Show ContentsJepsen History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Early Origins of the Jepsen family

The surname Jepsen was first found in Denmark where the name is a patronymic name derived from "the son of Jacob," which in turn is derived from biblical given name Yaakov ("supplanter" or "follower"). 1

Early History of the Jepsen family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Jepsen research. The years 1896, 1902 and 1982 are included under the topic Early Jepsen History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Jepsen Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Jacobsen, Jakobsen. and others.

Early Notables of the Jepsen family

Another 31 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Jepsen Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Jepsen Ranking

In the United States, the name Jepsen is the 16,881st most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 2


Jepsen migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Jepsen Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • Thomas Jepsen, who arrived in San Francisco, California in 1850 3
  • Fritz Ferdinand Jepsen, who landed in Mobile, Ala in 1896 3

Jepsen 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:

Jepsen Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century
  • Jargen Jepsen, aged 26, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Halcione" in 1870 4

Contemporary Notables of the name Jepsen (post 1700) +

  • Roger William Jepsen (1928-2020), American politician, United States Senator from Iowa (1979-1985), 38th Lieutenant Governor of Iowa (1969-1976)
  • Les Jepsen (b. 1967), American professional basketball player
  • Peter C. Jepsen, American politician, Socialist Labor Candidate for U.S. Representative from New York 21st District, 1900 5
  • George C. Jepsen (b. 1954), American Democratic Party politician, Member of Connecticut State House of Representatives; Member of Connecticut State Senate 27th District, 1991- 5
  • Allan Kierstein Jepsen (b. 1977), Danish football player
  • Carly Rae Jepsen (b. 1985), Canadian Juno-nominated singer and songwriter


  1. Smith, Eldson Coles, New Dictionary of American Family Names New York: Harper & Row, 1956. Print
  2. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  3. 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)
  4. New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 12th December 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
  5. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, December 9) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html


Houseofnames.com on Facebook