls of Yorkshire in 1219. The contraction Foster was firmly established across northern England and the Scottish Borders by the fourteenth century, where Border reiver families bearing the name Foster or Forster engaged in skirmishes and maintained fortified pele towers across Northumberland and Cumberland.

Early maritime passage lists record numerous Foster families establishing homesteads across Massachusetts, Virginia, and Connecticut during the seventeenth century. Over the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, Foster descendants contributed significantly to American cultural life, most notably Stephen Foster (1826–1864), renowned as the 'father of American music' for iconic folk melodies. In the 2010 United States Census, Foster ranked 99th nationwide with 227,764 recorded individuals, exhibiting wide demographic presence across the American South, Midwest, and Mid-Atlantic.

Notable people with the surname Foster

• Jodie Foster (1962–), American two-time Academy Award-winning actress and director
• Stephen Foster (1826–1864), American songwriter known as the father of American music
• Norman Foster (1935–), British Pritzker Prize-winning architect and designer
• Arian Foster (1986–), American former NFL running back and four-time Pro Bowler