E. De Felice notes that this is a Jewish surname formed from the French name Trèves, Italianized graphically and phonetically as Treves, derived from the German city of Trier (in German Trier). According to this author, in the 16th century the members of the Jewish community of that city were forced to take refuge in more tolerant neighbouring countries, among them southern France, and from there they emigrated to Italy.

E. Rossoni agrees on the Jewish origin and on the derivation from the demonym of Trier, but specifies the migratory itinerary: the founders of the surname would have first passed to France and then settled in the Aosta Valley region and in Piedmont, with a presence also in the Milan area.