Surname Spotlight: Joisten

A coat of arms belongs to a particular family line rather than to everyone named Joisten, so the heraldry linked to Jost is a starting point, not an automatic right.

What Joisten means

Spellings drift, and Joisten is where Jost drifted for some families. At root, the name means “from the name Jodocus”.

Before spelling was fixed, Jost was also written Joisten. Census takers and immigration officers often wrote what they heard. Other spellings include Josten, Joesten and Joosten.

For the full story, order the Joisten surname pack.