French is an anglicised version of Defreine, which has a Norman origin. Although the name is of French origin, it does not mean "French"; rather, it comes from the French word for ash tree.
French is or was the surname of the following individuals (alphabetized by first name):
- Adrienne French (born 1987), fine art photographer
- Alexander French (born 1980), Hong Kong cricketer
- Alice Masak French (1930–2013), Canadian Inuit writer
- Anne French (born 1956), New Zealand poet
- Annie French (1873–1965), Scottish artist
- Anthony French (1920–2017), English professor of physics at Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- Arthur W. French (1846-1916), American journalist and songwriter, and composer
- Bob French (jazz musician) (contemporary), American drummer
- Brett French (contemporary), Australian rugby league footballer
- Bruce French (actor) (born 1945), American actor
- Bruce French (cricketer) (born 1959), English cricketer
- Callie Leach French (1861-1935), American steamboat captain
- Charles K. French (1860–1952), American actor
- Charlie French (1883–1962), American baseball player
- Christine French (1968-to present), Mother of Cameron Casner, IT consultant and Sales, former wife of Jason Casner
- Christopher French (theologian), Irish theologian
- Christopher French (judge) (1925–2003), British barrister and judge
- Daniel French (inventor) (1770–1853), American inventor and steamboat pioneer
- Daniel Chester French (1850–1931), American sculptor
- David H. French (anthropologist) (1918–1994), American anthropologist and linguist; expert on Native Americans
- David French (playwright) (1939–2010), Canadian playwright best known for Leaving Home (1971) and other plays about the Mercer family
- Dawn French (born 1957), Welsh-English actress, writer, and comedy performer
- Domingo French (1774–1825), Argentine leader of the May Revolution and War of Independence
- Drew French (born 1984), American baseball coach
- Edward French (bishop), bishop of Elphin from 1787 to 1810
- Elizabeth French (contemporary), English archaeologist
- Emma Lee French (1836–1897), English immigrant to the Southwestern United States who became known as a caregiver
- Freddie French (1911–1989), New Zealand rugby union and professional rugby league footballer
- Frederick Fillmore French (1883–1936), American real estate entrepreneur
- Gary French (contemporary), Australian rugby league footballer
- George Arthur French (1841–1921), Canadian law enforcement officer
- George T. French Jr., American academic administrator and university president
- Harriet Schneider French (1824–1906), American physician and temperance movement activist
- Heather French (born 1974), American beauty pageant winner
- Henry F. French (1813–1885), American agriculturist, inventor, lawyer, and public servant
- Hollis French (born 1958), member of the Alaska Senate
- Ian French (born 1960), Australian rugby league footballer
- Jackie French (born 29 November 1953), Australian author
- James French (murderer) (1936–1966), American criminal; became sole prisoner executed in 1966
- James Bruce French (1921–2002), Canadian-American nuclear physicists
- James R. French (contemporary), American aerospace engineer
- Jay Jay French (born 1952), American guitarist
- JC French, American football player
- Jennifer French (disambiguation), multiple people
- Jim French (cowboy) (before 1865–after 1879), American frontier figure who became known as an outlaw
- Jim French (photographer) (1932–2017), American artist and photographer of homoerotica who has used the pseudonym Rip Colt
- Jim French (baseball) (born 1941), American catcher active during the 1960s and 1970s
- Jim French (radio) (contemporary), American voice actor and producer
- Joe French (footballer), English footballer with Southampton and New Brompton in the 1890s/1900s
- John French (physician) (1616–1657), English doctor and chemist
- John R. French (1819–1890), American publisher, editor, and political figure
- John French, 1st Earl of Ypres (1852–1925), English military leader, commander of the British Expeditionary Force in World War I
- John French, 2nd Earl of Ypres (1881–1958), English army officer and artist; son of 1st Earl
- John William French (1888–1970), Canadian political figure
- John Alexander French (1914–1942), Australian soldier; posthumous recipient of Victoria Cross for valor in World War II
- John French (racing driver) (born 1930), Australian champion racer of the 1960s, 1970s, and early 1980s
