Kulp
A surname likely from a German nickname or occupational root, often linked to forms like Kalb or related German names.
The #7,143 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 65,957 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The historical note you provided links Kulp with German forms such as Kalb and other related surnames, but it does not give a full derivation. On that evidence, Kulp is best treated as a surname of German origin, probably arising from a nickname or from a shortened regional form that later stabilized as a family name. The exact root is not secure from the excerpt alone, so the literal meaning should be treated cautiously.
History
The name appears in German-language surname material and is found in the United States, where it was carried by immigrants and their descendants. In North America, spellings and pronunciation were often simplified or fixed in the form Kulp. Because the source excerpt is brief and incidental, no more specific historical narrative is certain here.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
The excerpt specifically equates Kulp with Kalb, showing how surname reference works sometimes grouped different-looking names as variant or related forms.
From the historical record
“Kuhns = Kuntz, Kuhnsman = Kuntzmann, Kulp = Kalb, Kupferschmidt, p. 312 Kunders, p. 318 Kunsman = Kuntzmann, Kuntz, p. 307 Kuntzmann, p. 307”
— Studies in Pennsylvania German Family Names