This interesting surname of Anglo-Saxon origin, with variant spellings Tapplin, Taplyne, Taplyn, and Tappin, is a diminutive of the surname derived from the Olde English personal name "Taeppa", which is of uncertain meaning, but may be derived from the Olde English "taeppa", peg, top, used as a byname for a noticeably thin person. The surname dates back to the early 13th Century (see below). Further recordings include one Robert Tappyng, Tepping (1221), in the Assize Court Rolls of Warwickshire, and Geoffrey Tapping (1235), in the Book of Fees of Northamptonshire. John Taplyn married Katheryne Warne on April 27th 1615 at St. Katherine by the Tower, London. James Taplin married Hannah Haly on November 5th 1638 at St. Botolph's, Bishopsgate, London, and Hana, daughter of James and Hana Taplin was christened on May 30th 1644 at St. Nicholas Acons, London. Elizabeth, daughter of Thomas and Sara Taplyne was christened on January 20th 1666 at St. Dunstan's Stepney. Miles Tappin an emigrant to the New World witnessed the christening of his son William, on September 15th 1679, in the Barbados. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Ralph Tapping, which was dated 1220, in the "Book of Fees of Berkshire", during the reign of King Henry 111, known as "The Frenchman", 1216 - 1272. 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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