Forrestal (surname)

Forrestal, Forristal, Forestell, or Forstall (Irish: Ó Fuireastal), is an ancient Irish surname from the southeast of Ireland, and still exists today primarily in the counties of Kilkenny, Wexford and Waterford.

Settlement has also been established in Southampton England The name has been spelled in many different forms, all of which are related to the same family including; Forristal, Forrestal, Forristal, Forestal, Forrestall, Foristal, and in medieval times, Forstall (a name still used in present-day Louisiana).

[1] The Forstalls or Forrestals were present in Co. Kilkenny, Ireland, from at least the thirteenth century.

The family motto, "In corda inimicorum regis", is likely taken from the Latin Vulgate's rendering of Psalm 45:5, and means "in the hearts of the king's enemies."

In modern translation, the full verse is: "Let your sharp arrows pierce the hearts of the king's enemies; let the nations fall beneath your feet" (New International Version).