Galpin Family History

English (Dorset of Norman origin): nickname from Old French galopin galpin apparently a diminutive of the Old French noun galop or the base of the verb galoper and therefore denoting ‘one who gallops’. It may have been used of a gentleman who habitually rode his horse at a gallop or of a professional rider or messenger.

The noun galopin is recorded only in Modern French with the sense ‘errand boy’ and in modern English (late 16th century) with the unexpected sense ‘kitchen boy turnspit’ but perhaps also ‘errand boy page boy’. However, medieval bearers of the English surname were men of property indicating that galopin was originally used of men with a considerably higher status than an errand boy.

French: variant of Galopin or Galpin with the same sense as 1 above.