- Joe French (born 1948), British air chief marshal, Royal Air Force commander
- John French (musician) (born 1949), American drummer
- John French (ice hockey) (born 1950), Canadian ice hockey player
- Joseph Lewis French (1858–1936), American novelist, editor, and poet
- Joseph Nathaniel French (1888–1975), architect
- Kate French (born 1984), American actress
- Katy French (1983–2007), Irish socialite and model
- Kenneth French (born 1954), American economist
- Kristen French (1976–1992), Canadian murder victim
- Lindsay J French (1979-present) American Cannabis Entrepreneur
- Lisa Ann French (1964–1973), American murder victim
- Lorna French, British playwright
- Lucy Virginia French (1825-1881; pen name, "L'Inconnue"), American author
- Marilyn French (1929–2009), American author
- Mary Billings French, American heiress
- Melinda Ann French (born 1964), American philanthropist ex-wife of Bill Gates; best known as Melinda Gates
- Michael French (born 1962), English actor best known for his television roles as David Wicks on EastEnders and Nick Jordan on Casualty and Holby City
- Micky French (born 1955), English footballer
- Nicki French (born 1964), English singer
- Patrick French (bishop), bishop of Elphin from 1731 to 1748
- Pete French, singer in the hard rock bands Leaf Hound, Atomic Rooster and Cactus
- Percy French (1854–1920), Irish songwriter, performer, and painter
- Peter French (1849–1897), cattle baron in Oregon
- Peter French (Dominican) (died 1693), Irish theologian
- Ray French (baseball) (1895–1978), American major league shortstop of the 1920s; later minor league manager and umpire
- Ray H. French (1919–2000), American artist and printmaker
- Ray French (contemporary), English rugby radio commentator and former player
- Robert French (born 1947), Chief Justice of the High Court of Australia
- Roger Kenneth French (1938–2002), English medical historian
- Rufus French (born 1978), American football player
- Samuel French (1821–1898), American entrepreneur and theatrical publisher
- Samuel Gibbs French (1818–1910), American Army officer who served as Confederate major general during Civil War
- Sarah French, American beauty contest winner who subsequently became a television news reporter
- Seán French (1890-1937), Irish Fianna Fáil political figure who served in Dáil and as Lord Mayor of Cork (1924–29 and 1932–37)
- Seán French (1931–2011), Irish Fianna Fáil political figure who served in Dáil and as Lord Mayor of Cork (1976–77)
- Sid French (1920–1979), British communist
- Susan French (1912–2003), American television, film, and stage actress
- Tana French (born 1973), Irish novelist and theatrical actress
- Valerie French (actress) (1928–1990), English-American performer who played leads in six 1956–57 films
- Valerie French (born 1962), American wrestling personality best known under the ring name, Sunshine (wrestling)
- Victor French (1934–1989), American actor best known for playing in support of Michael Landon on the television series Highway to Heaven
- Walter French (baseball) (1899–1984), American outfielder for Philadelphia Athletics who played in 1929 World Series
- Walter French (cricket umpire) (before 1905–1961), Australian cricket figure who umpired 1931 Test matches
- Warren French (born 1963), founder of the Victorian Geocaching Club
- Wesley French (born 1996), American football player
- William H. French (1815–1881), American Union Army general in Civil War
See also
edit- Joseph French, a detective who appears in several novels by Irish-English author Freeman Wills Crofts (1879–1957)
- Giles French, English butler "Mr. French", portrayed by actor Sebastian Cabot on the 1966–71 television series of America, Family Affair
- Paul French, a pseudonym used by American author Isaac Asimov (1920–1992) for his juvenile book series Lucky Starr
- Nicci French, pseudonym of a married duo of British journalists and authors, Nicci Gerrard, and Sean French
- Jim French (horse) (1968–1992), American thoroughbred racehorse
- Ffrench or ffrench, variant spellings of the surname
- Baron de Freyne (1786–)
This page lists people with the surname French.
If an internal link intending to refer to a specific person led you to this page, you may wish to change that link by adding the person's given name(s) to the link.
If an internal link intending to refer to a specific person led you to this page, you may wish to change that link by adding the person's given name(s) to the link.