Lester Surname Meaning & Origin
What the Lester last name means, where the surname began and how it spread.
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Meaning and origin of the Lester last name
Meaning of the Lester last name: from Leicester. Lester is an English surname for someone from the city of Leicester, whose spelling follows how the city's name is actually said. In a few families it may instead come from an old word for a dyer. The last name is common in the Midlands, the north of England and Ulster. A curious detail: Lesters were in colonial Virginia early on, and their descendants moved on to Georgia and Tennessee.
Arms associated with the Lester name
Coats of arms associated with the Lester surname follow English heraldry, where each blazon names the colours first and then the figures, such as lions, bands or stars.
Get your full Lester family history
This is only a glimpse of the Lester story. The full Lester history report goes much deeper into where the name began, who carried it and how the family spread, and it comes with a museum-style painted Lester coat of arms. Get the full Lester report.
Lester name FAQ
What does the Lester name mean?
From Leicester. Common variants include Leicester, Lestor.
Where does the Lester surname come from?
It originates in England, and is also found in the United States, Northern Ireland and Australia.
Is there a Lester coat of arms?
Arms were granted to individuals rather than to everyone with a surname. Herald Lab paints a personalized Lester coat of arms in museum style, based on historic heraldry.
Sources: Reaney & Wilson, Dictionary of English Surnames; Dictionary of American Family Names (Oxford).