{{about|the given name "Foster"|the surname|Foster (surname)|other uses|Foster (disambiguation)}}
The given name '''Foster''' is a variation of the surname '''Forster''', meaning one who 'works in the forest'.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ancestry.com/name-origin?surname=foster |title=Foster Name Meaning |website=ancestry.com |access-date=October 23, 2022}}</ref> It may also derive from the French ''forcetier'', meaning 'maker of scissors'. It is both a given name and a surname.
The use of ''Foster'' as a given name has increased in recent years, and was the 1063rd most popular boys name in 2022, up 251 spots from 2021.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.babycenter.com/baby-names/details/foster-1725 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221007055631/https://www.babycenter.com/baby-names/details/foster-1725 |url-status=usurped |archive-date=October 7, 2022 |title=Foster - Boy's name meaning |website=babycenter.com |access-date=October 23, 2022}}</ref>
==Notable people with the given name "Foster" include== {{compact ToC|name=no|side=yes|top=yes|i=|j=|k=|o=|q=|t=|u=|x=|y=}}
===A=== *Foster Awintiti Akugri (born 1994), Ghanaian entrepreneur *Foster Andersen (1940–2014), American football player *Foster Appiah (born 2000), Ghanaian footballer
===B=== *Foster Bastios (born 1975), Ghanaian footballer *Foster Bell (1814–1857), British jockey *Foster Blackburne (1838–1909), English archdeacon *Foster Blodgett (1827–1877), American politician *Foster Brooks (1912–2001), American actor
===C=== *Foster Calder (1873–1960), Canadian politician *Foster Campbell (born 1947), American politician *Foster Castleman (1931–2020), American baseball player *Foster Samuel Chipman (1829–??), American politician *Foster Dwight Coburn (1846–1924), American farmer *Foster Cummings (born 1973), Trinidadian politician *Foster Cunliffe (1875–1916), English historian *Foster Cunliffe (rugby union) (1854–1927), English rugby union footballer
===D=== *Foster DeWitt (born 1996), Canadian rugby union footballer *Foster Rhea Dulles (1900–1970), American journalist *Foster A. Dunlap (1905–1978), American politician
===E=== *Foster Edwards (1903–1980), American baseball player
===F=== *Foster Felger (1908–1984), American politician *Foster Fitzsimmons (1912–1991), American novelist *Foster Friess (1940–2021), American investment manager *Foster Furcolo (1911–1995), American politician *Foster Fyans (1790–1870), Irish military officer
===G=== *Foster Griffin (born 1995), American baseball player *Foster Gunnison Jr. (1925–1994), American activist
===H=== *Foster Hedley (1908–1983), English footballer *Foster Hewitt (1902–1985), Canadian radio broadcaster *Foster Hirsch (born 1943), American author *Foster Horan (born 1992), Irish rugby union footballer *Foster Hutchinson (1724–1799), American judge *Foster Hutchinson (Canadian judge) (1761–1815), Canadian judge
===L=== *Foster C. LaHue (1917–1996), American general *Foster Langsdorf (born 1995), American soccer player *Foster Loyer (born 1999), American basketball player
===M=== *Foster Malone (1887–1926), Canadian ice hockey player *Foster G. McGaw (1897–1986), American philanthropist *Foster E. Mohrhardt (1907–1992), American librarian *Foster Moreau (born 1997), American football player
===N=== *Foster Namwera (born 1986), Malawian footballer
===P=== *Foster B. Porter (1891–1965), American politician *Foster Powell (1734–1793), English athlete *Foster Provost, American computer scientist
===R=== *Foster Robinson (1880–1967), English cricketer *Foster Rockwell (1880–1942), American football player
===S=== *Foster Sarell (born 1998), American football player *Foster J. Sayers (1924–1944), American soldier *Foster Waterman Stearns (1881–1956), American politician *Foster Stockwell (1929-2023), American writer *Foster Sylvers (born 1962), American singer-songwriter
===V=== *Foster McGowan Voorhees (1865–1927), American politician
===W=== *Foster Watkins (1917–2002), American football player *Foster Neville Woodward (1905–1985), British chemist
===Z=== *Foster Barham Zincke (1817–1893), English clergyman
== Fictional characters ==
* Foster from GO Jetters (although they call him Foz)
==See also== *Foster (surname), a page for people with the surname "Foster" *Foster (disambiguation), a disambiguation page for "Foster"
==Notes== {{reflist}}
{{given name|Foster}}