Show ContentsGrève History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The name Grève has a long French heritage that first began in southern region of Languedoc. The name is derived from when the family lived in Languedoc but the name could have also been derived from the Old French word "grave," which meant "gravel."

Early Origins of the Grève family

The surname Grève was first found in Languedoc, where the family has held a family seat since very early times.

Early History of the Grève family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Grève research. Another 215 words (15 lines of text) covering the years 1096, 1150, 1248, 1651, 1669, 1708 and 1788 are included under the topic Early Grève History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Grève Spelling Variations

History has changed the spelling of most surnames. During the early development of the French language in the Middle Ages, a person gave his version of his name, phonetically, to a scribe, a priest, or a recorder. Some variables were adopted by different branches of the family name. Hence, there spelling variations of the name Grève, some of which include Grave, Grève, de Grèves, Grauve, Greive, Le Grave, de Grave, Graves and many more.

Early Notables of the Grève family

Notable amongst the family name at this time was Hugues, a Lord of Villegly and of Félines; and Jacques Gravier (1651-1708), a French Jesuit missionary in the New World from Moulins, Allier...
Another 32 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Grève Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Grève Ranking

In the United States, the name Grève is the 14,894th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 1


United States Grève migration to the United States +

Migration from France to New France or Quebec as it was now more popularly called, continued from France until it fell in 1759. By 1675, there were 7000 French in Quebec. By the same year the Acadian presence in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island had reached 500. In the treaty of Utrecht, the Acadians were ceded by France to Britain in 1713. In 1755, 10,000 French Acadians refused to take an oath of allegiance to England and were deported. They found refuge in Louisiana. In 1793, the remaining French in these provinces came under British rule. Meanwhile, in Quebec, the French race flourished, founding in Lower Canada, one of the two great solitudes which became Canada. Many of this distinguished family name Grève were prominent in social, cultural, religious and political affairs in France and New France. Amongst the settlers in North America with this distinguished name Grève were

Grève Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • Ann, Henry, John and Mary Greve, who settled in Philadelphia between 1796 and 1856

Contemporary Notables of the name Grève (post 1700) +

  • Orville W. Greve, American Democratic Party politician, Candidate for Michigan State House of Representatives 49th District, 1972 2
  • Jan Einar Greve (1933-2022), Norwegian lawyer, Chairman of the board of Bergen Bank (1970-1986)
  • Carsten Greve (b. 1965), Danish professor at Copenhagen Business School
  • Arent Greve (1733-1808), Norwegian painter and goldsmith
  • Mathias Sigwardt Greve (1832-1912), Norwegian physician, director of Rikshospitalet from 1883 to 1911
  • Adolf Bredo Stabell Greve (1871-1931), Norwegian architect, son of Mathias Greve
  • Georg C. F. Greve (b. 1973), German software developer, founder of the Free Software Foundation Europe, recipient of the Cross of Merit on ribbon of the Federal Republic of Germany in 2010
  • Henrik Greve Hille (1881-1946), Norwegian clergyman, Bishop of the Diocese of Hamar from 1934 to 1942


  1. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  2. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 14) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html


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