Show ContentsCrete History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The surname Crete is a topographic surname, which was given to a person who resided near a physical feature such as a hill, stream, church, or type of tree. Habitation names form the other broad category of surnames that were derived from place-names. They were derived from pre-existing names for towns, villages, parishes, or farmsteads. Other local names are derived from the names of houses, manors, estates, regions, and entire counties. As a general rule, the greater the distance between an individual and their homeland, the larger the territory they were named after. For example, a person who only moved to another parish would be known by the name of their original village, while people who migrated to a different country were often known by the name of a region or country from which they came. The name Crete is derived from the Old French word "creste," meaning the "peak of a hill", and indicated that the original bearer lived at or near such a place.

Early Origins of the Crete family

The surname Crete was first found in Burgundy (French: Bourgogne), an administrative and historical region of east-central France, where the family has held a family seat since ancient times.

Early History of the Crete family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Crete research. Another 173 words (12 lines of text) covering the years 1435, 1632, 1777, 1791, 1796, 1800, 1810, 1840 and 1852 are included under the topic Early Crete History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Crete Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Crest, Cret, Crests, Crets, Creste, Crete, Crête, Crestes, Cretes, du Crest, Ducrest, du Cret, Ducret, Crais, Crait, Crez, Ducrais, Ducrait, Ducrez, Cray, Crey and many more.

Early Notables of the Crete family

Notable amongst the family at this time was Alexandre Louis Ducrest de Villeneuve (1777-1852), a French naval officer and admiral. He was born in Paris and joined the Navy in 1791 when he was just 14 years old. By 1796, he was a midshipman first class, and in 1800 he...
Another 50 words (4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Crete Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Crete Ranking

In Quebec, Canada, the name Crete is the 764th most popular surname. 1


Canada Crete migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Crete Settlers in Canada in the 17th Century
  • Jean Crete, son of Antoine and Jeanne, who married Marguerite Gaulin, daughter of Vincent and Marie, in Quebec on 13th September 1654 2
  • Pierre Crete, son of Jean and Marguerite, who married Marthe Marcoux, daughter of Pierre and Marthe, in Beauport, Quebec on 3rd November 1693 2
Crete Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century
  • Pierre Crete, son of Jean and Marguerite, who married Marie Drouin, daughter of Etienne and Catherine, in Château-Richer, Quebec on 29th October 1709 2
  • Henri Crete, son of Pierre and Marthe, who married Élisabeth Leduc, daughter of Guillaume and Élisabeth, in Quebec on 20th January 1732 2
  • Louis Crete, son of Pierre and Marie, who married Marie-Josephte Maheu, daughter of Pierre and Suzanne, in Beauport, Quebec on 5th June 1741 2
  • Jean-Baptiste Crete, son of Pierre and Madeleine-Angélique, who married Félicité Sauvé, daughter of Pierre and Louise-Angélique, in Bout-de-l'île, Quebec on 8th January 1757 2
  • Étienne Crete, son of Pierre and Madeleine-Angélique, who married Catherine Maheu, daughter of Pierre and Suzanne, in Beauport, Quebec on 5th February 1759 2


  1. "The first 1,000 family names by rank, Quebec (in French only)" Institut de la statistique du Quebec, https://statistique.quebec.ca/en/document/family-names-in-quebec/tableau/the-first-1000-family-names-by-rank-quebec
  2. Internoscia, Arthur E., and Claire Chevrier. Dictionnaire National des Canadiens Français 1608-1760. Vol. 1, Institut Drouin, 1958.


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