Show ContentsKreps History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The noble surname Kreps emerged in Pomerania, which is a territory of Germany and a maritime province of Prussia. Pomerania is bounded on the south by Brandenburg, on the west by Mecklenburg, and on the east by Poland. During the 5th century, Pomerania was settled by Pommern, who were a Slavic tribe. Pommern, which means on the sea, became the name of this region during the reign of the Charlemagne.

Early Origins of the Kreps family

The surname Kreps was first found in Pomerania, where the family rose to prominence early in the mediaeval era. Individual bearers of this name first mentioned in ancient chronicles include Krevet von Rostock (c.1300,) and Erhard zu dem Krebis of Strassburg (1371).

Early History of the Kreps family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Kreps research. Another 187 words (13 lines of text) covering the years 1311, 1493, 1690, 1713, 1741, 1755, 1762, 1780, 1787, 1803, 1804, 1814, 1827 and 1880 are included under the topic Early Kreps History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Kreps Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Krebs, Krebbs, Kraebs, Krebbes, Krebz, Crebs, Crebbs, Krevet (medieval form), Crebis, Krebis, Kraew, Krew and many more.

Early Notables of the Kreps family

Prominent bearers of the name Kreps at this time were Johann Tobias Krebs (1690-1762), a German organist and composer; Johann Ludwig Krebs (1713-1780), a prominent German composer and Friedrich Krebs (died 1493), an early German organ builder; Johann Tobias Krebs (1690-1762), a pupil of the great Johann Sebastian Bach, he was a composer at Buttelstedt and later Buttstaedt; his son followed in his footsteps: Johann Ludwig Krebs (1713-1780), a prominent...
Another 69 words (5 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Kreps Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Kreps Ranking

In the United States, the name Kreps is the 13,240th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 1


United States Kreps migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Kreps Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
  • Pieter Kreps, who landed in New York in 1709 2
  • Adam Kreps, aged 19, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1738 2
  • Christian Kreps, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1753 2
  • Philip Kreps, aged 18, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1753 2
  • Andrew Kreps, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1765 2
Kreps Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • Herman Kreps, who landed in Arkansas in 1882 2

Contemporary Notables of the name Kreps (post 1700) +

  • Juanita Morris Kreps (1921-2010), American government official and businesswoman, 24th United States Secretary of Commerce (1977-1979), the first woman to hold that position
  • Dean Kreps (b. 1961), American football coach and former player
  • David Marc "Dave" Kreps (b. 1950), American game theorist and economist and professor at the Graduate School of Business at Stanford University
  • William Kreps, American politician, Postmaster at Hagerstown, Maryland, 1807-22 3
  • W. C. Kreps, American Republican politician, Member of Pennsylvania State House of Representatives from Franklin County, 1889-90, 1899-1900; Alternate Delegate to Republican National Convention from Pennsylvania, 1900 3
  • Theodore Kreps, American Democratic Party politician, Presidential Elector for California, 1948 3
  • Juanita Morris Kreps (1921-2010), American politician, Secretary of Commerce, 1977-79 3
  • J. F. Kreps, American politician, Member of Pennsylvania State House of Representatives from Westmoreland County, 1870 3
  • Kamil Kreps (b. 1984), Czech professional ice hockey player


  1. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  2. Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
  3. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 6) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html


Houseofnames.com on Facebook