The method of scientific knowledge mapping is utilized to sort out the hot topics of domestic research in the field of forestry property rights and their changing trends, with a view to clarifying the logical lineage of research in the field of forestry property rights. Using CiteSpace and VOSviewer software, the knowledge mapping of 1 540 articles in CNKI Academic Journal Database from 2001 to 2023 are analyzed. It is found that the number of articles published in this field has shown a gradual growth year by year since 2001, and stabilized after peaking in 2009, but the cooperation between authors and publishing institutions is loose, and the domestic research on forestry property rights has become more and more complicated. However, the cooperation between authors and issuing institutions is relatively loose, and the issuing institutions in the field of forestry property rights in China are relatively concentrated in colleges and universities. Combined with the research hotspots in the field of forestry property rights, the research content in this field can be roughly categorized into research on forestry property rights system, research on carbon sinks, research on forestry property rights trading, and research on the property rights of China's forest resources. Combined with the historical lineage and evolutionary trend of research in the field of forestry property rights, the research in this field can be divided into three stages: the exploration stage from 2001 to 2009; the horizontal expansion stage from 2010 to 2016; and the vertical extension stage from 2017 to the present. Future research should capitalize on the new characteristics of the "two-carbon" approach in order to promote the in-depth development of research in the field of forestry property rights.