Unlike the Irish, the Anglo- Normans had an affinity for local surnames. Local surnames, such as French, were formed from the names of a place or a geographical landmark where the person lived, held land, or was born.
https://www.houseofnames.com/french-family-crest
Surnames derived from the occupation of an ancestor are also common, with Smith being the most common surname in the UK. This category of surnames is divided into two groups: standard occupations and titular occupations, such as Stewart, derived from an ancient clan title in Scotland.
http://forebears.io/Surnames
French is or was the surname of the following individuals (alphabetized by first name): 1  Adrienne French (born 1987), fine art photographer.  Alexander French (born 1980), Hong Kong cricketer.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_(surname)
Search for Meanings & Distribution of 11 Million Surnames. Search. A surname is part of a personal name that is passed from either or both parents to their offspring. Customs on the format of surnames change from region to region and their use has changed over time. In most Western nations, the surname occurs at the end of a personal name, after a given name or names. Conversely some East Asian counties and Hungary place the surname before given names.
http://forebears.io/Surnames
Family names can be unique or come in large numbers. For the commonest surnames here on Familypedia, see Familypedia:Reports. In different countries some names are more common than others. This is a listing of common surnames (alphabetical by country names): Some information in this article or section has not been verified and may not be reliable. Please check for any inaccuracies, and modify and cite sources as needed.
http://familypedia.wikia.com/wiki/List_of_most_common_surnames
The French family originally lived near an ash tree. The surname French was originally de Freynes and was originally derived from the word fraxinus, which means an ash tree.. However, in some cases, the surname French is derived from residence in the country of France, a more obvious derivation. The name is sometimes spelled with a beginning of Ff..
https://www.houseofnames.com/french-family-crest
The surname French was first found in Devon. They were descendants of Theophilus de France who accompanied William the Conqueror into England in 1066. Robert Fitz-Stephen de France accompanied Strongbow, Earl of Pembroke, on his invasion of Ireland.
https://www.houseofnames.com/french-family-crest
Other common surnames of Portuguese origin, such as Pires, Rodrigues, Lopes, Mendes, Fernandes - notice that they end with -es, not -ez as in Spanish, are also still very common both in Portugal and Brazil.
http://familypedia.wikia.com/wiki/List_of_most_common_surnames
Monsieur/madame family name or given name family name is polite and used in normal formal occasions, as well as in the formal quality press (Le Monde, Le Monde diplomatique, for example). By contrast, in colloquial usage the family names of personalities are used alone.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_name
French (surname) For other uses, see French (disambiguation). French is an anglicised version of Defreine which has a Norman Irish origin. The DeFreines, the ffrenches, and the Frenches, who were of noble blood, came to Ireland with Strongbow during the Norman invasion of Ireland from 1169 to 1172 AD.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_(surname)
french last name meanings
The meaning of the 'French' last name is an ash tree.