This is an old surname which has been recorded since at least the end of the 16th Century. It is probably a developed form of the medieval "hypet", one William Hypet being recorded in the Sussex Pipe Rolls of 1296. The name is therefore a patronymic and a development of the old English "Lippa", a nickname for a talkative person, plus the medieval French "petit", a shortened to "et" to give "son of Lipp" or "Little Lipp". The intrusive "s" is dialectal to aid pronunciation. The name recordings include Susana Lipsett who married Richard Atkeyson on July 31st 1670 at the famous church of St. Mary-le-Bone, London, whilst the variant spellings of Libbett is recorded in Warwickshire, when Mary Libbett (also recorded at Libit) married Richard Hancocke at St. Martins church, Birmingham November 20th 1703. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of John Lypset, which was dated May 17th 1607, married Elizabeth Jupe at the church of St. Mary Abbotts, Kensington, during the reign of King James 1 of England and V1 of Scotland, 1603 - 1625. Surnames became necessary when governments introduced personal taxation. In England this was known as Poll Tax. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop" often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.

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