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Grave History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

United States Canada Australia New Zealand

Contemporary Notables Related Stories Citations

Grave History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Netherlands
England
France

The name Grave 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 Grave family

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

Early History of the Grave family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Grave 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 Grave History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Grave Spelling Variations

Changes of spelling have occurred in most surnames. The earliest explanation is that during the early development of the French language, names were not yet fixed in spelling. Usually a person gave his version of his name, phonetically, to a scribe, a priest, or a recorder. This depended on accent, and local accents frequently changed the spelling of a name. Some variables were adopted by different branches of the family name. Hence, there are some spelling variations of the name Grave, including Grave, Grève, de Grèves, Grauve, Greive, Le Grave, de Grave, Graves and many more.

Early Notables of the Grave 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 Grave Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Grave Ranking

In France, the name Grave is the 2,813^rd most popular surname with an estimated 2,000 - 2,500 people with that name. 1

Grave migration to the United States +

In 1643, 109 years after the first landings by Cartier, there were only about 300 people in Quebec. Migration was slow. The fur trade attracted migrants, both noble and commoner. By 1675, there were 7000 French in Quebec. By the same year the French Acadian presence in the Maritimes had reached 500. The French founded Lower Canada, thus becoming one of the two great founding nations of Canada. The family name Grave has made many distinguished contributions in France and New France to the world of science, culture, religion, and education. Amongst the settlers in North America with this distinguished name Grave were

Grave Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Mrs. Elnor Grave, (Graye), who arrived in Virginia in 1608 aboard the ship "Susan" 2
Mrs. John Grave, Jr., (Graye), who arrived in Virginia in 1608 aboard the ship "Susan" 2
Mrs. John Grave, Jr., (Graye), who arrived in Virginia in 160 aboard the ship "Susan" 2
Mr. George Grave, (Graye), who was aboard the ship "Sea Venture" who wrecked in Bermudas in 1609, they managed to build a new ship to continue to Jamestown in 1610. 2
George Grave settled with his wife Elnor and son, John, aged 10, in Virginia in 1620
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Grave Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Mary Grave, who arrived in Virginia in 1705 3
Johannes Grave, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1753 3
Nicolaus Grave, who landed in America in 1783 3

Grave Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Marg Grave, who arrived in New York, NY in 1811 3
Jonathan Grave, who landed in New York in 1827 3
Elis Grave, who arrived in America in 1844 3
Heinrich Grave, aged 22, who landed in Missouri in 1845 3
Joh B Grave, aged 4, who arrived in New York, NY in 1847 3
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Grave migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Grave Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

Bertha Grave, aged 20, who landed in Quebec in 1868
Mathilde Grave, aged 18, who arrived in Quebec in 1868

Grave migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Grave Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Henry Grave, aged 40, who arrived in South Australia in 1847 aboard the ship "Gellert" 4

Grave migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

Grave Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Abel Grave, aged 31, a shoemaker, who arrived in Nelson, New Zealand aboard the ship "Thomas Harrison" in 1842
Sarah Grave, aged 30, who arrived in Nelson, New Zealand aboard the ship "Thomas Harrison" in 1842
Joseph Summers Grave, who arrived in Nelson, New Zealand aboard the ship "Thomas Harrison" in 1842
Mr. Abel Grave, (b. 1811), aged 31, British shoemaker travelling from London aboard the ship "Thomas Harrison" arriving in Nelson, South Island, New Zealand on 28th October 1842 5
Mrs. Sarah Grave, (b. 1812), aged 30, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "Thomas Harrison" arriving in Nelson, South Island, New Zealand on 28th October 1842 5
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Grave (post 1700) +

Frederick David Grave (b. 1889), American politician, Delegate to Connecticut convention to ratify 21st amendment at-large, 1933 6
Pierre Marie de Grave, French Divisional General during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars from 1789 to 1815 7
Franz Grave (1932-2022), German Catholic prelate who served as auxiliary bishop of the Diocese of Essen from 1988 until his retirement in 2008
Ivan Platonovich Grave (1874-1960), Russian and Soviet scientist in the field of artillery, Major General of the Engineer Corps (1942)
Dmitry Aleksandrovich Grave (1863-1939), Russian and Soviet mathematician

Citations +

http://www.journaldesfemmes.com/nom-de-famille/nom/
Pilgrim Ship's of 1600's Retrieved January 6th 2023, retrieved from https://www.packrat-pro.com/ships/shiplist.htm
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)
State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) GELLERT 1847. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1847Gellert.htm
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 26th March 2019). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, December 1) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
Generals Who Served in the French Army during the Period 1789-1815. (Retrieved 2015, March 6) Pierre Grave. Retrieved from http://www.napoleon-series.org/research/c_frenchgenerals.html