This rare and unusual surname is of Anglo-Saxon origin, and is a locational name from some minor, unrecorded or now "lost" place, believed to have been situated in Northumberland, because of the large number of early recordings in that region. An estimated seven to ten thousand villages and hamlets are known to have disappeared since the 12th Century, due to such natural causes as the Black Death of 1348, in which an eighth of the population perished, and to the widespread practice of enforced "clearing" and enclosure of rural lands for sheep pastures from the 15th Century onwards. The component elements of the placename are believed to be the Olde English pre 7th Century personal name "Tula", with "hop", a small enclosed valley; hence "Tula's valley". Noted in the Northumberland Church Registers are Ellsabeth Tullop (1643), Anthony Towlope (1655) and John Tulopp (1672). Other recordings include: the marriage of John Tulip and Elizabeth Hedley on June 8th 1690 at Tynemouth, Northumberland; the marriage of William Tulip and Mary Welsh on July 30th 1693 at Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Northumberland; and the christening of John, son of Joseph and Mary Tulip, on February 14th 1697 at Easington, Durham. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of John Tulup, which was dated December 5th 1595, witness at a christening, at Berwick-upon-Tweed, Northumberland, during the reign of Queen Elizabeth 1, known as "Good Queen Bess", 1558 - 1603. 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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